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THURSDAY, June 26, 2025
Mackenzie looks to the future
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First Nations forestry and diversification are having a big impact in the community, mayor says COLIN SLARK Citizen Staff
CITIZEN PHOTO BY COLIN SLARK
Members of the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George board visit Morfee Lake during a tour of Mackenzie on Wednesday, June 18.
taxation from 2024 to 2025 as a result of the closure of two large industrial facilities, but this community has always
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been resilient.” Canfor said it was indefinitely curtailing activity at its Mackenzie sawmill in
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MACKENZIE — The District of Mackenzie has seen challenges in recent years with a downturn in British Columbia’s forestry industry, but Mayor Joan Atkinson said that diversifying into other industries has made a big impact on her community. On Wednesday, June 18 and Thursday, June 19, representatives from the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George travelled to Mackenzie for a tour of local facilities and to hold that month’s board of directors meeting. The Citizen sent a reporter north to cover those events and to interview Atkinson during the trip. “I certainly think we are doing quite well, regardless of the circumstance we find ourselves in,” said Atkinson, who has served on Mackenzie council since 2007. “We suffered a huge loss in
July 2019. The Tyee reported in 2024 that after the facility was sold to Peak Renewables in 2022, all the equipment at the mill was sent to another facility in Louisiana. Paper Excellence permanently shuttered its Mackenzie pulp mill in April 2021. However, Atkinson noted two factors that have helped the local forestry industry. The first was a visit from Forests Minister Ravi Parmar, where Atkinson said he announced a change in an appraisal system that makes it more economically viable for companies to operate in Northern BC. The second is ownership of nearby timber supply areas by First Nations. “Probably 50 per cent of the annual allowable cut in our timber supply area belongs to First Nations,” Atkinson said.
-Warren Buffet Dan McLaren President