News in timber

The Canadian press is reporting (11-2-21) that the British Columbia Provincial Government was expected to discuss today the next steps it will take on old-growth logging in the province. Forests Minister Katrine Conroy was scheduled to release the findings of an independent advisory panel established in June to help the province identify at-risk old-growth ecosystems and prioritize them for deferral from logging.

Oregon’s Gov. Kate Brown’s office announced on Saturday (10-30-21) that, after a year of negotiations, an agreement has been reached to overhaul the management of 10 million acres of private forestland in Oregon. The new plan will boost protection for vulnerable fish and wildlife while at the same time shielding the timber industry’s ability to log.

On Wednesday (10-20-21), Katrine Conroy, British Columbia’s Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development Minster, introduced a bill to amend the Forest and Range Practices Act, saying it would “reshape” forest management in the province. Conroy told the legislature that the proposed changes align forestry legislation with the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act passed in late 2019 and introduce “new tools to establish resilient forests.”

In a joint announcement on Monday (10-18-21), The Westervelt Company and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a global investment group, announced the acquisition of more than 76,000 acres (307 km2) of high-quality pine timberland and the creation of a new strategic partnership that will focus on sustainable timberland management.

As the wildfire season slowly comes to an end, The National Interagency Fire Center reported today (10-19-21) that there are 5,600 wildfire fighters deployed nationally trying to contain 18 large wildfires that are burning on over 2,253,764 acres. No new large fires were being reported as of today.

Roseburg announced on Wednesday (10-13-21) that it has completed the purchase of approximately 30,000 acres of timberland in the southern U.S. from Forest Investment Associates (FIA). The properties are located in the northeast region of North Carolina and the southeast region of Virginia and consist of well-managed loblolly pine plantations.

Weyerhaeuser has provided a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at how all four of their Oregon tree farms’ operations were able to deal with and recover from the wildfire season of 2020. All four farms suffered significant damage after nearby wildfires on state and federal timberlands encroached on the company’s property in September 2020.

Sunday, October 10, 2021 marked the three-year anniversary of Hurricane Michael’s devastation of the Florida panhandle’s logging industry. The Florida Forest Service (FFS) estimates that Hurricane Michael damaged approximately 10-15 years worth of timber supply.

Although the extent of the damage has yet to be fully assessed, estimates place the number of hectares burned at 900,000 hectares or 9,000 square kilometers. Depending on the severity of the burn, trees in fire zones may still be harvestable, but there is often a timeframe before harvest loses viability.