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Indeed, from a strictly economic point of view, it can be argued that private ownership of any given forest will probably lead to better management.

However, that is not the end of the story. The economic loser in this transaction is the provincial taxpayer, while the economic winner is the federal taxpayer, whose subsidy obligation is reduced by the new revenue produced by the former provincial crown lands. As the magnitude of the numbers involved becomes more apparent, the existing cost-sharing arrangements will have to be revisited, to the additional cost of Ottawa.