Days after federal agents raided a South Florida wood importer’s warehouse and seized stacks of Chinese-made birch plywood, an order for another load of the illegal panels arrived. The 2021 raid touched off a scramble from Miami to Qingdao, China. The couple who owned the importer, Horizon Plywood, fled the US. But word was slow to reach Boise Cascade’s branch in Pompano Beach, Florida. …The smuggling and ensuing investigation trapped Boise in a global web that spanned China, Florida, Panama and Montenegro. And while Boise didn’t make or import the plywood, prosecutors maintain the company must have known it had been smuggled into the US given how cheap Horizon was selling it compared with competitors. …Boise pleaded guilty Monday to a federal felony charge related to its role in the case and agreed to pay a fine of $6.4 million, or twice the profit it reaped. [to access the full story a WSJ subscription is required]
The city of Seattle opened its first warehouse for salvaged lumber Friday in SoDo. Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson cut a red wood “ribbon” with a chainsaw to mark the occasion. The warehouse, operated by Earthwise Architectural Salvage, will serve as a place where lumber from the demolition or renovation of buildings is collected and sold for new construction, or to make furniture and other DIY projects. “Reuse is better than recycling,” said Katie Kennedy, the Seattle Public utilities manager who helped obtain the grant for the city. “You are displacing the need for new materials.” In addition to saving trees from being cut down for new lumber, the project is aimed at reducing waste and emissions.
American Forest & Paper Association President and CEO Heidi Brock commented following the court’s decision to deny AF&PA’s motion to join the challenge to Oregon’s Recycling Modernization Act: “We are disappointed by the court’s decision denying our motion to join the challenge to Oregon’s Recycling Modernization Act. While we respectfully disagree with the ruling, AF&PA remains fully committed to pursuing all available legal and strategic options to protect our members’ interests. As Oregon’s program moves into implementation, it is becoming clear that the law imposes significant and unnecessary burdens on paper products that are already among the most successfully recycled materials in the United States. …We will continue working closely with partners and counsel to secure meaningful relief for our members and ensure that recycling policies are workable, fact-based and do not increase costs across the supply chain for businesses and consumers alike.”
“Surely old-growth logging won’t be happening in five years.” That was my belief in 2020, when I was a 17-year-old activist who — almost by accident — helped initiate the Fairy Creek blockades and the largest act of civil disobedience in Canadian history. …In that moment, it seemed inevitable that the old paradigm of forestry in BC would not last. Today, that old paradigm seems more entrenched than ever, with old-growth deferrals getting canceled across the province and an NDP government more focused on short-term economic development than long-term sustainability. …At this moment, the prospect of true forestry reform in BC seems bleak. But Washington protected its state-owned old-growth forests 20 years ago and maintains a thriving forest products industry today. How did they do it? And what can Washington’s success teach us about BC’s forestry predicament?
With Oregon facing what state leaders say could be another difficult wildfire season, questions are emerging about whether major changes inside the U.S. Forest Service could eventually impact how quickly fires are detected and attacked across the West. “All indications suggest a more challenging fire season ahead of all of us,” said Oregon Governor Tina Kotek… The warning comes after a historically warm winter, low snowpack levels, and worsening drought conditions across parts of Oregon. At the same time, the Forest Service is undergoing major national restructuring efforts, including consolidating research facilities and closing its nine regional offices nationwide. …Still, federal firefighters and local fire leaders say they do not expect major disruptions to wildfire response this season. “I think there’s just a growing amount of apprehension about what it’s gonna look like on the ground level in a couple of years’ time,” said Kieran Evans, a squad leader with the Forest Service.
