The executive director of the B-C Truck Loggers Association says the crisis in the forestry industry is worse than it was during the global financial meltdown in 2008. David Elstone says it may also rival the damage caused by the 1980s recession in B-C and he’s hearing from many people on the brink of financial collapse. He says the industry has been hit hard by low timber prices, less demand from Asian markets, U-S tariffs, high stumpage rates and timber supply shortages. Premier John Horgan has announced five-million dollars will be made available in loans for contractors affected by a seven-month strike on Vancouver Island.
