The economic footprint of Ontario’s forest industry is significant.

With the clearing of Ontario’s forests for farms and pioneer communities over 200 years ago and the first pulp and paper production in 1825 in Flamborough Township near the present day town of Dundas, forestry truly formed a cornerstone of the budding provincial and national economies.

Today, mills operate across Ontario, producing a variety of products ranging from newsprint to specialty papers, veneers, cardboards, lumber, plywood and strand board.

Our members alone produce 3.3 BILLION board feet of lumber, 7.2 million metric tons of pulp and paper, 5.2 BILLION square feet of panels, veneer and other value added wood products.

About 80,000 people are directly employed by forestry with over 270,000 families relying directly and indirectly on the industry for their social and economic well-being. Total employment by the industry translates into salaries, wages and benefits of $4.8 billion.

In the bigger economic picture, forestry is a $19 billion business in Ontario with exports of about $8.59 billion -- mostly to US markets -- and a highly desirable balance of trade of approximately $2.8 billion annually. (2003 statistics)

STUMPAGE

Much of the wood harvested in Ontario comes from Crown land and through stumpage fees, the province’s forest industries pay the people of Ontario an average of $240 million a year for the use of Crown-owned timber.

A market based system, stumpage fees are based on the amount of timber that is cut and the market value of the products produced. Quite simply, when markets are up for forest products, stumpage fees go up and when the markets decline, so too do stumpage rates.

Stumpage fees put money into the province’s general revenue fund as well as a variety of programs including research and silviculture that ensure our forests are healthy and growing.

Stumpage fees are above and beyond what Ontario’s forest industries already pay in taxes.  

TAX CONTRIBUTIONS

Forestry generates some $2.3 billion in taxes of which $1.35 billion goes to the federal government, $800 million to the province and $160 million to municipalities. Those taxes significantly contribute to our healthcare system, education and social programs.