Softwood lumber breakthrough?

From CTV:

Sources told CTV News on Monday that outlines of an agreement were hammered out by both sides following round-the-clock discussions. As part of an agreement:

• Canadian lumber firms would be held to a 34 per cent share of softwood lumber in the U.S. market. It's roughly the share that Canada currently holds.
• The U.S. would return 78 per cent of the $5 billion it collected in softwood duties beginning in 2002.

The remaining 22 per cent will go to the U.S. lumber industry to help defray the costs of their legal challenges. It is not immediately clear, however, how that portion will be distributed, or what form it will take.

If I was a part of the Canadian softwood lumber industry, I would be ecstatic if a deal has in fact been struck after all these years. It's not an outright victory, but it is better than a stalement.

However, as someone who has no direct stake in this particular dispute, I am not so enthused. Why are we accepting export quotas under NAFTA? It's hardly free trade if you ask me... And having to compensate the American softwood industry for waging their protectionist war is just a kick in the teeth.

Then again, this latest story may just turn out to be a false alarm. The plot sounds familiar...