The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that Canadian producers of softwood lumber are facing challenges to gain greater access to timber in British Columbia as they cope with new U.S. tariffs stacked on top of existing duties. The Globe's Brent Jang writes that tree harvesting has plunged in recent years on Crown land in B.C., to an estimated 31 million cubic metres last year from 60 million cubic metres in 2018. The B.C. government finds itself in a bind on the forestry file, after Tuesday's implementation of 25-per-cent tariffs, which are in addition to the current duty rate of 14.4 per cent for Canadian softwood shipped south of the border. The B.C. budget tabled on Tuesday forecasts that tree harvesting would dip to 29 million cubic metres in the 2027-28 fiscal year, and there remains no timetable for when the harvest might rise to what the government forecasts as 45 million cubic metres annually. Kim Haakstad at the BC Council of Forest Industries, said she recognizes that there are no simple solutions, but that the lumber sector needs greater access to timber supplies. Production has increased at U.S. sawmills, including those owned by companies with head offices in Canada, such as West Fraser Timber.