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Explainer · Stumpage · Updated April 24, 2026

BC Stumpage Rates 2026: How the Interior and Coast Appraisal Systems Actually Work

Stumpage is the largest single line item in most BC mill cost stacks — and it changes every month for reasons most operators couldn't reconstruct on a whiteboard. This is the plain-English version of how the province actually sets the price.

If you operate in BC forestry, "stumpage" is the price you pay the Province for the right to harvest a cubic metre of Crown timber. It is set by formula, published monthly, and adjusted quarterly. It is the largest single variable cost on most appraisal submissions. And BC runs two parallel systems — one for the Interior, one for the Coast — that produce the rate by very different methods.

This article explains both, in plain English. It does not quote a current rate, because rates change monthly and you should always click through to the source linked at the end. The point of this piece is the system: what goes in, what comes out, and where in the calendar the moves happen.

Stumpage — definition The fee paid by a licensee (anyone with a Crown forest tenure) to the Province of British Columbia for harvesting a cubic metre of standing timber on Crown land. Set per cubic metre. Published monthly per Timber Supply Area (TSA). Charged at the time of harvest billing.

Why two systems exist

The Coast and the Interior are economically distinct logging regions. The Coast harvests bigger trees, runs more expensive infrastructure (water-based log handling, helicopter logging on steep ground, tougher regulatory environment), and serves a different mix of mills. The Interior runs longer hauls, smaller average stem size, more pine and spruce, and a much larger share of total provincial harvest volume.

The Province treats them with different appraisal manuals and different parameter sets. Coast rates use the Coast Appraisal Manual; Interior rates use the Market Pricing System (MPS). Both are public.

The Interior — Market Pricing System (MPS)

The Interior's Market Pricing System was introduced for BC Timber Sales (BCTS) auctions in 1999, and on July 1, 2006, the system known as "MPS 'b'" was extended to all non-BCTS Interior appraisal submissions. Source: Ministry of Forests Market Pricing System parameter document, April 2026.

The way to picture MPS: the Province built a regression model out of decades of BCTS auction results. The model takes the characteristics of a specific cutblock (species mix, volume, slope, haul distance, and so on), feeds them into an equation, and predicts what an arms-length bidder would have paid in a competitive auction. That predicted number is called the Estimated Winning Bid (EWB), and it becomes the upset stumpage rate for that cutting authority.

Estimated Winning Bid (EWB) The output of the MPS regression equation. Represents what the Province believes a competitive bidder would have paid for this specific cutblock in a BCTS auction. Becomes the appraised stumpage rate before any quarterly adjustment.

The five monthly parameters

The MPS regression doesn't run on cutblock characteristics alone. It also uses five market parameters that the Province publishes monthly and that adjust the equation to reflect current conditions:

  1. Lumber Average Market Values (AMVs). The published average lumber selling prices that BC mills are realizing. When lumber prices go up, MPS pulls more revenue back to the Crown via stumpage.
  2. 1-month average BC Consumer Price Index (CPI). A general inflation adjustment.
  3. 2-month average US Dollar exchange rate. Most BC lumber is priced in US dollars; a stronger USD raises the CAD equivalent of every board sold and pulls stumpage with it.
  4. Rolling 12-month Interior harvest volume. Total Interior fibre flow. Used to dampen the equation when conditions are abnormal.
  5. BC Timber Sales market adjustment factor. A factor derived from recent BCTS auction outcomes that calibrates the equation back to observed market reality.

Source: 2026 Interior Stumpage Appraisal Parameters, Province of British Columbia.

What changes monthly, what changes quarterly

The five parameters update every month — that's why the Ministry publishes a fresh PDF each month titled "Market Pricing System – Interior" with the month name. But MPS upset stumpage rates only re-calculate at quarterly adjustments. So even though the lumber AMV moved last month, your invoice may not see it until the next quarterly reset, depending on the effective date of your cutting authority.

Operator implication: if you're tracking stumpage month-over-month, watch the parameter sheet (the AMV in particular). If you're tracking what actually hits the Harvest Billing System for a specific cutting authority, watch the quarterly adjustment dates instead.

The Coast — appraisal manual approach

Coast stumpage works on a different principle. Rather than a regression model trained on BCTS auctions, the Coast uses the Coast Appraisal Manual — a published methodology that calculates stumpage as a residual: end-product selling value, minus operating costs, minus a profit and risk allowance. What's left over is the stumpage rate.

Two outputs flow from this: tabular rates (set rates by district and species, published monthly) for non-appraised cutting authorities, and appraised rates (calculated case-by-case) for licensees who submit detailed cost data on a specific cutblock.

Tabular vs. appraised rates Tabular rates are the published default — used when a licensee doesn't submit detailed appraisal data. Appraised rates are calculated specifically for one cutting authority based on the licensee's submitted operating costs, end-product mix, and other site-specific factors.

Coast tabular stumpage by district and species is updated monthly and is part of section 7 of the Coast Appraisal Manual. Source: Coast Average Stumpage Rates, Province of British Columbia.

Where to find the current rate for your operation

The single source of truth is the Harvest Billing System (HBS). HBS is the provincial database that calculates and tracks stumpage charges per cutting authority. It is the rate that actually shows up on your bill — not the published parameter sheet, not the appraisal manual, but what HBS spits out when your specific cutting authority is processed at the appraisal effective date.

For high-level monitoring of where rates are moving across the province:

Why this matters

Stumpage is also a political pressure point. When the Province raises stumpage in a downturn, it pulls cash out of marginal mills and accelerates curtailments. When it lowers stumpage in a boom, it draws criticism for under-collecting Crown rent. Most of the cycle of complaints from the industry to the Ministry — and from the public back the other way — is downstream of how the parameters move and how MPS recalibrates against BCTS auction outcomes.

For a working operator, three actions:

  1. Track the AMV monthly. Most of the month-to-month variation in upset rate comes from lumber AMV moves. The Province publishes the parameter sheet on the first business day of each month.
  2. Mark the quarterly adjustment dates. Even if AMV moves dramatically, your invoice doesn't move until the quarterly reset for your cutting authority.
  3. Watch BCTS auction outcomes. The MPS market adjustment factor is recalibrated against recent BCTS auctions. When BCTS bids run hot or cold, MPS upset rates follow with a lag.

This is what Fibre Supply does, twice a week.

We track the parameters, the quarterly adjustments, the BCTS auction outcomes, and the regulatory dockets — and deliver them in a 4-minute brief Tuesday and Friday morning. Plain language. Sourced. Designed for people who don't have time to read the appraisal manual.

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