We licence forestry companies to harvest the forests on our behalf.
Are we getting our fair share from the forestry industry in general, and ALPAC in particular?
The answer is a resounding NO. What makes this all the more shocking is to hear "ALPAC Bill Hunter" accuse the oil and gas industry of not paying its fair share to Albertans.
Excuse my language, but you just can't make this shit up.
The latest statistics on the forestry industry in Alberta I can find, produced by the Government of Alberta:
http://www.srd.gov.ab.ca/forests/pdf/Econ_Impacts_Booklet_2005.pdf
For 2003:
Total forestry revenue: $9307.2 million
Albertan's share: Corporate Tax $185.8 million
Albertan's share: Property Tax $48.1 million
Albertan's share: Stumpage Charges (analogous to royalty) $58.8 million
Albertan's share: total = $292.7 million
Some simple math indicates the total "Albertan's Share" is 3.1%.
It is even worse in ALPAC's area. Unfortunately it is not transparent what ALPAC actually pays, but they dominate the Athabasca - Fort McMurray area so I'll use that area's statistics as a proxy.
Total revenue" $1359 million
Albertan's share: Corporate Tax $27.1 million
Albertan's share: Property Tax $7.0 million
Albertan's share: Stumpage/Protection Charges (analogous to royalty) $0000.0 million
Albertan's share: total = $34.1 million
Some simple math indicates the total "Albertan's Share" is 2.5%!
Notice there ARE NO STUMPAGE FEES INDICATED TO BE BEING COLLECTED IN ALPAC'S AREA!!!! The other forestry areas on the Alberta Government Economic Impact Statements indicate the payment of Stumpage fees. But not ALPAC's. See below.
NO WONDER THE AMERICANS KEEP COMPLAINING ABOUT OUR SOFTWOOD LUMBER INDUSTRY GETTING A FREE RIDE
Now let us contrast that the the Royalty Review Panel's recommendations for Oil and Gas "sharing".
Current Sharing - Albertan's Share:
Oilsands - 47%
Conventional Oil - 44%
Natural Gas - 58%
Forestry - 3%
ALPAC's Forestry Area - 2.5%
Royalty Review Panel's Recommended Sharing - Albertan's Share:
Oilsands - 64%
Conventional Oil - 49%
Natural Gas - 63%
Which industry is not paying its fair share to Albertans?
If Albertan's share of the forestry industry was 49%, the recommended figure for conventional oil, Albertans would receive approximately an additional $ 5 billion dollars per year. Far more than the Royalty Review Panel could find in months of effort.
This is being lost now; it should be implemented immediately. Perhaps I should start a "money lost ticker" on this website, just like the Pembina Institute!! LOL.
Now take a deep breath.
Of course the forestry industry for the most part cannot afford to pay the stumpage fees that would be charged to get to a 49% "Albertan's Sharing" figure.
Very, very little forestry operations would be undertaken. That wouldn't be good for Alberta, or fair for Albertans in general or the forestry workers in particular.
However, this is pretty much exactly the hand that has been dealt to the petroleum industry by ALPAC Bill Hunter. He could not give a rat's ass what the effects of his proposal is on the oil industry.
Bill's solution to the reaction that the royalty regime is rapacious and the industry couldn't in a large part operate under such a fiscal regime has become a classic:
"Leave it in the damn ground"
So Bill, what goes around comes around.
When someone pulls a confiscatory fiscal change on you and the forestry industry which will devastate your world and shut down operations, my words to you:
"Leave the trees standing in the damn ground"
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