After 22 years as the face of Howe Sound Pulp and Paper (HSPP), manager of environment and external relations Al Strang will be leaving his post, citing a difference of opinion with the mill's new owners.
"We got new owners in the fall and often with new ownership there's new culture and new values and I just felt that it was the right time for me to make a change because I have different values," Strang said.
March 30 marked his last day with HSPP and it was a day of mixed emotions.
"This has been such a huge part of my life for 22 years. My wife Wendi, we met here, and obviously I raised my kids while I was here, so yeah, it is hard. On the other hand, I'm really excited about the new challenges. So it's definitely mixed emotions," Strang said, noting he will start with BC Hydro April 4.
His new job title is environment and social issues manager with BC Hydro and he will be working on the Site C project, which is a proposed hydro dam on the Peace River near Fort St. John. Strang and his family plan to stay on the Sunshine Coast and he will commute daily into Vancouver for the position.
"I really believe in the project. I think the province needs that power, and certainly to meet future growth we need it. And to be part of something like that will be really, really challenging, but also rewarding," Strang said.
Strang started working at HSPP as a quality control supervisor, but was soon tasked with the environmental role as well.
"I was in the right place at the right time because that was in the late 1980s and that's when environmental issues were really coming to a peak relating to the pulp and paper industry. So pretty quickly that was my full-time job. I was out of quality control and doing environment full time," he said.
"There were all the issues around dioxins at that time, and we were into the construction of the new mill, so I was involved in the permitting of the new mill and the start up. It just kind of grew from there. I've had other responsibilities over the years added on."
About 12 years, ago Strang was asked to take on the community relations position as well, and then last year he was also tasked with managing the technical department at HSPP.
"The last position was added due to cutbacks," he said. "When I took on community relations, it was something I'd been advocating for a long time. I thought that we needed to be more proactive, and when Russ Fulton came on as president at that time, he had the same philosophy. Because so much of it is linked to environment as well, he asked me to take it on, so it wasn't due to cutbacks."
Although the mill has been through various owners, cutbacks and close calls over the years, Strang said his most memorable moments centre around the people he has worked with.
"I think the thing that stands out for me the most is the people here. We have a really great work force, and the relationships that I've built are memorable. Three people in particular who have worked with me a long time have been key in all the success that I've had," Strang said naming Siew Sim, Elfie Hofmann and Trisha Bruce.
While Strang is eager to start at his new post, he's got a few words of wisdom for whomever takes over his position at HSPP.
"Always be honest, and keep smiling," he said.
