Region Archives: US East

WISCONSIN — The Trump administration is speeding up environmental reviews of logging projects on more than half of the country’s national forests, including parts of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in Wisconsin. A large part of the western Upper Peninsula, in the vicinity of Ottawa National Forest, and several smaller areas in the eastern Upper Peninsula are also included. …Ron Eckstein is the co-chair of the public lands and forestry work group for Wisconsin’s Green Fire. He said he doesn’t think existing federal regulations are too burdensome for loggers. …Scott Dane, executive director of the American Loggers Council, saidTrump’s order is a big step forward to reversing policy that has resulted in less forest management and unhealthy forests. “(Agencies are) not abandoning any requirements… but things do need to be streamlined,” Dane said. “They’ve been delayed at the national forest level for years at a time.”

Swaths of Allegheny National Forest in northwestern Pennsylvania could be on the chopping block as the federal government moves to increase logging in national forests across the country. In a memo released last week, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins put almost 60% of national forest lands under an emergency designation, citing declining forest health and risk of wildfires. The designated forest lands will be easier to harvest for more timber as some federally mandated regulations and processes, such as one that allows challenges to logging proposals, are not required under the emergency designation. The U.S. Forest Service declined to comment on how much of Allegheny National Forest falls under the designation. …That memo also calls for the use of “innovative and efficient approaches” to meet “the minimum requirements” of environmental laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act, National Historic Preservation Act and Endangered Species Act.

MICHIGAN — Aerial images show thousands of acres of state forests have been damaged in Northern Michigan in the aftermath of March’s severe ice storm. Approximately 919,550 acres of state forest land are impacted by the ice storm, according to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources’ Forest Resources Division. “I’ve worked for the state for 39 years and I’ve never seen anything quite like this,” said Jeff Stampfly, Chief of the Forest Resources Division. The DNR started drone flyover assessments of state forests on April 8. The damage was put into stark clarity for the public when the DNR shared aerial footage of Pigeon River Country State Forest, known as Michigan’s “Big Wild.” Footage showed a plantation of red pines reduced to stick-like figures after heavy ice snapped tree tops off of hundreds of trees. 

Governor Stitt said he’s standing by his firings of staff from the Forestry Service after the March deadly fires. Several fire crews have now called for an independent investigation into what happened and what the state could do better. “It’s tough to believe anything – he’s been fact-checked several times by fire departments and the media and his facts have been incorrect. So right now you just can’t believe anything that comes out of the governor’s office,” said Fire Chief Jason Dobson of the Olive Volunteer Fire Dept. His department was one of the first to share the Change.org petition which called for Governor Stitt’s impeachment… “If the governor can’t fire the head of the forestry, who can?,” said Gov. Stitt.

Cory W. MacNeil / KBIA

Every year, Missouri’s George O. White State Forest nursery sends out 2 million tree seedlings to customers across the state and beyond. The nursery was founded by the U.S. Forest Service in the 1930s to assist landowners in reforesting the state. The Ozarks had been heavily logged during the construction of railroads heading west. The original site was just 40 acres. It’s now owned and operated by the Missouri Department of Conservation. KBIA’s Jana Rose Schleis interviewed the staff growing and cultivating the trees on the now 100 acre site in Licking, Missouri… As for keeping wildlife from eating on the plots of snacks the nursery unintentionally makes available for them, the forest technicians use diluted Frank’s Hot Sauce sprayed over the fields. “We buy it in cases and Jeff City has never said a word about why we buy so much hot sauce.”

COLUMBIA, S.C. – A group of South Carolina lawmakers will continue considering a bill that would increase penalties for illegal burning in the state. The South Carolina Criminal Law Subcommittee discussed H.4265 during a meeting on Wednesday. The bill, filed by Rep. Tim McGinnis of Horry County, came after a wildfire allegedly started by a Carolina Forest woman burned more than 2,000 acres last month. McGinnis’s bill would increase fines and even jail time for burning during a ban issued by the South Carolina Forestry Commission. He spoke during Wednesday’s meeting, saying that an amendment to the bill was also made after meeting with the SCFC on Tuesday. …The bill would also repeal a section of South Carolina law that allowed exemptions for fire regulation, such as fire pits and chimineas.

