WESTERN Province MPA for Ward 16 Hon Ramrakha Talasasa Jnr said moving the round log export licence of the province up within its current range is no harm at all.

Last week, it was passed in the Western Province Business Licence Amendments for 2017-2018 under page 4 that the round log exports licence fee for Western Province is between the ranges of $125,000 to $175,000 SBD.

“Moving it up is no harm at all because after all, even though we indigenous locals take part in such operation, the companies belong yet to Asians and not Solomon Islanders,” said the MPA for Ward 16.

Hon Talasasa expressed his realisation during last week’s Full Assembly meeting that other sister provinces such as Choiseul Province charge higher fees than Western Province for a single logging operation by a company.

“In Western Province, let’s say one operation by a logging company will pay for the round log export, round log felling and round log operators totalling up to a total of $280,000.

“In Choiseul Province, they pay up to a total of $300,000. Now Choiseul Province still has logs because they have just recently engaged in the logging activity compared to Western Province that started yet in the 1970s.”