Natural Resources committee  Perhaps I could jump in quickly here. In British Columbia they adopted a build with wood strategy prior to bringing the 2010 Olympic Games to Vancouver. One of the things that the Government of British Columbia did here with support from the federal government was to develop the Olympic facilities and the various public facilities including the Vancouver Convention Centre as showcases for wood and wood products, so that we could demonstrate both what British Columbia produces and what this country is famous for, which is wood innovation and the beauty of wood.

Natural Resources committee  I think the official position of Canada, and it's very much supported by the industry, is that the agreement should be extended in its entirety, or it should be allowed to end and there should be free trade. Over the better part of the last two years, 16 months over the last two years, because lumber prices have been higher than the trigger points identified in the agreement, we have enjoyed free trade between Canada and the United States in softwood lumber.

Natural Resources committee  What we're hearing from Canadian officials is that the Office of the United States Trade Representative is not in a position at the moment to formally engage Canada with respect to softwood lumber discussions. I think they have been very clear with Canada over the past many months that the priority of the Obama administration is the Trans-Pacific Partnership discussions and negotiations.

Natural Resources committee  I think there are a couple of issues to talk about with respect to biomass. The first problem that we face collectively from that perspective is an economic problem. It's about how to get that timber out of the woods, and how you make that biomass economic, how you make it pay for itself to bring it out.

Natural Resources committee  Yes. Back in 2006 the U.S. share of the U.S. market was 61%. That market share the United States has of its own market today is at about 71%. The Canadian share of the U.S. market over that period of time, which the agreement capped at 34%, is now at about 29%. In many respects that is the softwood lumber agreement doing what it was intended to do.

Natural Resources committee  Sir, I think there are two really important factors that are going to be the key determinants of where this goes. In our view our share of the U.S. market is going to remain flat or potentially slightly decline. There are really two reasons for that. One is much of what this discussion has been about today, which is a sustained commitment to the expansion and diversification of our markets.

Natural Resources committee  The total area of the province of British Columbia is about 95 million hectares. The forested land base would be about 55 million hectares, and the land available for harvesting in British Columbia is about 22 million hectares. Less than 1% of that forest is harvested annually.

Natural Resources committee  I think this is a matter of provincial jurisdiction, and I think the necessary regulations are in place. I think industry understands that it is responsible for being a steward of the land, and that because it harvests, it is responsible for reforesting. Our companies are the ones that put those 200 million trees in the ground every year, and we think that's an appropriate role.

Natural Resources committee  I'll defer to Rick Jeffery from the Coast Forest Products Association, because that's primarily an issue from the coast.

Natural Resources committee  I will move quickly. Thank you for this opportunity and for accommodating us in this way by video conference I'm going to talk quickly about three things: the importance of the forest sector to the economy of British Columbia, the industry's view with respect to the softwood lumber agreement and the U.S. market, and the continued importance of market diversification to B.C.