Ric Bresee has a new job.
The MPP for Hastings–Lennox and Addington has been named the newly created parliamentary assistant to the Associate Minister of Forestry and Forest Products.
Bresee was formerly the assistant to the Minister of Transportation and Minister of Seniors and Accessibility.
When he first got to Queen’s Park, Bresse said he was assigned to natural resources and forestry, as it was called at the time.
“This is kind of coming back to where I was before in many ways, so I am very much looking forward to it.”
Bresee says the riding has a substantial amount of business in the forestry sector, so he’s a good fit for the role.
He said softwood lumber has been a serious point of contention for tariff-related issues for years.
“There’s another side to it. As we try to come to grips with our housing crisis, having lumber is an incredibly important part of that and making sure we have capacity to provide the lumber.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the cost of lumber skyrocketed, which led to a downturn in the number of housing starts. Bresee said ensuring the province has a stable and sustainable forest industry and lumber available is important.
“We have a very well-managed industry in Ontario and it’s incredibly strong. Some of the outside factors like the tariffs and losing a lot of the market to the south, and the increase in diesel costs are very impactful to the industry. Part of the effort is to make the forest industry that much more sustainable.”
Bresee said there is an opportunity in Ontario to better utilize waste products once lumber is cut.
“I remember this quote vividly – trees are round, lumber is square. There is a lot of what would otherwise be waste product in taking trees and converting them to lumber. That leftover material can be used in so many different ways, and we need to do a better job of utilizing that product.”
He added the waste could be used in the production of paper products and biofuel.
“We need to work on expanding those and that’s part of what this ministry is focused on.”
Bresee said both products could be used in Canada and exported to foreign markets.
The current Minister of Forestry and Forest Products is Kitchener-Conestoga MPP Mike Harris, while Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP Kevin Holland is serving as Deputy Minister.
