As the international battle on softwood lumber tariffs heats up, Premier Christy Clark is vowing to fight what she believes is an unfair trade action that puts B.C. forestry jobs at risk.
"My message to those workers and their families and those communities is this: We are here for you. We are going to fight for you and we are not going to give up this fight until it is won," Clark said at a news conference Tuesday.
Her pronouncement comes just hours after an announcement by the U.S. Trump administration that would see import duties of up to 24 per cent slapped onto Canadian softwood imports.
The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) says the duties would be retroactive for 90 days.
The spat over softwood sits squarely in the middle of a much larger issue: The renegotiating of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly slammed publicly.
"We love Canada, wonderful people, wonderful country, but they have been very good about taking advantage of us through NAFTA," Trump told a conservative news gathering Monday in what appears to be his opening shot in a cross-border battle over wood products.
Clark said she is meeting with cabinet members, an envoy to Washington, D.C. and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to discuss the developments and determine further actions to reach a fair deal with the U.S.
"We are all going to be working as a team, all of us united. I want to compliment the federal government that has been extremely responsive," she said.
The Liberal leader also announced a number of actions intended to protect the industry moving forward. In the short term, Clark pledged to pre-buy B.C. softwood for later use in housing projects. In the long term, she said the province will be initiating new trade missions to India, China and Japan to reduce its reliance on U.S. softwood markets.
B.C. NDP Leader John Horgan seized the news as an opportunity to slam the fact Clark hasn't managed to help secure a deal since the previous agreement ended in 2015.
Though the negotiations are happening federally, Clark herself said B.C. “has always played a pivotal role” in the talks.
Horgan also criticized Clark for not personally lobbying the province’s case in D.C. as other premiers have.
"This inaction has been extremely costly to us," Horgan said. "I don't understand how the premier could sit idly by when Brad Wall from Saskatchewan went to Washington after Mr. Trump was elected to make his case on behalf of the people of Saskatchewan. Rachel Notley went to Washington to make her case on behalf of the people of Alberta, but Christy Clark sent a bureaucrat."
A hefty tariff on B.C. softwood lumber shipments will be devastating to an industry that's crucial for the provincial economy, said Green Leader Andrew Weaver.
Weaver says the BC Liberals have neglected the industry for the better part of 16 years, and calling an emergency cabinet meeting to make things right will do little – and should be seen as an act of desperation and political grandstanding.
"Where were they discussing lumber in the legislature? Absent," Weaver said.
"We know that forestry is our single most important resource sector in the province. It's essential in terms of its long term management that we start to take long term measures now."
British Columbia is the largest exporter of softwood lumber to the U.S., and the industry supports approximately 145,000 jobs in the province, according to the BC Lumber Trade Union.
President Susan Yurkovich said the newly-announced duties are unwarranted, without merit and would create price volatility in the lumber market in North America – in particular driving up prices for consumers in the U.S.
American demand for lumber currently exceeds what the U.S. industry currently produces, she says, adding that that demand will grow in coming years with the rise of construction and housing starts.
"There is enough North American demand to grow the U.S. industry while also allowing Canada to supply its U.S. customers as we have been doing for decades," she said.
The B.C. lumber industry will focus on diversifying, including boosting exports to Asian countries, she added.
In 2015, 59 per cent of B.C.'s softwood lumber exports were sent to the U.S.
Jim Carr, Natural Resources Minister, said the federal government "strongly disagrees" with the decision to impose "an unfair and punitive duty" on Canadian lumber.
Carr says the feds will rigorously defend the industry by all means possible, including litigation.
"In ruling after ruling since 1983, international tribunals have disproved the unfounded subsidy and injury allegations from the U.S. industry. We have prevailed in the past and we will do so again," said Carr.
