........Comment by Bill Moore ...The forest around us |
It’s confusing |
....What’s new in the forest around
us? Possibly confusion. Not that it is really a new subject, but it
seems to have taken on a bigger spotlight these days. Maybe we should
sit back for a minute and check out a few topics that mean something
to this forest industry, and a few bits and pieces of confusion surrounding
these topics. |
you grow trees this fast, lumber from those trees would take a lot
of drying and preservation from rot. Also one hears of changing governments
in good old South America rather more often than one does in this upper
America. |
the Forest
Service has brought out its findings for the spray program in the Fraser
Canyon for this year. In effect they state in their press release: ....• Morality is less than one per cent. ....• The adverse effect of the bud- ........worm is not considered signifi- ........cant. ....• A cost study shows a 41 cent re- ........turn on every dollar invested in ........a chemical control program. ....Leapin’ Lizards, Sandy, why did we have to go through that whole confusing grade B movie plot last year of yelling crowds and cries of doom to be told this year that the whole exercise is dropped because it’s not important. Come now, chaps, ‘tis bad enough to be confused by hydrogen bomb extinction, but let’s have a bit of balance on these kinds of local issues. Thank you kindly. ....We move on to “How Not To Put Logs In The Water And Go Broke.” One can see the clear thinking of our elected and unelected lads in Ottawa sitting around the campfire discussing the pros and cons of transporting logs on the west coast of Canada – all by barge – or possibly by tunnel from the Queen Charlottes and Vancouver Island to the big city markets of the Vancouver Area. ....Now all this is well and good – not to contaminate the salt waters of B.C.’s coast with nasty old log booms. But if those campfire boys on the Ottawa River want to keep some tax dollars from coming in from the coastal forest industry, they better get their act together and start cleaning up some other nasties in the salt water too. Like oil, sewage, and other man made messes. ....Certainly this industry needs to watchdog the losses of logs in salt water and protect our shoreline from unnecessary debris. But for the campfire boys to dream up a confusing |
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page 36 | British Columbia
Lumberman, April, 1978 |
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issue of
not letting logs be put in salt water, is tantamount to closing down an
industry that supports a great many of our west coast population. Better
they should clean up their own St. Lawrence River system first! ....It seems a bit of a paradox in this last confusing issue that management and labor in the forest industry stand together in their opposition to gover-nment policy. Both see high costs and as loss of jobs. It is not that often these two sides find common ground, but of late we have seen a widening of their opinions on certain forest policy. This, of course, can only spell good for the industry as a whole. I feel sure that with both sides pressing their common interest it will be very difficult to keep the issue confusing to the public. |
....Environmentally,
the two issues of Waterborne and Spraying are sound. We all want a clean
province, but to hastily correct the years of past abuses might prove
to be just plain too costly to our taxpayers. And after all, that’s
where the dollar comes to roost. ....If nothing else, the above confusing issues only help to point out the need for sound sensible statements and the credibility to go with those statements as spoken by the forest industry people. This industry is not noted in the history books as always letting the public know its reasons for certain issues. It has assumed a lot over the years because it is big and important to the economy of the province or the country. But now more and more people speak out on issues that are not always justified on economic value al- |
one. The recent VanPly
issue is one of note. ....This industry has bettered itself in the communications line in a few short years because it had to. Public relations officers should not hold jobs only to come to the rescue of a problem, but should be prepared with pen in hand to anticipate industry problems and thereby avoid the confusion before the problem becomes so muddled. ....‘Tis the day of: lay it on the line; speak clear; and avoid confusion, in this forest around us. That is, if we want a better informed public. After all, that public is also us. . .........................Keep out of the bight, ..........................................Bill Moore |
British Columbia Lumberman, April, 1978 | page 37 |