Governor of Maine to seek New Brunswick exemption in softwood talks, minister says

New Brunswick’s trade minister says Maine’s governor is expected to support New Brunswick’s bid to be exempt from softwood lumber tariffs at a White House meeting Wednesday.

Late Monday, the U.S. Department of Commerce hit Canada with an additional 6.87 per cent in preliminary average anti-dumping tariffs, leaving the industry facing average duties of about 27 per cent.

“We’re approaching this obviously as a New Brunswick industry and every single community that has a saw mill potentially will be affected by this and we are there to work on their behalf,” Melanson said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We're approaching this obviously as a New Brunswick industry and every single community that has a saw mill potentially will be affected by this and we are there to work on their behalf," Melanson said.

READ MORE: By the end of 2017, softwood lumber will cost almost 7% more to sell to the U.S.

The decision exempts the other three Atlantic provinces, but New Brunswick – exempt from such tariffs in the past – is not.

Roger Melanson says Monday’s decision is only preliminary and New Brunswick is working hard to convince the U.S. government it deserves an exemption too when a final decision is made later this year.

Watch: Trudeau government unveils plan to help softwood lumber producers

1:52 Trudeau government unveils plan to help softwood lumber producers

He says Maine Governor Paul LePage knows the importance of strong trading ties between his state and New Brunswick and will help make the case for an exemption.

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Last month, the New Brunswick government appointed former U.S. ambassador David Wilkins as the province’s special envoy on the softwood trade dispute.

JD Irving sawmill division vice president Jerome Pelletier said the new anti-dumping duties are a major blow to operations and the provincial lumber industry.

READ MORE: U.S. excludes three Canadian provinces from softwood lumber probe

“We’re concerned. It’s an additional seven per cent that we have to absorb,” Pelletier said. “Irving, and the rest of the New Brunswick lumber producers, so it’s going to cause hardship to the forest sector in New Brunswick, there’s no doubt.”

Irving was set at three per cent rate and was dealt with separately from other producers. Pelletier said while there’s not too much of a short term impact, 10 per cent could hurt operations in the long term

“The question is, this year or next year if there’s no settlement it could eventually have an impact to the amount of shifts or the level of production where we’re operating,” Pelletier said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "The question is, this year or next year if there's no settlement it could eventually have an impact to the amount of shifts or the level of production where we're operating," Pelletier said.

Pelletier said if the sawmill industry is impacted by the duty, eventually the rest of the sector will be affected.

READ MORE: ‘This is not new’: Natural Resources Minister assures lumber discussions ongoing with U.S.

“The rest of the producers will not be able to sustain a 27 per cent duty long-term, so what we’re asking our federal government is to keep negotiating very actively with the US department of commerce an the United States to find a long term solution to the conflict”

—With files from Adrienne South and Andrew Cromwell, Global News