AccuWeather has released its latest outlook on what Oregon could expect for the 2026 fire season, forecasting another active year for wildfires for much of the western half of America. Experts said that 2026 may see fewer fires overall, however, drought conditions, dry vegetation and extreme heat are likely to cause fires to spread more quickly and grow larger before crews are able to contain them, resulting in more land burned. According to the company’s newly released wildfire forecast, between 65,000 and 80,000 wildfires are expected nationwide this year, burning an estimated 5.5 million to 8 million acres. That compares to 77,850 fires that burned 5.1 million acres in 2025. …Forecasters said the highest wildfire risk this year is expected across the Southwest, Rockies, Great Basin and Interior Northwest, including parts of Oregon and Washington. AccuWeather meteorologists said drought and prolonged heat are continuing to intensify wildfire conditions across much of the west.
Colorado’s top forest health concern is a mountain pine beetle outbreak on the Front Range that has expanded by nearly 150% from 2024 to 2025, according to a Colorado State Forest Service report. The report shows the continued spread of mountain pine beetles and other forest insects during the second consecutive year of above-average temperatures and below-average precipitation. Trees in forests across Colorado are stressed following a record warm winter and low snowpack, and infestations of bark beetles and western spruce budworm are expected to intensify and expand. “Heat and drought are stressing our forests, turning many areas into tinderboxes and making it harder for trees to fight off bark beetles and other insects,” said Matt McCombs, state forester and director of the CSFS. …Trees killed by drought, insects or disease can potentially alter wildfire behavior should there be ignition from lightning or other sources. 
More than 400 mostly small communities throughout the Northwest, including Cave Junction, Glendale and La Pine in southern and central Oregon, are at greater risk of suffering from wildfires and their impacts than previously thought when socioeconomic conditions are factored into risk assessments, new research finds. Researchers from Oregon State University and The Nature Conservancy, with funding from the U.S. Forest Service, conducted a review of wildfire risks in more than 1,000 communities in the region, and applied a social vulnerability index to also account for factors such as household demographics, neighborhood structural density, housing types and local transportation. Nearly half the communities, 459, were shown to be at greater wildfire risk than previously thought. For 541 communities, risk levels declined when socioeconomic factors were considered, indicating public dollars might be better served assisting low-income communities with wildfire prevention than more affluent ones, the researchers suggested.
…The mild temperatures through the winter and now into spring have resulted in the invasive emerald ash borer maturing faster and emerging weeks earlier than usual, the Oregon Department of Forestry says. Wyatt Williams, an invasive species specialist with the department, confirmed he found one in early May in King City in southeast Washington County, a news release states. …So far there’s no cure for a tree infested with the bugs – they’re a death sentence, the Extension Service says. It can take up to six years for an infested tree to die. …Ash borers normally start emerging from inside tree trunks in early June and into July, Oregon forestry officials say. But that’s changing along with the climate. This past winter was tied with 1934 as the warmest on record in western Oregon, followed by record-breaking or near record-breaking high temperatures this spring, the state said in a statement.
The Washington State Department of Natural Resources released its annual Forest Health Highlights report on Monday following a 2025 survey season defined by a period of unprecedented structural and administrative challenges. The joint aerial detection survey (ADS) flown by DNR and USDA Forest Service (USFS) staff covered 16.5 million acres of forested land across Washington, accounting for roughly 75% of the 22 million forested acres in the state and the first time since 2021 that a full survey was not completed. …The 2025 ADS recorded some level of tree mortality, defoliation, crown damage, or foliar disease on approximately 391,000 acres – a decrease of more than 150,000 acres from 2024, but certain to be an undercount given limitations of the 2025 survey.
A new direction in the Tongass management plan gathered more than 300 comments from Southeast Alaskans, who asked the U.S. Forest Service to manage timber and mining, along with recreation, in the forest they call home. The Coeur Alaska Kensington Mine said the revised plan should recognize the Tongass National Forest as a mining district, not solely as a timber or conservation reserve. “The revised Forest Plan should affirm that responsible mineral exploration and development are fully compatible with ecological stewardship, subsistence values, and multiple use when properly planned and regulated,” wrote Steve Ball, general manager of the mine. He also wrote Forest Service’s Roadless Area Conservation Rule prohibitions should not be applied to mining operations. Others criticized the Trump administration and made a plea to protect old-growth forests and the wildlife that live there. Some criticized the Forest Service itself for a rushed process.
