The mayor of Grand Forks says he’ll go to Ottawa next week on his own dime to help present a united front with Interfor following the indefinite shutdown of the local sawmill.
Everett Baker says he has been working with all levels of government to make softwood an issue in trade talks with the United States.
“We’re looking to deliver a common message to the feds that we need some attention,” Baker said. “And this is a crisis.”
Interfor announced in September that the Grand Forks will would be curtailed for three weeks as part of company-wide plans to cut production by 12 per cent by December.
The shutdown has since been extended until further notice. The company cited “persistent market headwinds and the continued impact of U.S. trade actions.” Tariffs and duties on US-bound softwood exports now total 45 per cent.
The Grand Forks mill has about 150 employees and an estimated 300 contractors are also affected by the closure.
On Tuesday, Kootenay Central MLA Brittny Anderson, who is also the minister of state for local governments and rural communities, visited Grand Forks to meet with affected employees and contractors.
“They shared how any of these are young families with mortgages. And now their livelihood has been threatened,” Baker said. “So it was a good opportunity for the minister to hear firsthand what’s happening on the ground here in Grand Forks.”
On Friday, some of those same people are expected to meet with South Okanagan-West Kootenay MP Helena Konanz to share the same message.
Baker said he was encouraged that Premier David Eby issued a statement Tuesday, calling for federal support for forestry workers. Baker said he has also spoken with Kootenay-Monashee MLA Steve Morissette and BC forests minister Ravi Parmar. Next week Baker will be in Ottawa with Interfor CEO Ian Fillinger.
In an Instagram post last week, Konanz said she wrote to the Liberals asking for an emergency debate in the House of Commons on softwood.
Responding in the House of Commons, government house leader Steven MacKinnon said he treated the request “with a little dose of skepticism” as to whether it was much of an emergency to the opposition.
“I have a different message to deliver to him,” Baker said. “It is not just for ourselves, but for all the mill towns in British Columbia and actually through Canada.”
Baker said following the 2018 floods that devastated Grand Forks, the city was front and centre with senior levels of government. He is hoping to draw the same attention to the region on softwood.
Baker added some of the idled Grand Forks mill workers are now collecting employment insurance, while others are ineligible, and some who are training to be millwrights are wondering whether they will be able to obtain their certification.
In addition to politicians at all levels, Baker said he has had many phone calls from the community offering support, including the credit union, Chamber of Commerce, and food banks.
“I certainly recognize what this could mean to our community and to the workers. That’s really what I’m fighting for, is the workers to maintain their jobs and to keep Interfor operational in Grand Forks.”
(CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Steve Morissette is the MLA for Kootenay West. The riding was renamed in the last election.)
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