DULUTH — The U.S. Forest Service will not log in designated wilderness areas like the Boundary Waters, federal officials clarified Tuesday evening, days after issuing an emergency order intended to boost logging on national forest land throughout the country. … Wide swaths of several wilderness areas, like the Boundary Waters, were included in that total, and a map  accompanying the order made no distinction between wilderness areas, where logging is banned, and non-wilderness national forest land, where logging is allowed but regulated. Locally, that caused concern that the order would lead to logging within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. …”The clumsy map that they put out shows how poorly planned this whole order was,” said Kevin Proescholdt, conservation director for Wilderness Watch. “It showed logging would occur in all kinds of wilderness areas … for me, it’s indicative of the slap-dash way in which the Trump administration is approaching this.”

The Trump administration is speeding up environmental reviews of logging projects on more than half of the country’s national forests, including parts of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest in Wisconsin. US Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins issued an emergency designation on more than 112 million acres of national forest land, citing risks from wildfires, insects and disease. …Rollins used authority established under the bipartisan infrastructure law to issue the emergency designation, and the Biden administration previously sought to increase logging to address wildfire threats due to climate change. The move allows the Forest Service within USDA to engage in faster permitting and roll back federal environmental regulations. …Over the next five years, the Trump administration aims to increase timber production 25% across the agency. A national strategy will be developed within the next month. 

Leaders from the Texas forest industry urged Angelina County commissioners Tuesday to table a proposed road use agreement they say unfairly targets timber haulers and could lead to legal challenges. Dave Durren, speaking on behalf of the Texas Logging Council and the Texas Forestry Association, said the proposed policy would require permits and potential financial responsibility for road maintenance, placing an undue burden on loggers. “Other agricultural sectors… are not subject to this level of scrutiny or regulation, despite using the same rural road systems. This selective enforcement places an undue burden on the forestry sector and creates an uneven playing field,” the speaker said. The speaker also cited the passage of Texas Proposition 1, a constitutional amendment approved by Texas voters in 2023 protecting the right to farm, ranch and produce timber. He argued that regulating the transportation of timber directly interferes with the constitutionally protected activity.

OKLAHOMA CITY — There is more fallout from what has largely divided Governor Kevin Stitt and the entire firefighting community. Governor Stitt confirms two more top-level employees within Oklahoma Forestry Services. The two unnamed employees follow the firing of lauded Forestry Director Mark Goeller. …Since Goeller’s firing, Stitt has continued making shocking changes — and suggestions — within and about forestry. He has suggested eliminating OFS altogether and called for an investigation, claiming 50% of resources went untapped during the March wildfires. …“Forestry is an integral part of what we do,” said Rep. Stan May, who worked for the Tulsa Fire Department for 30 years. …May said it would also likely disrupt inter-state agreements that aid in a multitude of disasters. He said if we don’t help others, it will hinder our efforts to get help. “We have to make sure those agreements are in place,” he said.

• News 9 by Jonathan Polasek: Gov. Stitt forms Wildfire Strategy Team after leadership shakeup in Forestry Department

The College of Natural Resources and Environment invites you to join its celebration of 100 Years of Forestry at Virginia Tech. The celebration will last throughout the calendar year and is ramping up this month with both a virtual 100 Years of Forestry event lasting through the end of April and a centennial tree planting happening on Wednesday, April 30. By registering for the virtual 100 Years of Forestry Celebration, participants make a gift to the Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation Annual Fund and can then select between a CNRE ’47 brand cap with the 100 Years of Forestry emblem embroidered on the side or a commemorative T-shirt. From there, participants are encouraged to take a picture wearing the apparel and post on your social media with the hashtag #VTForestry100. 