EUGENE Ore. – The Bureau of Land Management has proposed increasing timber harvest on 2.4 million acres of federal forest land in Oregon, sparking a renewed debate over logging, wildfire risk and the future of old growth forests. The plan would return harvest levels to 1 billion board feet annually on O&C Lands (Oregon and California Railroad Revested Lands), about four times last year’s yield. Supporters say it would restore jobs and reduce fire danger. Environmental groups warn it could undo decades of protections and say they will challenge the plan in federal court. The O&C Lands are checkerboarded across western Oregon. Once owned by railroad barons, the government reclaimed the land over 100 years ago and opened it up to logging. After new environmental protections were implemented in the 1990s, logging levels plummeted. Last year those same lands yielded about a quarter of the proposed target.
LAKE TAHOE BASIN, Calif. – A yearlong investigation by Mother Jones is casting new scrutiny on the use of glyphosate in California forests at the same time the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit plans to use the controversial herbicide across thousands of acres in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Glyphosate, commonly sold under the brand name Roundup, is widely used to kill shrubs and hardwood vegetation that compete with replanted conifers after fires and logging operations. However, the herbicide has long been controversial. In 2015, the cancer research arm of the World Health Organization classified glyphosate as a “probable carcinogen,” and manufacturer Bayer has paid more than $12 billion in settlements tied to lawsuits alleging the herbicide caused cancer.
The American Forest Resource Council warns that Washington’s Department of Natural Resources is headed for deep budget trouble that will result in state worker layoffs and force taxpayers to foot more of the bill to keep the agency running. Counties that rely on logging revenue from land the agency manages could be at financial risk, too. While it’s become common for the group to clash with the department, they’re not the only ones complaining. Foresters inside the agency are pointing to Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove’s decision to pause some timber sales for eight months as a reason for the looming deficit in a key operating account, which covers many of the department’s expenses for managing timberland. …Upthegrove and other agency leadership say … it has less to do with recent timber sale activity on state land and more to do with the timing of when logging revenue reaches the agency. 
Oregon’s congressional Democrats on Wednesday warned that federal agencies tasked with helping prevent and fight fires in the Northwest could be understaffed and underprepared going into the 2026 fire season. Oregon’s U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, Jeff Merkley, and Portland and Willamette Valley-area U.S. Reps. Suzanne Bonamici and Andrea Salinas left a Wednesday wildfire season briefing at the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center in Portland with “deep concerns” about federal agencies’ capacity to respond to what’s expected to be a long and severe fire season in the region. The center is the headquarters for a wildfire prevention and response network that includes nine state and federal agencies across the West. The lawmakers said budget cuts and the loss of staff at federal science and land management agencies — especially at the U.S. Forest Service, tasked with the largest share of federal wildland fire prevention and response — have created needless uncertainty and chaos.
LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – An annual aerial survey that monitors forest health was significantly reduced in 2025 due to a lack of funding, resulting in many portions of California forests, including the Tahoe area, not being included. Since 2006, the U.S. Forest Service Pacific Southwest Region’s Aerial Survey Program has flown over California forests every year to observe and document tree mortality, defoliation, and other damage. These annual estimates capture tree mortality patterns and trends, which researchers and foresters use to monitor ecosystem disturbances often caused by insects and disease. The information is also important for fire behavior forecasting. Typically covering large swaths of California landscape and a majority of national forests in California, including the Tahoe National Forest and the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, 2025’s survey was limited to Southern California forests and the far southern Sierra Nevada. The report states surveys were conducted in areas where 2025 drought conditions were most severe.
