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<\/a>SOLON, Maine \u2014<\/p>\nForeign exporters are putting Maine lumber mills in jeopardy. <\/p>\n
Kennebec Lumber Company has already closed one sawmill. Its remaining mills are operating at 75% capacity. President Dennis Carrier thinks the industry needs more regulation to level the playing field for American lumber manufacturers.<\/p>\n
“You can’t get raw material, you can’t run a facility,” Carrier said.<\/p>\n
It costs less to produce manufactured lumber overseas, where labor is cheaper and where mills don’t face the same costly safety and environmental regulations.<\/p>\n
When asked whether he wanted to lower those standards for mills in the United States, Carrier said, “No, I\u2019d rather raise it. People need to make a living. We believe in that. The American dream. Right? Raise a family, have a nice home.”<\/p>\n
Lower manufacturing costs allow foreign mills to pay a premium for American logs. Carrier says it’s chipping away at the local supply and pricing Maine mills out of the market.<\/p>\n
“We can\u2019t afford to pay the same prices for raw material,” he said.<\/p>\n
Exporters keep calling Carrier, asking to buy the limited supply of logs he has on hand. In between fielding calls, Carrier searches for ways to keep the business his grandfather started afloat.<\/p>\n
“He would have never imagined that you could take a truckload of logs from Boston in a container ship to China or Vietnam for $400,” Carrier said. “I can’t go from Solon to Skowhegan for $400 on truck.”<\/p>\n
Industry experts say the issue is especially prevalent in China and Vietnam. According to the Hardwood Federation, U.S. mills used to export $1.5 billion worth of hardwood lumber to China each year. That figure has dropped to roughly $701 million annually.<\/p>\n
Amid ongoing tariff negotiations, a group of senators and House members, including Sen. Angus King (I) and Rep. Jared Golden (D), wrote to U.S. trade representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer, urging U.S. negotiators to focus on American lumber during trade talks. The lawmakers urged Greer to seek a commitment from China to buy more hardwood lumber, rather than logs.<\/p>\n
“In my industry, it seems like they started on the wrong end of the pole, where you have tariffs for furniture coming in and such,” Carrier said. “That worked, but all they did is circumvent that by buying our logs and manufacturing on the other side cheaper.”<\/p>\n
Carrier met with members of Sen. Susan Collins\u2019 office but said he has not seen any changes. <\/p>\n
8 Investigates reached out to each member of Maine’s congressional delegation to ask whether they had plans to take action on this issue. None provided concrete examples of proposed legislation<\/p>\n
Responses from Maine’s Congressional Delegation <\/p>\n
Sen. Susan Collins (R)<\/p>\n
A Collins spokesperson pointed to meetings with Kennebec Lumber Company.<\/p>\n
“When Kennebec Lumber Company reached out to Sen. Collins\u2019 office, staff helped to facilitate two separate conversations with the relevant officials at the Department of Commerce,” wrote a spokesperson for Collins. “These meetings ensured that the mill was able to make its case to the Administration officials overseeing the rules governing export caps.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rep. Chellie Pingree (D)<\/p>\n
Rep. Chellie Pingree\u2019s office touted the fact that she’s a co-sponsor of the Fair Trade for Working Families Resolution, which aims to boost domestic manufacturing. <\/p>\n
A spokesperson for Pingree wrote, “I\u2019m also working to grow demand for homegrown wood. As Ranking Member of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, I was proud to secure $30 million for Wood Innovation grants and $15 million for the Community Wood Energy program for Fiscal Year 2026. I also support the Wildfire Reduction Market Expansion Act, which modernizes the Renewable Fuel Standard to recognize more woody materials as renewable biomass.”<\/p>\n
Rep. Jared Golden (D)<\/p>\n
A spokesperson for Golden said his office is in contact with forest products industry leaders.<\/p>\n
“Congressman Golden and his staff are in regular contact with leaders and workers from the forest products industry and he\u2019s committed to doing what he can to ensure fair competition across the border,” a spokesperson wrote.<\/p>\n
King\u2019s team declined 8 Investigates’ request for comment.<\/p>\n
8 Investigates also reached out to candidates in Maine\u2019s midterm elections. <\/p>\n
Responses from Maine Midterm Candidates <\/p>\n
Troy Jackson (D)<\/p>\n
“President Trump and Susan Collins\u2019 illegal tariffs and war in Iran are pushing Maine\u2019s economy toward the brink,” wrote a spokesperson for U.S. Senate candidate and former state Senate President Troy Jackson. “Troy understands firsthand that many of Maine\u2019s bedrock industries are paying the price. We\u2019re headed for a disaster if Congress doesn\u2019t take back its authority, end the war, and bring common sense to trade policy. When Troy is elected, that\u2019s what he will do.”<\/p>\n
Ron Russell (R)<\/p>\n
“If elected I will do everything in my power to help legacy industries continue to survive in this great state,” wrote congressional district one candidate Ron Russell, who’s challenging Pingree. “It would seem like putting a cap on log exports might help this particular mill owner so it is something that I would certainly take a look at.”<\/p>\n
Candidates for Maine’s Second Congressional District, former Gov. Paul LePage and state auditor Matt Dunlap, have not responded to 8 Investigates’ request for comment.<\/p>\n
While some call for tighter trade regulations, not everyone is in agreement. <\/p>\n
Forest economist Eric Kingsley doesn’t think export caps are the solution.<\/p>\n
“Anything but increased market demand is a Band-Aid on a gaping wound,” said Kingsley during a call with 8 Investigates. <\/p>\n
Kingsley believes lawmakers should start by improving the economy and paving the way for more home construction. Increased demand would help both loggers and lumber manufacturers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"“He would have never imagined that you could take a truckload of logs from Boston in a container…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":883719,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[193058,28,144,4549,129455,370942,370943,370944,370937,370945,370946,370947,370948,10482,370938,370939,370940,14971,112,278222,1548,104,127904,370941,3999,14972,193062],"class_list":["post-883718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-markets","tag-8-investigates","tag-business","tag-china","tag-exports","tag-hardwood","tag-hardwood-flooring","tag-hardwood-lumber","tag-hardwood-manufacturing","tag-kennebec-lumber-company","tag-logging-industry","tag-logs","tag-lumber","tag-lumber-industry","tag-maine","tag-maine-logs","tag-maine-lumber","tag-maine-lumber-manufacturing","tag-maines-total-coverage","tag-markets","tag-solon","tag-taxes","tag-trade-war","tag-u-s-tariffs","tag-u-s-trade-war","tag-vietnam","tag-wmtw","tag-wmtw-tv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/883718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=883718"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/883718\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/883719"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=883718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=883718"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=883718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}