OKLAHOMA CITY — Governor Kevin Stitt expanded on his criticisms of the Oklahoma Forestry Services’ response to the March 14 wildfires on April 7. His public criticism of the response started after 2 News learned that the Director of Forestry Mark Goeller was fired. We asked him about this in his press conference on March 26, to which he responded, “He’s the head of the forestry department, and we had a horrible, horrible wildfire in the state of Oklahoma and I didn’t think he really did a good job.” …In his next weekly press conference on April 2, Stitt suggested eliminating the Forestry Department entirely. …Then, on April 7, Stitt put out another statement to “set the record straight”. He said the Oklahoma Forestry Service only used half of the resources available to fight the wildfires, but provided no evidence to back up that claim. We reached out for comment and are waiting to hear back.

• KGOU News – Stitt claims half of Oklahoma Forestry Services’ resources held back during fires, reportedly suspends employees
• News 9 – Lincoln Co. fire chiefs want Gov. Stitt to reconsider decision to fire forestry service director

Kevin Stitt

OKLAHOMA CITY – Legislative leaders on Thursday panned Gov. Kevin Stitt’s proposal to eliminate the state Forestry Service after the Republican criticized its response to wildfires last month. The legislative remarks came a day after Stitt told reporters he wanted to axe the agency amid frustrations about its response to wind-fueled wildfires that ripped through parts of the state, damaging or destroying over 400 homes. …He later fired Mark Goeller, the head of the Oklahoma Forestry Service. …The agency is responsible for preserving the state’s forests and is the primary state body responsible for wildland fire detection, prevention and suppression. …Stitt suggested getting rid of the Oklahoma Forestry Service or giving a portion of the funds directly to local fire departments. …“It sounds like a really bad idea to me,” said Senate President Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle, a longtime volunteer fire firefighter.

Continuing a four-year collaboration dedicated to enhancing environmental sustainability, Green Forests Work, Suntory Global Spirits, and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) are joining forces to reforest a former mine site in Hazard, Kentucky. This annual tree planting event underscores each organization’s strong commitment to restoring Kentucky’s natural habitats and fostering healthy environments for sustainable communities around the world… “Our premium spirits are made with agricultural ingredients, such as grains and agave, and we rely on healthy forests and White Oak trees for the barrels that age our spirits,” said Kim Marotta, Chief Environmental Sustainability Officer. “Given the significant role White Oak plays in our bourbon barrels, we’re committed to their regeneration and have set an ambitious goal of planting half a million trees by 2030.

For centuries, logging was a seasonal, learn-on-the-job trade passed down from father to son. But as climate change and innovations in the industry have changed logging into a year-round business, there aren’t always enough workers to fill jobs. “Our workforce was dying,” said Delbert Gannon, owner of Creekside Logging. “You couldn’t even pick from the bottom of the barrel. It was affecting our production and our ability to haul logs. We felt we had to do something.” Retirements have hit Creekside Logging hard. In 2018 Gannon’s company had jobs to do, and the machines to do them, but nobody to do the work. He reached out to Shasta College, which offers certificates and degrees in forestry and heavy equipment operation, to see if there might be a student who could help.

Last week, Gov. Kevin Stitt criticized the Oklahoma State Forester’s response to the fires that blazed across Oklahoma in March. This week, the governor is floating the concept of axing the entire Forestry Services division. Stitt has said he believes the Oklahoma Forestry Service held back resources during the fires. When asked to specify which resources during a press conference, Stitt said he didn’t know. “The fact that we can’t get answers about where their assets were around the state is further proof that this is a deep-seated bureaucracy that are trying to protect their actions,” Stitt said. “We still haven’t been able to figure out where they were during that thing.” Just weeks after the fires, the state’s Chief Forester Mark Goeller resigned following criticism from the governor.

The Southern Environmental Law Center has sued the National Forest Service alleging its Nantahala-Pisgah Forest logging plan violates federal law. The lawsuit – filed on behalf of MountainTrue, the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity, and Defenders of Wildlife – argues that the 2023 forest planning document is not in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, the National Forest Management Act, or the National Procedure Act. The lawsuit seeks to have the Forest Service withdraw and revise its Forest Plan, which ultimately guides short- and long-term land management policies on federal lands. The full environmental review process for the Nantahala-Pisgah Forest Plan took nearly a decade. It sets guidance for forest management of 1 million acres of national forest in Western North Carolina for the next two decades.

