Montréal, May 15, 2009 – The Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of State for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, and Claude Béchard, Ministre des Ressources naturelles et de la Faune du Québec and Ministre responsable de la région du Bas-Saint-Laurent, today announced $200 million in initial support measures stemming from the work of the Canada-Quebec Forestry Task Team. These measures are intended to assist forest workers and communities in dealing with the difficult situation plaguing the sector.
"The Government of Canada is keenly aware of the problems in the forest industry and the pressure these are placing on the workers and communities whose livelihoods depend on this sector. It is in response to these concerns that we are announcing today new programs to assist the workers and communities most severely affected by the world recession," noted the Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of State for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec.
"In April I promised concrete measures, and it is with great satisfaction that I am delivering them today. We decided to strike swiftly and boldly. We want these actions to have a real and tangible impact, and we want to give a breath of hope to the workers, the communities and the businesses that really need it," commented Minister Claude Béchard.
The measures announced today are as follow:
- Support for silviculture operations: $200 million in investment
The provincial and federal governments approved programs totalling $200 million for the period covering 2009-2010 to 2010-2011. These programs will make it possible to carry out the following activities in public and private forests throughout the regions of Quebec:
- reforestation operations in areas that have poorly regenerated following natural disturbances so as to enhance these sites;
- rehabilitation of hardwood and mixed wood forests so as to raise the quality and value of wood products;
- intensive silviculture operations, particularly commercial thinning in plantation areas, so as to increase forest yields and past investments.
Each government will invest $100 million in these operations, which also includes funding the development of access roads and the production of saplings by nurseries. These investments will result in the creation and maintenance of some 8,000 jobs.
- Innovation in industrial processes and the development of value-added projects: a pilot project on nanocrystalline cellulose
The provincial and federal governments have agreed to collaborate on a nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) development project in Quebec. NCC is made from refined wood fibre, a renewable resource. Due to its unique properties, a variety of applications for NCC are currently in development in the aerospace, cosmetics, floor finishing and pharmaceutical industries. Quebec is in a strong position to develop applications in these sectors, which are already well-established in the province.
- Market development for wood products
The two orders of government also hope to work together on promoting the commercialization of wood products, particularly in the non-residential construction and multi-family housing sectors.
The Canada-Quebec Forestry Task Team is composed of representatives from Natural Resources Canada, the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, the Business Development Bank of Canada and Export Development Canada as well as the Ministère des Ressources naturelles et de la Faune, the Ministère du Développement économique, de l'Innovation et de l'Exportation and Investissement-Québec. The team, which will continue to meet on a biweekly basis, met its objective to propose concrete measures by May 15.
In response to the pressing needs of forest-reliant workers and communities, the Task Team will also coordinate implementation of targeted measures in four other areas, namely access to credit, innovation technology, value-added manufacturing and market development for wood products where significant gains have been registered. The committee will be pursuing its operations and should be in a position to make additional announcements in the coming weeks. See the attached backgrounders for further details on the state of progress in these areas of intervention.
Pascal Dastous
Director of Communications
Office of Minister Claude Béchard
Ministère des Ressources naturelles et de la Faune du Québec
418-643-7295
Media Relations
Ministère des Ressources naturelles et de la Faune du Québec
418-627-8609
Éric Lefebvre
Senior Special Assistant, Communications
Office of the Honourable Denis Lebel
Canada Economic Development
613-608-7906
E-mail: eric.lefebvre@dec-ced.gc.ca
Media Relations
Canada Economic Development
514-283-8818
