RESOLUTION…

RESOLUTION

Corporation of the Township of South Algonquin
Date:February 1, 2018
Meeting: Regular Council Meeting
Res. No.:18-030
Moved by: R. Shalla
Seconded by: Dave Harper

WHEREAS, The Township of South Algonquin and many other small rural communities in Ontario depend on the Forestry industry as the main source of employment and economy; and WHEREAS, Socio-economic studies completed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF), verified by Ontario’s Ministry of Finance, as well as independent wood-supply studies completed by industry Foresters, have concluded that thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars of tax revenue will be lost if provincial Species at Risk (SAR) policy direction is passed; and WHEREAS, there is still a need to further research factors associated with SAR habitat protection such as climate change; and WHEREAS, Ontario has world-class legislation, the Crown Forest Sustainability Act (CFSA), which provides balanced and sustainable forest management, as well as, provincial and federal species at risk legislation, all of which conflict resulting in a threat to sustainable forestry practices and the industry; and WHEREAS, sustainable forest management in Ontario that protects both the resource and the industry for future generations requires a collaborative approach; Practitioners, First Nations, and the Ontario Forestry Industries Association are willing to work together. This would ensure that community and traditional ecological knowledge passed down through generations of people who have been managing sustainable forests in Ontario for more than a century is utilized to ensure logical and effective policy is developed, and WHEREAS, if the government continues to implement flawed ESA policy, mills will close, jobs will be lost, and forestry dependent communities such as South Algonquin will be decimated; and THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED the Government of Ontario provide stability and support the 175,000 hardworking men and women in this province whose livelihood depend on the forestry industry, by increasing the extension of the application of the current regulation to 5 years to ensure that the impact of the policies can be clearly defined and effective solutions developed; and FURTHER, BE IT RESOLVED that the Government of Ontario establish an independent panel that includes members of our community or communities like ours, who understand the direct impact of this policy, but also have an appreciation for the need for resource protection which will result in the most effective and practical policy development and implementation; and FURTHER, BE IT RESOLVED the Government of Ontario move forward with this and make a final decision on this prior to March 30th, 2018 and that a plan to develop the above noted panel occur immediately thereafter.

Carried by: Jane Dumas

Defeated by:

[Original Comment ID: 212449]