This one stinks!
Cutting Fort St.James out of the round table process is a slap in the face by Rich Coleman and the B.C.government!
The reasons behind this move are cloudy at best,considering Vanderhoof has a local economy that is at least a bit more diversified than what Fort St.James has,although they are hurting too!
In Fort ST.James,Stuart Lake Lumber is closed and unlikely to open up ever again,Pope & Talbot is shut down for god knows how long,and Apollo Forest products is on a reduced work week.
MacKenzie has a mayor and council that makes itself known,but Fort St.James has a council and a mayor who have done and said very little and it shows!
Time that all changed,and I would urge every who possibly can, to attend.
(and that includes me)
Fort St.James has been quiet for far too long!

It just means that the government officials are too lazy to go out to FSJ. because the 1hr 45 min trip there and back makes it too hard to go home on the same day to la la land.

Have it in FSJ, spend some money to the local businesses. spread the wealth.

I feel sorry for those folks in the ol' Fort where I grew up. I know Winston Cheung and his family quite well as they have had various businesses in the Fort for probably close to 40 years.

I would wager a bet and say that you sure don't see many workers being laid off on those Olympic venue projects.

Our provincial government is a disgrace. They have no empathy and no vision for the North.

My sentiments exactly Howrd!

Communties must face reality- there is very little both the federal and provinical governments can do other than give assistance to laid off workers. The down turn is due to:

1. Low lumber/log prices.

2. High Canadian dollar.

3. Weak demand for lumber products- US housing crisis.

4. 15% tariff on lumber

5. Over supply of lumber

Until these variable are corrected or changed the situation will bleak for a great number of towns in BC.

dog...I agree that there is little our governments can actually do at the present time to fix the underlying reasons behind the downturn in the forest sector,however I don't think that is what people are asking for.
They are mainly asking for support and some sort of infrastructure to weather the storm without losing everything they have worked for!
That really isn't too much to ask!
And while the B.C.government promises a lot,they are very slow to deliver.
First of all, they have to make all the appropriate splashy announcements and hold the right number of photo opps,then go away and think about it all for a month or so.
Then there is the usual redtape that takes a lawyer to figure out before a person can actually access the services!
And of course,there is the sheer stupidity of things like cutting communities like Fort St.James out of the round table process.
Let's face it,this crash didn't just start,it has been in the works for quite a while,but true to form,nothing was done until the peasants started to rise up!!
Sorry for the inconvenience!
Our elected leaders need to get off their very well paid asses and get out to these communities that are affected and help people figure out just what their options are.
They need to get out there and look these people in the eye.
Anyone who has worked the same job for a number of years has never even stopped to think about things like re-training,relocation,or even worse,paying the mortgage.
That was called job security, and they no longer have that!
Now they have to make some tough choices, and many people are not up to speed on how to do that, through no fault of their own.
SUPPORT is what displaced workers want and need,and so far,that is not forth coming to any extent.
Instead, it is all promises and rhetoric based on picking up as many political brownie points as possible with a minimum of dollars spent,so far.

hey dogs, let's face reality-these insignificant communities have contributed huge to this province, Mackenzie alone 5% of the gross revenue for the entire province per year when in production, Fort St. James similiar revenue. Thanks to our federal government selling us out to the tune of 15% tarrif on lousy negotiated softwood agreement. Our provincial government untieing our area timber to our community and it makes it difficult to weather any economic downturn. Then add in any services that can be cut by governments and your left with a community with no jobs and no infrastructure to attract new business. I think the amount these insignificant communities have contributed should be entitled to some attention from Victoria and Ottawa.P.S.Has anyone seen or heard John Rustad?

John Rustad...the name sounds familiar. He's the guy that stands and smiles besides the cheques that get handed out. He would be good at the variety club telethon but the only time I've seen him is when he's looking for membership.

Hey!... that's the guy RugratsMom!
You've obviously seen him too!
He also will be looking for re-election votes soon in the new riding recently created by the Liberals!

Times are tough.I personally am going to loose my house that have I lived in for the last ten years.I am moving on for my families well being.I have suffered from depression and have started the heain process no thanks to our federal/provncial/or local goverments.They have made hoops smaller and the fences higher.This round table is a perfect example of skirting the issues. I dont think we can control u.s economy. But after what I have seen in fort Maybe a total shutdown of the bush north of ft st james would control our future.Do you hear this Mr.round table .If there is no wood for mills that are working Canfor, west fraser, dunkley maybe we can control the price.What is the worst that can happen I would end up in jail.At least then I would have three squares a day and a roof over my head.That is more than I have now.STOP LONG HAUL LOGGING IT IS CHEAPER AND MORE ENERGY EFFICENT TO PROCESS CLOSER TO WHERE IT IS CUT. FACT.Pak I wish and hope the best thursday

My condolences invisableman,and unfortunately,you are not alone.
There will be more unfortunately,we are just warming up!
What a sorry state of affairs!

Firstly I agree times are tough for smaller less diverse communties and yes this government has been slow to react or have no plan at all- I ran 10 EBAP crews when times were tough in the 80's, also put 100's of IWA workers back to work on FRBC projects-the government needs some thing or some one with vision to kick start it.

Secondly the softwood lumber agreement was a complete sell out. It may be the biggest factor in the forest crisis- I do not see any pressure being direct Harper's way.

I agree with Andyfreeze that our Mayor and council are not doing anything about our community, I mean the Mayor has a good paying job and his own company and his wife works so
why should he care about the Fort.
If the Mayor and council were affected then maybe they would do something.