The employment crisis in the B.C. Interior forest crisis has reached the Lower Mainland.

Interfor has announced the closure of its Hammond sawmill in Maple Ridge as part of a plan to reconfigure its business on B.C.'s coast.

Nearly 150 people are expected to lose their jobs when the mill shuts down at the end of 2019.

The news came less than 24 hours after Labour Day, which honours the contributions of workers around the world.

Interfor president and CEO, Duncan Davies, attributed the decision to "significant log supply challenges over the past two decades", as well as the disproportionate impact of U.S. duties on cedar producers.

"We recognize the impact this decision will have on our employees who have contributed so much to the business over the years," Davies said in a news release. "We will be working closely with them to mitigate the impacts of the closure and to identify job opportunities at other Interfor mills as well as outside the company."

The first mill was built in 1908 and, according to Interfor, the existing facility opened in 1963. It has sufficient capacity to process 150 million board feet per year.

Nearly 4,000 other forest workers have found themselves without work in the B.C. Interior this summer after plant closures or curtailed hours, according to CBC News.

Among the shutdowns are a Tolko sawmill in Quesnel, a Conifex sawmill in Fort St. James, a Canfor sawmill in Vavenby, and mills in Mackenzie owned by Canfor, Conifex, and Parallel Wood Products.

NDP posted gains in northeast sector

The closure of the mill in Maple Ridge could conceivably have provincial political ramifications.

In the 2017 election, the NDP's Bob D'Eith was elected in Maple Ridge–Mission by just 325 votes over Liberal incumbent Marc Dalton.

Next door in Maple Ridge–Pitt Meadows, the NDP's Lisa Beare defeated Liberal incumbent Doug Bing by 1,617 votes.

The permanent closure of a sawmill isn't necessarily going to help them when they seek reelection, even if it was caused by factors beyond their control.

Had either of these constituencies returned the B.C. Liberal candidate to the legislature, Christy Clark would likely still be the premier of the province. That's because her party fell one seat short of capturing a majority.

Interfor was one of the B.C. Liberals' largest donors in 2017, contributing $79.800.

The union representing employees at the Hammond sawmill, the United Steelworkers, contributed $753,415 to the NDP, including in-kind donations of staff to the campaign.