good for you rich coleman to be able to see thru this disaster and make the connection to bio- energy as the one and possibly the only way out of it.because of our provincial debt the new york mortgage lenders may not make it easy for you, there is the fact that they are also in the energy business and will be reluctunt to bank roll any competition.the process for conversion are known for the last half century and more so the hands on stuff is the simpler part, the political wrangling of control will be tough.the jobs and more will come if you and the rest of us can see it to fruition.

I have no faith in anything he says on the subject for one simple reason. Where is the tax policy that enables the rhetoric that he speaks of.?

It does not exist and they haven't even begun to think about that therefore his official liberal 'dream' is of no more credibility then the likewise 'dream' of the ndp for forest policy.

Tax policy should be designed to enable things society wants; and discourage things society does not want; while simultaneously protecting the rights of everyone involved by having taxes directly tied to there stated purpose. The liberal policy is to view tax policy as allocating government revenue obligations based on class ideology... ditto for the ndp.

If we are serious about bio-energy how can we encourage its incubation through tax policy to make it a viable and mature new industry with countless spin off benefits to society that would far outweigh the forgone government revenue from dumb tax policy? How can tax relief be targeted to the bio-energy industry?

I think bio-energy was the buzz word of the day and the Forest Minister ran with it without any real free enterprise plan.

I wonder if Rich Coleman really has any concept of just how long it will take for the forest to rejuvenate from the effects of the mountian Pine Beetle?
"we can get carbon credits"...I guess that's the new catch-phrase!

Kevin Falcon says the truckers just have to charge more to deal with fuel increases. Rich Coleman says we just have to adjust our stumpage measurements so we can afford to haul in our bio-fuels. It sure would be nice if we had a politician with answers that actually mean something!

I'll take Coleman's upbeat *we will make lemonade out of a lemon* attitude any day over all the gloom and doom *we are totally sc__wed* bleatings!

I think that Coleman just like all the other players knows exactly how long it will take for the forests to rejuvenate. In the meantime other species of trees are growing (as usual) every day and the sky has not fallen yet.

Let's make the best out of a difficult situation! Yes. Good idea.

You people should be more positive. I would like to point out that the reason for all the mill closures is the demand for lumber has temporarily dropped. They are not shutting down because of the pine bettle. Also there is a lot of good spruce and fir yet. As well as 10 years of pine logging. Pulp mills are strong and viable. They will start chipping pine if nothing else. Most these mills will be starting up again once the market improves, and it will. To always knock the Liberal gov. is rediculus, shows we have a few couch potatoes on here. Remember there never was
total job security.Prince George is still a good place to live. I am a mover, we are still moving people in here.

Let me get this right. WE are going to haul logs further than use mills that are already close to the fiber by giving those companies stumpage credits.Hmmmmmm Now we will get green credits for planting new trees.HMMMMMMMM How about hauling to mills closer to the fiber and planting more trees.Ahhhhhhh Now the enviroment and the tax payers would be better off.But the poor big boys at corporate headquartes would not be close to work.Now where would these new bio plants planned be built? Burns Lake,Vanderhoff or Prince George close to corparate offices.If we are serious on the saving the plant as well as harvesting it to mans benefit thens lets use something my mother taught me and that is common sense and to share.This sounds like a few with control are going to take care of Number 1 and the rest will come on line because we are good little sheep.

I agree with you for the most part diplomat however,Coleman knows exactly how long it will take to rejuvenate our forests!
A very long time,and during that time there will be a lot of major hurdles to overcome, as we all are aware.
He also knows it will be not be quite as simple as he makes it sound.
We need to be looking ahead but we also need to be realistic in terms of what we are actually dealing with.
Rose colored glasses won't help the problem go away.
I still think the full impact of the pine beetle issue is being downplayed.
The forest industry in B.C, has NEVER had to deal with the likes of this,so much remains an unknown.
A good place to start would be less talk,less roundtable rhetoric,and a lot more action!
The government can start by adjusting stumpage rates dramatically on pine beetle kill,maybe even throw in some tax incentives to give logging companies and sawmills a solid financial reason to get out there and get the wood out and mill it.
Whatever it takes, and that is where the government comes in.
Get at it!
Also,I think there is little doubt the government will reduce the allowable cut on the green stuff as time goes on,to force companies to take the bug kill so again,more needs to be done to make the dead stuff attractive to the buyers themselves in the market place.
And the jury is still out on how long the standing beetle wood will remain viable for lumber production.I have been told by several sawmillers that they are already running into problems with some of it blowing up in the saws.
So that leaves the bio-energy industry that we do need to pay more attention too.
Then there is the problem of the forestry workers already out of work.
What do we need to put them back to work as soon as possible, or are those jobs just plain gone?
Because that's what the bottom line is...jobs!
And our governments provincially and federally, could also start to get serious about mining.
While it will never be a replacement for the forest industry, it could certianly be a much bigger player than it is!
I think we have the enviromental technology and controls available to speed up the permitting process.
It is taking far too long to bring these new mines online, which only results in a lack of interest as a serious generator of employment for those displaced by the forest industry.
Onward and upward!!!

Coleman is just echoing what has already been said for a long time now. I see no leadership in this guy.

Pine beetle..pine beetle..Don't forget about the other pesky critters that may spring up to chow down on the spruce tree population. And coleman was no better as the sol general as he is as forestry minister..just gordon campbell throwing his buddies a bone.

Good point Imorg!

"He remains optimistic and says despite recent reports indicating the dead trees, killed by the mountain pine beetle, are now creating a carbon sink, there is an opportunity"

Someone got the carbon sink bit wrong. Asd was stated a few days ago, these trees are dying and will create more carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases over the years than a so called healthy forest does.

Time to get planting guys, to take up the carbon dioxide. The longer we wait, the less fibre we will have in the future and the smaller our new carbon sink will be.

Of course, we can also take the approach of no longer managing the forests and letting them regenerate themselves and self regulate through fires without us intervening in fires when the break out.

Does anyone know what the action plan is other than using buzz words like bio-energy and setting up plants that will run out of feedstock in 10 years and may run into cost problems since the cost to harvest an otherwise useless tree can become very high?

Messages from our minister?
I hope the comment about what our forest minister thinks is a "carbon sink" was a mistaken quote. The comment about other species and wood supply from other places which will support the future industry is a spooky concept if you live in a small mill town. Can you hear the sounds of suction yet?
Last but not least the message that the roundtable won't be a forum to discuss job losses. That's nice that jobs aren't important, that if you live in small town BC, that your timber will be on its way to where the votes are. Its nice to know that corporate wellbeing is far more important than communities or jobs or the equity you might of had in your home.

Well said woodchipper!
Unfortunately for the people of B.C.,we are blessed with a government that really does think the entire population is stupid!
Me thinks they have it the wrong way around!