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36,000 Forestry Jobs Lost in 10 Years in Biobío Reported

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• Security, wildfires, sawmill closures are some of the factors identified by the sector. However, exports grew by nearly 8% in 2023.

36,000 forestry jobs have been lost in the last 10 years in the Biobío Region, as reported by the Chilean Wood Corporation (Corma) Biobío-Ñuble, based on data provided by the Chilean Forestry Institute (Infor).

Specifically, Corma stated that the industry, both in the Region and the country, is in a full-blown crisis. They argue this is linked to public safety issues, loss of productive forests, sawmill closures, falling demand, devastating wildfires in the area, the national economic scenario, among other factors.

"In the last 10 years, around 22% of productive forests have been lost, mainly due to wildfires. Large companies have replanted, but the challenge is to see what happens with SMEs—they haven’t done so because this is a long-term business that requires financing," said Alejandro Casagrande, president of Corma Biobío, who also highlighted reports of violence against forestry workers and the situation in the Southern Macrozone.

He further added, "In Biobío, 36,000 jobs have been lost over the last 10 years—that’s 3,600 jobs annually. Around 45 sawmills have closed in the last 5 years, mostly SMEs." Ultimately, Casagrande asserted there is no investment or support for reforestation.

Another figure shared by the corporation is that 35,000 hectares have been lost annually in Biobío over the past decade.

National

Casagrande noted that nationally, "Over the last decade, the forestry sector has shown signs of decline. For example, our contribution to the national GDP has significantly decreased, dropping from 4,024 billion pesos in 2018 (2.1% of GDP) to 3,296 billion pesos in 2022 (1.6% of GDP). Additionally, there is a reduced supply of standing timber, leading to a painful decrease in the number of sawmills—from 1,056 in 2017 to just 851 in 2022."

Exports

Meanwhile, the Regional Minister of Economy, Javier Sepúlveda, based on data from the National Statistics Institute (INE), stated that "exports from this economic sector have steadily increased over the last three years, with figures clearly showing a rise in the volume of forestry products exported from the Biobío Region. In 2023 alone, exports from this sector grew by 7.5% compared to the previous year."

The regional head of the Economy portfolio indicated that the forestry sector exports over $4 billion annually, underscoring its significant contribution to the regional economy, as the majority of products exported from Biobío come from this industry.

"In fact, three specific products account for over half of exports: pulp (37% of exports), sawn wood (12%), and plywood (6%)," the Minister specified.

Despite export figures, and referring to reports from forestry associations, Sepúlveda said, "The numbers do not divert our attention from what is concerning and what should be the focus of public policy."

"In that sense, there are major challenges to address, such as transitioning toward an agroforestry model where Biobío’s territories move toward forestry management resilient to climate change," he concluded.

Source: Diario Concepción