May 5

Tom Rosser, Forest Products Association of Canada
http://www.fpac.ca/en/index.php

Tom Rosser commented that Canada’s forestry industry is particularly vulnerable to climate change, citing examples of fire and insect pest outbreaks. As background on the forestry industry, he said that it directly employs 361,000 people. This predominantly rural sector employer supports nearly 320 communities. With its above-average wages, the forest industry also provides an economic base for Aboriginal peoples, employing 15,000.

The unique feature of the industry is its geographic dispersion across almost every region in Canada. Few realize that Canada is the largest exporter in the world of wood products making it a significant contributor to the country’s positive trade balance. That is all good news, said Rosser, but what is the relationship to climate change? Forests depend on ecosystems that are already being influenced by climate change.

Rosser gave the example of the mountain pine beetle outbreaks in British Columbia and Alberta. In 2004 alone, this insect pest was responsible for the loss of 270 million cubic metres of timber with an economic value in the billions. Recent warm winters (i.e., no deep freezes) and hot, dry summers have led to the proliferation of the beetle.

Forest fires, like insect pests, are a normal part of the forest cycle. However their frequency and severity has been increasing, given that forest fires are sensitive to changes in weather. Last year, Rosser said, three million hectares burned—an area half the size of Nova Scotia.

Changes in climate could have significant impact on tree growth and yield, as trees planted now mature only late in the century. Given the concern in Canada, the industry is looking to researchers to shed some light on the following questions:

Is it possible to understand the interactions between insects and climate change, in order to anticipate the next outbreak?

Can climate change be incorporated into fire suppression models?

Can climate change also be incorporated into daily forest management activities?

Rosser noted that the Canadian Forest Products Industry is proud of its achievements with respect to greenhouse gas emissions, which have been reduced by 20% despite an increase in output. He pointed out that the forest industry is the first industry in Canada with a memorandum of understanding with the federal government to cooperate on climate change issues. There is a commitment between industry and government to work together on a policy framework with respect to climate change impacts on forests.

Noting that considerable research has been conducted by agencies such as NRCan and the Canadian Forest Service, Rosser said, however, that a framework is still lacking to support dialogues on adaptation. Discussions are largely ad-hoc in nature, he said, although processes are well developed to monitor events and impacts in the context of mitigation where the forest industry has been focused as well. The key, said Rosser, is to bring the issue of adaptation to the foreground in a setting where neither climate change skeptics nor believers want to focus on adaptation. Unfortunately, “this marginalizes public attention and diverts it to where the resources go,” he said.

“No matter what we do on the mitigation side, some degree of climate change is inevitable,” said Rosser. Therefore adaptation is key. While there are now resources dedicated to adaptation, proportionally more still goes to the mitigation side. “We’ve done a bit and are committed to doing more; but now there remains the question of balance and the need for a more holistic approach.”

A participant referred to a recent bioindustrial process conference in Florida where conversion of existing infrastructure in pulp and paper plants to biorefineries was discussed. Asked if there is a move in this direction in Canada, Rosser said that in the long-term, the industry is looking at these exciting possibilities. “The industry is aware of these issues and might consider preliminary road mapping.”

2005-04-05