A bill timber industry leaders hoped would increase the per-axle load limits on logging trucks, leading to fewer citations and more productivity for truck drivers, passed the Alabama Senate Tuesday without the increase provision. As initially written, Senate Bill 110 by Sen. Jack Williams, R-Wilmer, would have increased the tandem axle limit from 34,000 pounds to 44,000 pounds. It did not change the 80,000-pound maximum allowed weight of a logging truck. The weight change was removed from the bill in an amendment on the Senate floor. Opponents of the bill, including the Alabama Department of Transportation and the Association of County Commissions of Alabama, had said the increased weight would significantly damage roads and bridges across the state and cost hundreds of millions of dollars per year in needed repairs. 

Amanda Lefton

Amanda Lefton, the Department of Environmental Conservation’s new leader, came to her first public appearance in the Adirondack Park with a message: All are welcome on state lands. Lefton led a transgender day of visibility flag-raising ceremony in honor of former forest ranger Robbi Mecus, who came out as transgender midway through her ranger career and helped bolster the region’s LGBTQ community. Mecus died in a climbing accident in Alaska last year. Lefton said Mecus’ career and the acceptance of her by her fellow rangers was an important reminder to the agency charged with managing New York’s public lands. “As a land manager, as a big agency, it’s critical we are allies to show these lands are for everyone and everyone is welcome here,” Lefton said. …Lefton said she planned to focus on recruiting more rangers to fill out the force’s ranks.

Kyle Spessert

A Mississippi State graduate student is helping inspectors across the world identify timber species and combat illegal logging with a new smartphone application. Inspired by Asi Ebeheakey, a sustainable bioproducts doctoral student from Accra, Ghana, and developed as part of Kyatt Spessert’s master’s research in sustainable bioproducts, the innovative app WhatWood? provides a digital alternative to traditional wood-identification manuals used in Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean and Ghana by placing a dependable, field-ready resource in the palms of users’ hands. By correctly identifying wood quickly and effectively, Ebeheakey said inspectors can make an impact on illegal logging and the export of illegally prohibited or mislabeled wood. WhatWood? is free to download for iOS and Android devices at their respective app stores.

Three South Carolina men and a juvenile were charged with a misdemeanor Tuesday after authorities said their failure to properly put out their cigarettes sparked the Table Rock Fire, which has burned more than 13,000 acres. …The Table Rock Fire was sparked by their handling of cigarettes while they were hiking in Table Rock State Park on March 21, the Forestry Commission said. …The fire was 30% contained Tuesday. No injuries have been reported. …The charge of negligently allowing fire to spread to lands or property of another is a misdemeanor punishable with a minimum of five days in jail and a maximum of 30 days in jail if convicted or a fine of $25 to $200. …In South Carolina, 12,652 acres have burned, and 635 acres have burned in North Carolina, the Forestry Commission said in a daily update.

At Edmund Niles Huyck Preserve in rural Albany County, the white spruce trees are struggling. Planted in the 1920s at what was then the southern part of the trees’ range, the plot now has no white spruce saplings, and “the adults are not doing well either,” said Andrei Lapenas, a professor at the University at Albany’s Transformational & Ecosystem-based Climate Adaptation. Lapenas, said higher temperatures from climate change have slowed older trees’ growth, while younger trees are being out-competed by the mature ones. Meanwhile, a different species, red spruce, has established itself in the preserve… He speculated that in the next 20 to 40 years, the preserve “will be overtaken by other tree species, and red spruce is a good candidate for this.”

Nearly 18,000 acres in the lower Blackfoot River watershed prized for its habitat and wood products could become publicly owned if the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) follows through with its planned acquisition. Missoula County last week signed a letter of support backing the BLM’s proposed acquisition of the former private industrial timberland in the Gold and Twin Creek drainages northeast of Missoula. Chet Crowser, chief lands and communities officer with the county, said that acquiring the parcels would permanently protect public ownership and provide benefits for decades to come… More than 60% of Missoula County is covered with public lands – lands the county claims sustain local economies through restoration and active management.

