BUILDING BC’S FUTURE WITH WOOD (2003)  

 

According to the Ministry of Forests and Ranges and Ranges – “Forest Innovation Investment Strategy”:

 

·  There is a singular focus on international marketing – domestic marketing of wood use is not included as part of the strategy.

·  Engineered wood products are identified as a competitive threat/obstacle in the same way as steel and concrete, yet these products represent the future of the industry.

 

Marketing wood successfully abroad begins at home. By marketing wood use domestically, we develop showcases of wood use at home, which then become strategic assets to help market BC’s wood products abroad.

 

Other areas of Canada and the world are far more aggressive with regards to developing the value added sector and increasing the use of wood:

 

·  Finland (pop. 5.2 million) - invested $90 million in their “Value Added Wood Chain” program which involves marketing, research and new product development, education and enhancing manufacturing capacity.

·  France - has adopted a “build with wood” strategy to meet Kyoto goals. By increasing the use of wood in construction by 10%, they figure that they will reduce green house gas emissions by 20%.

·  Alberta - inspired by leaders like Finland, will soon be releasing a Value Added Strategy that will seek to increase their competitiveness and manufacturing capacity in a wide range of value added wood products.

 

Despite several build with wood resolutions spearheaded by local government calling on the provincial government to optimize the use of wood in all publicly funded projects, steel and concrete continues to dominate many public sector projects to the exclusion of wood use.

 

With projects like the 2010 Olympics and the Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre, BC has an opportunity to make a very powerful international statement of pride, environmental stewardship and excellence in the use of wood in construction.

 

The provincial government is making progress in enhancing the primary forest industry’s competitiveness. Now, the same attention and dedication to competitiveness and advancement needs to occur for the wood products/value added sector of the industry. There is a US $200 billion market for value added wood products in North America, and it is growing at 10% per year. Currently, BC has less than 1% of this market (Peter Woodbridge and Associates, 2000).

 

THE CHAMBER RECOMMENDS

 

That the provincial government:

 

1. initiate development of a long-term value added wood strategy that defines potential means of accelerating the growth of this industry sector;

 

2. establish a provincial policy to encourage that all publicly funded and Public Private Partnership building projects consider showcasing, where feasible, the use of wood and sustainable building practices; and

 

3. allocate international marketing funds to assist in making BC projects of major international profile (e.g. Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre, 2010 Olympic Venues) world-class showcases of wood use and sustainable building practices.