Region Archives: US East

Alabama’s economy is heavily supported by its forestry industry – but is facing a new challenge, with a widespread outbreak of the southern pine beetle. This native pest is known for its ability to rapidly destroy pine trees. The Alabama Forestry Commission reports that it has already affected numerous counties, particularly in the northern half of the state. Drew Metzler, forest health coordinator at the commission, said the outbreak this year is the most widespread Alabama has seen since 2001. …But these beetles aren’t just impacting Alabama. Metzler said neighboring states, such as Mississippi, Georgia, and South Carolina, are also experiencing outbreaks. … Metzlers said the beetles aren’t just making their way through forests, but onto private land as well. He said to combat the southern pine beetle outbreak, it’s important to consider preventive measures.

ASHFIELD, Massachusetts — The town Energy Committee, Citizen’s Climate Lobby and the First Congregational Church of Ashfield are inviting the community to talk about trees, why they are important and what can be done to protect them. “Forests as Climate Solutions: Proforestation, Land Conservation and Climate Smart Forestry Practices,” a presentation with climate scientists and forestry specialists, is set for Saturday, September 14. …The talk will include four experts. William Moomaw, professor emeritus at Tufts University’s Fletcher School will detail how forests are good for the environment. Dicken Crane, Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts board chair, will discuss how forests can be safely cut to support other human endeavors. Sally Loomis, Hilltown Land Trust executive director, will share different options for landowners. And Mary Wigmore of Wigmore Forest Resource Management will speak about forestry and landscaping methods.

Pittsfield, Massachusetts — a forestry management plan in South County has attracted criticism from local residents and environmental activists. At issue is the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s forest cutting plan at the so-called “Cattle Barn Lot” in Mount Washington. …DCR has outlined a 275-acre project area where the agency hopes to …”produce immediate and maximize long-term income, enhance wildlife habitat, improve recreational opportunities, protect soil and water quality, or produce forest specialty products.”  …We’re heartened to see state officials and local stakeholders confronting their disagreements in a healthy way to find a path of compromise for this project. In a corner of the commonwealth that often feels overlooked by the powers that be in Boston, it was refreshing to see several Healey administration environmental and forestry leaders make the trip to South County and hear residents’ concerns. 

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) announced $2.5 million in grants to improve, restore, and expand important forest and wetland habitats in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley. The projects supported by the grants will enhance and restore private and public land through the installation of water management infrastructure, landowner technical assistance, tree establishment, and wetland reconstruction. The grants will also increase the capacity of a bottomland hardwood nursery to supply seedlings for other projects in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley. Collectively, more than 4.2 million bottomland hardwood seedlings will be planted, and 3,900 acres of existing hardwood forest will be restored with wildlife-friendly forest treatments.

WEST VIRGINIA — The US Attorney’s office has filed a civil lawsuit against a Randolph County logger and logging company for trespassing and cutting down approximately 10 acres of timber on the Monongahela National Forest near Slaty Fork, Pocahontas County. According to the complaint, John R. Fox and Fox Logging submitted paperwork to timber 319 acres of private property that borders the Monongahela National Forest in Pocahontas County. Fox allegedly began logging in 2015 and continued until at least 2019. During that time, the logging operation is alleged to have encroached on nearly 10 acres of the forest, resulting in the timbering of more than 45,500 cubic feet of mature hardwood and pine saw timber valued at nearly $28,000. …The government is seeking $80,189 in monetary damages, as well as compensatory and punitive damages. Trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 20, 2025.

Michigan State University researchers contributed to a recent amphibian-focused study that shed light on the ecological importance of red-backed salamanders. Scientists knew that red-backed salamanders were abundant in eastern North America, but a recent study found their densities and biomass were much higher than expected. The study marks the first time that the densities and biomass for this common, but rarely seen, species were calculated across the extent of its range… The incredible magnitude of red-backed salamander presence in the eastern North American captured in this study suggests that red-backed salamanders, and likely amphibians in general, play a more prevalent role in terrestrial temperate ecosystems than previously suspected… Unfortunately, just as scientists are beginning to understand the true magnitude of salamanders’ hidden biodiversity and ecological importance, a new wildlife disease that is particularly hard on salamanders is a looming threat and a serious concern for scientists and wildlife managers.

Michigan’s nearly 4 million acres of state forest land has something for everyone [and] the management of these forests has an impact on you. To ensure the long-term, sustainable management and health of the state forest the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has drafted a new State Forest Management Plan to serve as a guide for the next 10 years. This draft plan was collaboratively developed by DNR forestry, wildlife, fisheries and recreation planning staff. …The state forest was established in 1903 by the Michigan Forestry Commission. …Since that time… the state forest has grown to nearly 4 million acres. The management of Michigan’s state forest has evolved over time as well. …“With broad public review and thoughtful input to ensure a comprehensive State Forest Management Plan, we will continue that progress into the next 10 years and beyond,” said Dan Heckman, planning and modeling specialist with the DNR’s Forest Resources Division.

