The Premier says he hopes a temporary ban on new timber cutting in the South Peace region won’t exacerbate the ailing forest sector.

John Horgan says his government intends to mitigate any potential job impacts that would stem from the temporary protected area announced yesterday.

It is important to know that some of the job loss announcements recently have been temporary curtailments because of prices. Market conditions, sadly, we have too much wood and prices are dropping. Prices have now bounced back because of these temporary closures.”

Horgan says the forest sector has been declining for more than a decade and his government will do what it can to find a way forward.

He says he’s hopeful the forest sector won’t be impacted by a temporary ban on new oil and gas projects along with timber cutting across a swath of the Peace Region.

“This is certainly a challenge but it is not a challenge that arrived yesterday. Industry analysts have been saying for a decade and a half that the fall down was coming. The pine beetle exacerbated that challenge. The fire season has made it even worse. The caribou are a component of that. There are a whole range of issues on the land base that have been a challenge for British Columbia for decades. We have always found a way forward and we will again.”

The ban is part of an attempt to protect caribou in the South Peace, and the announcement came in the wake of many sawmill closures and curtailments in recent weeks.