US Forest Service Offers Salvage Timber in North Carolina to Reduce Wildfire Risk

On Tuesday, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service announced that it is currently offering salvage timber contracts to remove downed but still commercially usable trees left in the wake of Hurricane Helene on up to 2,200 acres of the Pisgah National Forest (North Carolina) that, if left to dry, would pose a considerable wildfire risk.

The salvage timber sales will take place in McDowell and Burke counties, as well as in Yancey and Mitchell counties near the Appalachian Trail. The Forest Service worked closely with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to plan the removal of downed trees in the vicinity to the trail.

The unprecedented levels of downed trees and woody debris across the Pisgah National Forest has led the Forest Service to take action protecting neighboring communities by reducing the amount of fuel on the ground for potential wildfires.

The Pisgah National Forest has already experienced wildfire activity in the five months since Hurricane Helene blew through Western North Carolina. In these cases, debris left by the hurricane added additional challenges in containing the blazes by adding additional fuel and making the terrain more difficult.

In a statement, James Melonas, Forest Supervisor for the National Forests in North Carolina, said:

“Hurricane Helene left catastrophic damage across a large portion of the forests in Western North Carolina, with several thousands of acres of blown down trees in the Pisgah National Forests alone. The longer we wait, the greater the likelihood that a severe wildfire could threaten the Pisgah and our neighboring communities, and that’s simply not a risk we’re willing to take.”