The Merritt timber supply area is likely to see a decrease in allowable annual cut, Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations Steve Thomson says.

The minister was in town to discuss the upcoming timber supply review with area stakeholders such as Aspen Planers and the Upper Nicola and Nooaitch Bands last Tuesday.

“It’s all about starting to hear some of those perspectives around potential interests and impacts as the timber supply review process gets underway,” Thomson said.

That process involves the chief forester determining what a sustainable level of harvest would be, and Thomson allocating the volume of allowable annual cut to forest licences.

“Everybody knows with pressures on the land base and pressures on the fiber supply, particularly coming out of the mountain pine beetle impacts, that there will be pressures on fiber supply,” Thomson said.

Timber supply areas across the Interior are likely to see decreases due to the pine beetle.

Timber supply is the amount of wood that will be available from a specific area over time and allowable annual cut is the maximum volume of timber allowed to be harvested in an area in one year. It is used as a basis of regulating harvest levels.

The allowable annual cut for the Merritt timber supply area was set at 2,400,000 cubic metres in 2010 — a decrease from the previously allowed 2,800,000 cubic metres.

The timber supply review is undertaken at least once every 10 years, but can be adjusted earlier in response to abnormal situations.

The pine beetle is one of those factors.

The timber supply review is meant to identify economic, environmental and social information that reflects forest management practices and their effects in the short and long-term.

A discussion paper on the timber supply review is expected to be released by early summer.

There are 38 timber supply areas in B.C.