In the August newsletter from the Southern Forest Products Association you’ll find these headlines and more:

• Sustainability in the Southern Pine lumber industry is paramount, which is why more trees are planted than harvested each year. So why is Southern Pine so sustainable? SFPA has all the answers you need. 
• Southern Pine lumber shipments in June totaled 1.531 billion board feet (Bbf), 19% below May’s revised shipments of 1.887 Bbf. Exports of Southern Pine lumber (treated and untreated) are running 20% ahead of 2023 through the first half of 2024. They were up 16% in the second quarter of 2024 over the prior quarter and up 22% over the same period in 2023. 
• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released a plan August 7 for implementing a new label program to boost clean American manufacturing by helping federal purchasers and other buyers find and buy cleaner, more climate-friendly construction materials and products. However, wood is not included in that list.

A destructive insect capable of devastating timber harvests is at “epidemic” level in Alabama, with the state’s forest management agency saying the problem is the worst it’s been in more than 20 years. The Alabama Forestry Commission (AFC) has issued an alert about the Southern pine beetle. The AFC said it has identified almost 5,000 trouble spots, with an average of 191 trees killed at each spot. “Unfortunately, this is the highest number of beetle spots we’ve experienced in the state in the last 23 years, State Forester Rick Oates said. “The agency has conducted aerial surveys in 51 counties so far, with more counties anticipated over the next couple weeks. Both Mississippi and Georgia are also counting numerous spots. So, it looks as if this is an especially active pine beetle year not just here in Alabama, but across the Southeast.”

Charles Tarver

Western North Carolina — The U.S. Forest Service’s Brushy Mountain logging project is cutting down a rare old growth forest near Highlands. The logging is demolishing the habitats of rare green salamanders and endangered bats. It is also introducing harmful exotic species and creating sources of erosion and sedimentation into beloved brook trout streams. And it is ignoring overwhelming public opposition to this project on public lands. The Forest Service’s decision to log this old growth forest also defies science and common sense. The stated purpose of the Brushy Mountain Timber Sale is to establish a wildlife opening in the forest. Multiple alternative sites nearby could provide the same wildlife opening benefits and entirely avoid destroying a unique old growth forest… Sadly, the Forest Service’s new proposed National Old Growth Amendment will allow even more old growth logging projects like Brushy Mountain, because of loopholes in the amendment that allow continued liquidation of old growth.

Ethan Tapper is a wild man on stage. The leader of the 10-member Burlington punk band The Bubs screams into the microphone and plays furiously on electric guitar while his band mates cavort happily around him in front of delirious crowds of hundreds of music fans. The chaos of the stage contrasts starkly with Tapper’s other life. The former Chittenden County forester left that post in June to focus on Bear Island, the 175-acre forest he manages in Bolton. …Tapper spends much of his time communing with trees and the serene life that thrives around them. Every now and then, Tapper’s dichotomous worlds collide. The Bubs release a new album, “Make a Mess” with a concert on Aug. 23 in Winooski. Less than three weeks later, Tapper launches his first book, a treatise on tough TLC for trees titled “How to Love a Forest,” on Sept. 10 at Burlington City Hall.

Greenville, S.C. —A new conservation easement on the Gillette tract will protect 2,100 feet of the Nottoway River frontage in southeastern Virginia, supported by a grant from the Enviva Forest Conservation Fund (EFCF). Managed by the Virginia Outdoors Foundation (VOF), this easement will preserve water quality, scenic beauty, and wildlife habitats, and reinforce protection for the river and its tributaries. The Nottoway River, a Scenic River and Blueway Trail flowing into the Albemarle-Pamlico Sound Estuary, will benefit from this effort, ensuring its ecological and scenic value for future generations. Brandi Colander, Chief Sustainability Officer at Enviva, said, “We are delighted to be a part of this significant milestone for environmental preservation and to assist with the conservation of another important easement along the Nottoway River.” Eligible for the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, the easement supports the river’s exceptional attributes and safeguards its environment.

An invasive insect with an insatiable appetite can cause serious problems for a favorite native moth that likes the same food source—even though the two are never in direct competition for a meal, according to new research, published in the journal Ecology and Evolution, from University of Wisconsin–Madison ecologists. Since the early 2000s, spongy moth caterpillars, an import from Europe, have flexed their gustatory muscle in Wisconsin by stripping entire stands of trees of their leaves during late spring and early summer in remarkably destructive feeding binges. …Because the spongy moth caterpillar ends its leaf-eating spree relatively early in the aspen tree’s growing season, the defoliated trees produce a second flush of leaves to capture enough energy to survive (if not necessarily thrive) through the winter and into the next growth year. … “By mid-summer, they produced an entirely new set of leaves that had, on average, an eight-times higher concentration of defense chemicals.”