The madness continues.

• Author: Wray, Chris
• Position: NEWS

Where will the madness stop! Announcements from Atikokan, White River, Cochrane and Kapuskasing this past week provide real evidence that the "crash" of the forest industry in Northern Ontario continues. Yet, the effect of this economic downturn is not limited to the subject companies.

At risk for many, is the loss of a culture and a way of life. White River, for example, was a community built on the benefits of an operation owned by Domtar. The closure of that mill robbed the community of a large industrial tax base placing an ever larger burden on the remaining tax base that is now losing value due to the closure. The disappearance of those good paying jobs then results in residents, some of them long term, seeking employment elsewhere. The trouble does not stop there.

The migration of the primary workers takes the secondary skills with them leaving the secondary industries, such as the service sector, in ruins. This may result in the inability to address the needs of the service sector. The effects of this can be felt through the service sector including a very sensitive tourism industry--which has its own set of problems.

While there have been some attempts to address these issues, it has not been enough. "Adjustment committees" only serve to assist displaced employees to find jobs elsewhere, thereby exponentially speeding up the demise of the community. Don't get me wrong as human beings we all want to assist our fellow community members, but in so doing, we may actually be assisting with the ultimate demise of our own community. Actions by the provincial and federal levels of government have not had the type of impact that is needed to save small "forest based" industry towns in Northern Ontario from complete evaporation--despite that, I do think the senior levels of government do care.

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