Philippe Meunier, vice-president of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, met on Tuesday several players in the timber sector in Sucs and Haut-Lignon, as part of the 2nd Forest-Wood Plan.
The morning took place in two stages. First of all, the visit to a mechanized forestry site in Saint Jeures carried out by the Delorme d’Araules company. The company exploits around 80,000 m3 of wood per year to supply local wood processing companies.
240 forestry companies in Haute-Loire
Then a time of discussion in the room at Tence allowed us to discuss the situation of forestry work companies, particularly in this rainy year of 2024, which complicates the proper organization of construction sites (impossibility of intervening in numerous sectors causing a stock of wood important in the forest). In Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, there are around 1,200 forestry work companies, including 240 in Haute-Loire.
Work paths
These discussions made it possible to discuss the support systems for forestry work contractors put in place by the Region as part of its policy in favor of the forest-timber sector. In two years, 150 companies have been supported with more than 6 million euros in aid.
The rich discussions with professionals led to the implementation of several actions in order to work on better remuneration for these professionals, to adjust support systems or even to work on regulatory aspects preventing intervention in the forest in certain sectors.
The Celle sawmill visited
In the afternoon, the Vice-President for the Region visited the Celle Palettes Emballage company, which has a sawmill in Araules which is in the process of installing a complete new sawing line for an investment amount of 15 million approximately euros; and two sites which manufacture around 500,000 pallets per year in Yssingeaux and Saint-Maurice-de-Lignon.
“Haute-Loire is the homeland of wood. The wooded landscape has been shaped by the hand of man, we must not forget that. We plant, we harvest and we replant.”