SALEM, Ore. — 
PORTLAND, Ore. — 
Colorado wildfire leaders are bracing for what could be an especially busy and dangerous summer for wildfires across the West. The Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control presented its wildfire preparedness plan to Gov. Jared Polis on Thursday, April 30, during a news conference where state and federal partners affirmed their readiness to respond and called on the public to prepare. “We are facing a very challenging fire year, where our resources will be tested across not only Colorado, but across the West,” said Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control Michael Morgan during the briefing at the division’s hangar in Broomfield. Colorado — and most of the West — is heading into summer after some of the worst winter snowpack conditions on record and persisting widespread drought. The latest U.S. Drought Monitor Report shows that 100% of Colorado and roughly 70% of the West are facing some level of drought.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —The rising cost of jet fuel is putting pressure on airlines and organizations that rely on planes, but Cal Fire says its aerial firefighting operations will not be affected as crews prepare for peak fire season. Cal Fire operates the largest aerial firefighting fleet in the world, with aircraft stationed across California to respond to fires wherever they ignite. Despite the high jet fuel costs, the organization says it remains committed to fighting fires without interruption and that public safety is non-negotiable. One way Cal Fire saves money is by conducting some of its training sessions in flight simulators instead of using planes and helicopters. This approach reduces fuel consumption and minimizes wear and tear on the aircraft, which lowers maintenance costs.
…Wildfires burned more than 1.9 million acres in Oregon in 2024. By the time they finally died down at the end of October, the state had spent more than $350 million fighting them, greatly exceeding the $10 million it had allocated. “By July 21, I had already completely blown through my cash on hand,” said Kyle Williams, Oregon Department of Forestry’s deputy director for fire operations. Contractors weren’t promptly paid for services they’d already provided, from digging fuel breaks to supplying meals, and the state had to hold an emergency legislative session to allocate the money. That summer highlighted the flaws in how the state funds both firefighting and the preventive work that reduces the chances of large, destructive blazes in the first place. This year, as drought and a devastating snowpack stack up across the West, officials are bracing for what could be a challenging fire season. The Idaho Department of Lands has roughly $38 million set aside. 
The Gallatin Wildlife Association, Alliance for The Wild Rockies, Native Ecosystems Council, and Council on Wildlife and Fish claim in a new federal lawsuit the United States Forest Service could be logging and using prescribed burns in Montana’s best-known recreational areas without presenting required research that would demonstrate the project isn’t negatively impacting threatened or endangered species. Their attorneys say logging and burning on more than 5,600 acres between Hyalite and South Cottonwood canyons, south of Bozeman in the Gallatin Mountains would mean cutting through old-growth forests, building new roads and negatively impact threatened species ranging from Canada lynx to Northern goshawks to whitebark pine trees. It claims U.S. Forest Service officials have overlooked or ignored a handful of federal laws to fast-track the project which the groups say will be highly visible to recreational enthusiasts. U.S. Forest Service staff have a policy of not commenting on any pending litigation. 
The Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) is laying the preliminary groundwork on a proposal to purchase a conservation easement in Lincoln, Mineral and Sanders counties that would protect 20,854 noncontiguous acres of timberland owned by Stimson Lumber Company. The proposed conservation easement, which last year was awarded a $10.2 million grant through the U.S. Forest Service’s Forest Legacy Program, is part of a broader 230,000-acre effort to conserve Stimson’s entire inland timber base in Washington, Idaho and Montana. If approved, the easements would ensure the land remains in timber production, guaranteeing public access while restricting development rights. “This multi-state effort will ensure that these lands continue to be managed for sustainable forestry and support the viability of regional mills through the 1.5 million board feet of merchantable Sustainable Forestry Initiative-certified timber it produces per year and generates $2.1 million,” according to the project description.
