The bottom line is that under this government's watch over 112,000 jobs, or 36% of all the jobs in the forestry sector, have been lost in the last 10 years: 21,400 jobs in British Columbia; 40,700 jobs in Ontario; and 41,600 jobs in Quebec. The worst part of this, of course, is that the jobs have been lost in just 200 or so so-called forestry-dependent communities.
You all know the communities: Miramichi, New Brunswick; Shawinigan, Quebec; Fort Frances, Ontario; Pine Falls, Manitoba; and Prince George, B.C. These communities, like dozens across Canada, experienced loss. They lost their primary employer and hundreds of good-paying jobs. It was devastating to these small communities, as hundreds more spinoff jobs were also lost, along with millions in tax revenues for these small municipalities.
Now, if anyone on the government side or anywhere else doubts these numbers—they shouldn't, of course—they're from this government's own numbers. They're publicly available and updated annually by Natural Resources Canada. With these facts being on the record, I'd like to move on to some specific issues for witnesses to comment on. I have a lot of questions, and I do understand that I've already used a couple of minutes of my time.
While we have you here, Mr. O'Carroll, let me ask you the first question. With regard to the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement, I'd like to commend our witnesses today, their organizations and members, and the Canadian forest industry in general for their ongoing commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and adapting their operations to new environmental realities.
However, with regard to the Boreal Forest Agreement, while I see negotiation and cooperation between leading Canadian environmental organizations and the industry, there is a glaring omission in the signatories. I see on your web page that no first nations communities or organizations are cited as signing on to these agreements.
I wonder if you could elaborate on the negotiation process that led to the Boreal Forest Agreement and specifically comment on whether any first nations or related organizations were consulted on this project. If so, what issues were at play that prevented those communities from signing on to the agreement? Is there a chance to expand this agreement in the future and to have first nations participate in this process and eventually sign on to it?