B.C.’s Forest Minister hopes cutting back raw log exports will lead to more economic activity at local sawmills.

The province has announced it will increase the fee for logs exported out of B.C.

Forest Minister Doug Donaldson tells NL News the change is part of the coastal forest revitalization program, which was newly created in January.

“We will be implementing an increased fee-in-lieu charge for those cut blocks that are more economically viable than others. It’s really more of a targeted micro-approach to specific cutblocks. And what it’ll mean, it’ll drive more logs to domestic manufacturing facilities, mills and value added facilities.”

When asked how the Interior’s ailing forest sector will benefit, Donaldson says most log exports come from coastal B.C., but says aspects of the coastal forest revitalization program do benefit the Interior.

“One example is decreasing the amount of waste left on cut blocks. There’s a certain amount of fibre that needs to be left for ecological purposes, but after that there’s fibre there for uses. In the Interior, we know that because of the beetle wood (program), there’s many manufacturing facilities that could use fibre.”

The fee-in-lieu increase will come into effect on July 31.