Count on change: Ramsay: natural resources minister discusses impending growing pains for sector.

• Author: Ross, Ian
• Position: FORESTRY

Ontario's forest industry is moving to a new value-added economy, and while the sector is enduring some agonizing transitional pains, changes are inevitable, says Ontario's natural resources minister.

In mid-June, David Ramsay's likeness was burned in effigy outside the closing Excel saw mill in Opasatika, and later he faced 600 angry mill workers in Thunder Bay to deliver the government's response to the Minister's Council on Forest Sector Competitiveness.

The Timiskaming-Cochrane MPP realizes he is under the gun to act upon the 26 recommendations outlined by a body of forestry stakeholders.

The provincial industry is being battered on a number of fronts with a surging Canadian dollar and high energy and fibre costs. Many in the industry also say there is a growing crisis in wood supply to feed proposed regional mega-mills at the expense of smaller localized mills.

In a phone interview with Northern Ontario Business, Ramsay wouldn't commit to implementing any particular recommendation except to say his Ministry staff will move swiftly in studying the report to prepare an action plan to address many industry issues.

"We're going to start work on this immediately and we need to start to show results in the next few months.

"There are some good ideas in the report that we can move on."

Starting with a $350 million program of loan guarantees, Ramsay says the government wants to provide incentives for industry to make better use of harvested wood, create more value-added opportunities, bring about energy efficiencies or go into co-generation.

MNR needs to change, too

The Ministry of Natural Resources is also in store for some "administrative changes" to streamline requirements and update the regulatory regime to be more "business friendly."

Addressing the industry's primary complaints of energy and wood costs with the co-operative efforts of other provincial ministries, says Ramsay, namely, Finance, Transportation and Energy.

Critics, including NDP Leader Howard Hampton, have demanded the McGuinty government give direct investment to the forestry sector, similar to the $500-million aid package for Ontario's auto industry.

But Ramsay answers there's "not a mountain of cash" in provincial coffers to deliver that.

"We are being very disciplined in our budget and expenditures in wanting to hold the line."

Ramsay says there are other ways Queen's Park can help, as 0outlined in the council's report.

The province is agreeable to creating larger forest...