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Podcasts

BC's Vanishing Timber Worker

A Trees and Us podcast with Wade Fisher, 'the best person on trees in Williams Lake.'

Mark Leiren-Young 7 Dec 2007TheTyee.ca

Mark Leiren-Young is the writer and director of The Green Chain. Feel free to subscribe to the movie's blog and/or join its MySpace and Facebook groups. The Green Chain stars Babz Chula, Jillian Fargey, Brendan Fletcher, Tricia Helfer, Scott McNeil, Tahmoh Penikett and August Schellenberg. Mark's also a regular contributor to The Tyee. For more on Mark, visit his website: www.leiren-young.ca.
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Wade Fisher: Sawed off future?

Mark Leiren-Young talks with Wade Fisher »

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Wade Fisher started cutting trees over thirty years ago. He left the woods for the mill, the mill for the union hall and the union hall for meeting rooms with politicians and planners.

His father worked in the forest industry and so does his son, but he's clearly worried there won't be much work for future generations.

When I was in Williams Lake, B.C. a few months ago, I asked friends there to name the best person to talk to about trees. They said I had to meet Wade.

Wade had just been lured out of retirement to represent forest workers on the Cariboo Chilcotin Beetle Action Coalition and to chair the CCBAC's forest worker strategy sector. By the time we talked Wade had withdrawn from the group and he explained that while this may have been the right issue for him, it was the wrong time and place for him to take it on. He'd previously participated in the Cariboo Chilcotin land use planning process and co-chaired the Cariboo Chilcotin Economic Action Forum.

Wade and I met in my friend's living room for a free ranging conversation. Click the Listen to this! link to hear Wade about talk about vanishing trees, vanishing lifestyles and how the provincial government's policies could have an even more devastating impact on workers than the beetles.

Or listen and subscribe to Tyee podcasts on iTunes.

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