Canadian forests are the foundation of our natural heritage, our national identity, and economy. With the third-largest forested area in the worldi, Canada represents 9% of world’s forests and 24% of the world’s boreal forests, with approximately 348 million hectares of sustainable forests.

Accounting for 55 million hectares of public forest land, British Columbia (BC) is a world leader in sustainable forest management, is home to more than 7,000 sector-related businesses, and employs 66,918 people across the province. The forestry sector in BC is one of the world’s largest exporters of wood products contributing to 36% of BC’s total exports for 2015 and accounting for $12.9 billion in revenue (up 29% from 2011).

This profile examines the forestry sector in the province, and explores its contributions to the Columbia Basin-Boundary region. This report looks specifically at the following indicators:

• Forest sector establishments;
• Economic contributions; and
• Employment within the forestry sector.