New York has a new interactive web tool to track the state’s progress in an ambitious goal by Gov. Kathy Hochul to have people plant 25 million trees within a nine-year period. The new online “Tree Tracker” enables state residents to self-identify as a private landowners, group members, paid professionals, municipality workers or state agency employees and input information about their tree planting. “New York is taking decisive action to protect our environment and strengthen communities’ ability to withstand severe weather,” Hochul noted in statement unveiling the online tool last month. “Our progress toward the 25 Million Tree goal is a testament to the power of community-driven action, and the new Tree Tracker will make it easier for New Yorkers to track our progress, share updates and contribute to a healthier environment for the future.”

PITTSBURG, Pennsylvania — Local officials are pushing for more logging in Pennsylvania’s only national forest, and the federal government might grant their wish. President Trump warned of a reliance on imported wood amid threat of Canadian lumber tariffs and called for more logging in federal forests. The Allegheny National Forest spans over 500,000 acres, drawing thousands of people for camping, hunting, boating and other outdoor activities. Local officials can’t rely on property tax from the federal land, but they do receive a 25% share of revenue from timber sales in their counties. mOfficials hope for increased timber sales to generate more cash for their budgets. …U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-Centre County, “I welcome reforms that will ensure a robust forest industry, strengthen rural economies and benefit local education.” …“I am in favor of [increased logging], but it has to be done wisely. You can’t overcut,” said Ken Klakamp, Warren County commissioner.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — A coalition of conservation groups sued the U.S. Forest Service over its Nantahala-Pisgah Forest Plan, arguing the agency violated federal law by downplaying the harmful impacts of a dramatic expansion in logging and by failing to include binding standards to restore important native ecosystems. The Plan guides the long-term future of North Carolina’s Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests… The Nantahala-Pisgah Forest Plan outlines where activities like logging and roadbuilding will occur and sets objectives for future timber harvests. The Plan will determine what happens on these Forests for a generation. The Forest Service was handed a collaboratively developed Forest Plan proposal that allowed for logging while minimizing harmful impacts. However, the agency rejected the compromise out of hand in favor of a Plan that aims to quintuple the amount of logging in the Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests and expand logging and roadbuilding into sensitive habitats. 

OKLAHOMA — The former head of the Oklahoma Forestry Service is speaking out after he was fired by Gov. Kevin Stitt for his agency’s response to a wildfire outbreak earlier this month. Mark Goeller, who was let go by the state on March 26, posed on social media Sunday evening, claiming he has been falsely accused of not meeting the standards required by his position. …”The Agency to which I dedicated over 40 years of my life was said to have performed poorly. Preparations were made well in advance, the public was notified of the impending fire danger, firefighting resources were ordered and in place.” He said nothing was held back regarding his agency’s response to the wildfires, and it was because of their efforts the fires were not as impactful as they could have been.

MICHIGAN — A crippling ice storm in northern Michigan has knocked out power to at least 90,000 residential and business customers. As of midday Sunday, half an inch to three-quarters of an inch of ice had accumulated in much of northeast Lower Michigan, and an inch and a half had accumulated in Elmira, near Gaylord. …Virtually all customers of the Presque Isle Electric & Gas Co-op and Alpena Power Co. were without power Sunday, some for more than 30 hours. Presque Isle reported about 32,000 electric members and reported about 32,000 outages. Alpena Power serves about 16,750 electric customers covering 250 square miles in the northeastern Lower Peninsula of Michigan and said 99% of its customers were without power. The two utilities serve much of Michigan’s northeastern Lower Peninsula. “This storm is unlike anything we have experienced,” Presque Ile co-op president and CEO Allan Berg said.

The Women in the Woods program, developed by Louisiana Tech University professors Dr. Heidi Adams and Dr. Nan Nan, is designed to encourage young women to explore careers in forestry through mentorship, community outreach, and hands-on learning. The initiative, supported by the USDA NIFA Women and Minorities in STEM Fields Program, has recently received a $200,000 grant. “Our goal is to create an inclusive, supportive environment for young women interested in forestry,” said Adams. “This program offers real-world insights into the profession and inspires young women to consider forestry as a viable career path.” A recent survey of female college students with forestry-related leadership experience found that many women do not view forestry as a potential career because they rarely see women represented in the field.