Dear Editor,
Councillor Judson through Facebook posts and a November 8/21 Memo to Mayor and Council has provided the following information:
- Councillors McTaggart and Judson were select members of Council to join a working group formed early in their term to consider the wood rights/mill issues.
- he Town’s consultants and advisors have been forthcoming with all information about the forest licence.
In two emails, the first February 8/21 Councillor McTaggart stated the Crossroute Forest Licence and the Sapawe Forest Licence were surrendered by Resolute and a Tribal group respectively, and at exactly the same time the Boundary Waters Forest Enhanced Sustainable Forest Licence was put in place.
In the second email, August 20/21 Councillor McTaggart advised he was away on a holiday and would like to meet with me about the Boundary Waters ESFL upon his return to Fort Frances September 18/21. I indicated my willingness to meet with him and re-iterated that it was the Crossroute Forest Licence amended by the Minister September 10 2020. Councillor McTaggart came to see me December 7/21 shortly after the Kraft mill building was demolished.
At the February 25 2019 Council meeting a motion moved by Councillor Judson included the following statement:
“Fort Frances believes that Resolute’s bidding process is designed to allow Resolute to reach an outcome which will result in the demolition of the Mill, followed by a permanent reallocation of rights to the Crossroute wood fibre to Resolute by default.”
In support of this motion the Agenda package included a copy of SFL No. 542245- the Crossroute Forest Licence, that indicated the Licence expired March 31 2022- about 2.5 months from the date of this letter. In fact SFL No. 542245- the Crossroute Forest Licence had already been extended by the December 2017 Order in Council to March 31, 2032 over 10 years from the date of this letter. The Order of Council is dated December 13/17, was published December 29/17 and applied February 27/18.
In two emails at the end of October 2021 to the Fort Frances Times, Resolute confirmed that the Crossroute Forest Licence had been extended by the Minister on February 27 2018 for an additional 10 years. I have asked both Councillor McTaggart and Councillor Judson to explain: why Council was not informed of the actual 2032 expiry date of SFL No. 542245- the Crossroute Forest Licence at the February 25 2019 meeting. This is a glaring omission of fact that supports this statement and; why the pretense of Resolute surrendering SFL No. 542245 and a BWFM eSFL put in its place at any time, exact or otherwise?
Thank you
David Kircher
