Natural Resources committee  Thanks. There are two main things. One is around how Canadian biomass is viewed. This is what otherwise would be wood waste from our sawmill. The tree is harvested after the plan and the consultation happen. It goes to the mill, wood is created and you get shavings, bark and sawdust.

Natural Resources committee  Thanks, Mr. Chair and members of the committee, and to Lisa and Jeff for enduring all the forestry people today. It's nice to see you both. Canada's forest products sector is the national voice of the sector. We welcome the discussion. It's a timely one for a few reasons. One reason is that, as Lisa said as the government prepares to make decisions for federal budget 2023, it's important that we work in partnership to set our sector and its people up for success in the long term.

International Trade committee  Mr. Fast, can you imagine if one of our provinces said that it's not going to have any American wine here any more because they're concerned that it's just not sustainable? Just think about that. For us, we have the provincial government engagement. We have labour, indigenous and other partners engaging.

International Trade committee  The first thing I'd like to see is for Global Affairs Canada to support by doing a legal review on both bills currently on the floors of the legislatures in Albany and Sacramento. That's the first thing, which will confirm our belief that these bills would violate trade agreements.

International Trade committee  I'll maybe defer to Susan in terms of the national home builders data. Susan, would that help?

International Trade committee  In terms of the bills, I was talking about California and New York. It's the same thing. United Steelworkers and Unifor have been tremendous—they're really good partners of ours—along with the Indigenous Resource Network. Stateside, the California and New York forestry associations are very concerned about the precedent-setting nature of some of these dubious claims and terms that are being used.

International Trade committee  I really appreciate the question, because this is a very frustrating one. As I mentioned in my opening remarks, I chair a global group from 28 countries around the world. I know how we stack up in Canada. It's about what kinds of products or materials we want to build with and where we want to get those materials from.

International Trade committee  That's correct. In both California and New York, we have had on-the-ground consular support. We've had tremendous support from provincial governments, as well. We're getting to a point here.... Governor Newsom vetoed the first bill in California because he said this is completely unmanageable and unworkable for any small business in California to figure out if you want to get into the procurement game.

International Trade committee  The diplomatic actions on the ground are the first step to get this fixed. If that doesn't happen, our review shows that if these bills are passed, they would violate trade agreements. I'm not a trade lawyer—Mark might be able to help here—but there would be mechanisms whereby governments could take action.

International Trade committee  There are a couple of things. On the work front, the area where we're seeing the biggest pressure point is on trucker shortages. We are short about 23,000 trucker positions. That's been extremely challenging, especially during the scare with the CP work stoppage and the fact that we have a number of mills not running right now because they can't get CN railcars.

International Trade committee  Yes, definitely. Those dollars go directly to those indigenous communities and businesses, and that's the way it should be. We hope that the indigenous forestry initiative is renewed in the upcoming budget. I think that's part of a suite of very beneficial products that support our sector.

International Trade committee  Thanks, Madam Chair. My name is Derek Nighbor. I'm president and CEO at Forest Products Association of Canada. I am participating today from our FPAC head offices here in Ottawa, built on the unceded Algonquin Anishinabe territory. Canada's forest sector is a $76-billion sector that brings over $34 billion worth of sustainably sourced Canadian products to the world each year.

Industry committee  I agree, and they need us. I think that's a question that deserves more than a 30-second answer. I'll take that away, Mr. Masse, and I'll talk to my team and get back to you. I appreciate the offer of support. We've appreciated your support and your former colleague, Tracey Ramsey, was really great on this stuff as well, so thank you.

Industry committee  Yes, and thanks for that question. That's also why it wasn't included as part of the new CUSMA. It's just really tough. The issue we have in the States has become worse with greater consolidation. There's a big difference. In Canada, like I said, over 90% of our operations are on public lands under the purview of provincial governments.

Industry committee  Yes. Let me start. We've retained 90% of our original forest cover in Canada. We have many sins for which atonement is due from before the 1970s and 1980s, and I think we've all heard those stories. The industry has come a long way and I'm really proud of the work being done on the ground.