B.C. pulp mill closure to leave 350 out of work, company says

Some 350 workers at a pulp mill on Vancouver Island are losing their jobs.

Approximately 350 workers will be laid off from a Vancouver Island pulp mill after the company announced Tuesday it would permanently shutter the facility.

Domtar says it made the difficult decision to close the mill in Crofton, B.C., due to persistently poor market conditions.

“Over the last 18 months, Crofton employees worked hard to reduce operational costs and they made some extraordinary gains,” Steve Henry, the company’s president of paper and packaging, said in a statement announcing the closure.

“Unfortunately, continued poor pricing for pulp and lack of access to affordable fibre in B.C. necessitates the closure.”

The company says it is exploring possible future uses for the mill site.

‘Devastating news’

“These decisions are made with careful consideration and we recognize the hardship this decision will have on both our employees and the Cowichan Valley community, as well as our business partners and the coastal forest sector,” Henry added.

“Our primary focus is on the safety and well-being of our employees as we navigate the coming weeks.”

Domtar operates three other mills in B.C., including one other on Vancouver Island in the community of Port Alberni. The company says it is committed to working with partners in government and industry to remain in B.C.

The B.C. Conservative Party called the closure a “clear sign” that the province’s forestry sector is collapsing due to government mismanagement.

“This is devastating news for Crofton and for every family that relies on this mill,” the party caucus said in a statement, calling on B.C. Forests Minister Ravi Parmar to resign.

‘Leave no stone unturned’

The minister, in a statement of his own, addressed the impacted workers

“This is a painful, unfair moment, and your lives are being disrupted through no fault of your own,” Parmar wrote, adding that external pressures on the industry underscore the urgent need to transform it and make it sustainable.

“We owe it to the people of Crofton to leave no stone unturned in the pursuit of exploring any opportunities to ensure that this site continues to produce good-paying forestry jobs for the people of Crofton and the broader region,” the statement continued.

The mill is the largest taxpayer in the North Cowichan municipality and has been a major employer in the region since its construction in 1956.

“Its closure will have a profound effect on the community, including the loss of high-paying jobs, tax revenue that supports core services, and wider economic spinoffs,” the municipality said in a statement, estimating that Domtar contributes $5 million to the regional government’s tax coffers annually.

“This site has been a significant part of North Cowichan’s economy for generations, benefitting many families including my own,” said North Cowichan Mayor Rob Douglas. “We will do everything we can to support the community through this difficult time.”

Douglas said he will meet with Premier David Eby and government ministers on Wednesday to discuss next steps for the community.

Domtar says the closure will reduce the company’s annual pulp production by approximately 380,000 metric tons of softwood pulp.