Forest dependence and community well-being in rural Canada: variation by forest sector and region

Abstract

The forest products sector is a major employer in much of rural Canada, and it is often assumed by policy makers that increased timber harvest is a viable means of rural economic development. Despite burgeoning research in the United States, relatively little attention has focused on the relationship between forest dependence and well-being in rural Canada. Especially lacking are macrocomparisons of regions and of forest sectors. This note presents an overview of the relationship between forest dependence and well-being in Canada. Analysis of 1996 Statistics Canada data revealed a great deal of variation in the effect of forest dependence on indicators of well-being (e.g., human capital, unemployment, income): some sectors had fairly positive outcomes (e.g., pulp and paper); others had more negative outcomes (e.g., logging). These relationships, however, vary a great deal by region, suggesting the need for more mid-range explanatory models that incorporate the particulars of place and sector.