The recently announced major restructure of the US Forest Service may disrupt a number of forestry positions in Idaho. But the details as to how those positions will be affected and what work will continue or be eliminated under the plan remain unclear. Anna Webb, an entomologist and federal employee union representative based in Boise, received a notice about two weeks ago that her position in the agency would be affected. …Leaders of the federal employee union that represents Forest Service employees for the Boise, Payette, Salmon-Challis and Sawtooth national forests are concerned about the disruption to local employees as well as the potential long-term consequences to forest health. …Although Idaho’s forests are overseen by two out-of-state regional offices, many regional and some national positions are based in Idaho — all of these may be affected by the proposed restructure.
In southern Oregon they call it the “fir-mageddon” – the rapid decline of our largest and most prolific tree in the Pacific Northwest. The Douglas fir … is the most important tree species to the economy on the planet. Their ability to grow to a massive size and live for hundreds of years through all types of weather, makes it the best source for high-grade construction lumber… Douglas fir in Oregon and Washington alone make up one-quarter of the lumber industry in the United States. Since 2000, 635 acres of Douglas fir trees in our region have died — that’s roughly 175,000 trees, a trend that is only accelerating. The decline is not from the lumber industry. It’s global warming. A recent study proves is that Douglas fir trees are resilient to wildfires, but don’t fair well during a drought. During a drought they become vulnerable to a beetle that prays on distressed trees. 
A federal judge has refused to halt logging operations on a Southwest Oregon forest project that allows more than 8,000 acres of commercial timber harvest. Though a lawsuit has raised “serious questions” about errors in the environmental analysis of the Last Chance Project, those problems don’t rise to the level of warranting a preliminary injunction, said U.S. District Judge Mustafa Kasubhai. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has authorized several timber sales to implement the Last Chance Project, which the agency finalized last year to reduce excessive forest stand density and provide a sustained log supply. Three environmental non-profits … filed a complaint alleging the project would harm the threatened spotted owl and the northwestern pond turtle, a sensitive species, contrary to several federal laws. The BLM has acknowledged there’s a discrepancy among its environmental reports about the acreage of spotted owl critical habitat that is slated for treatment.
Five years ago, a tragic and depressing environmental story unfolded when thousands of giant sequoia trees, an iconic California species that tower 300 feet high and can live for 3,000 years, were killed during multiple large wildfires that roared across the southern Sierra Nevada. The fires in 2020 and 2021 at Sequoia National Park, Sequoia National Forest and other areas burned with unprecedented intensity, killing nearly 20% of the world’s giant sequoias, and exposing the growing vulnerability of the most massive trees on the earth. …After the fires, stunned scientists, park managers and environmental groups formed a partnership to reduce the chances of similar catastrophic outcomes in the years ahead. Now, with another summer fire season looming, they say they are making encouraging progress. Since their efforts began in 2022, the partnership has thinned the overgrown brush and small trees that provide fuel for fires to burn hotter in 44 of the 94 giant sequoia groves in California.
U.S. House Republicans from Western states laid out a figurative welcome mat for the U.S. Forest Service Thursday as its chief pitched plans to whittle down the agency’s budget, move its headquarters to Salt Lake City and rely more heavily on states to manage millions of acres. “I think it’s very interesting what you’re proposing to do, and I support it,” said Idaho Republican Rep. Mike Simpson, chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies. Democrats on the budget panel grilled Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz about how billions of dollars in cuts to the agency proposed by President Donald Trump could drive up costs for states and stamp out important research. The subcommittee’s ranking Democrat, Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine, said she’s deeply worried.
MONTANA — After the US Forest Service unveiled a proposal last month to give Montana’s lumber industry a “predictable” timber supply from three national forests, questions about the agency’s plan to incorporate an 82-year-old law into a modern forest-management framework abounded. Broadly speaking, the Tri-Forest Federal Sustained Yield Unit would direct the Helena-Lewis and Clark, Beaverhead-Deerlodge and Custer Gallatin national forests to supply local businesses with at least 35 million board feet of timber per year. The Forest Service is pitching the proposal as a tool to sustain local economies and encourage investment in the lumber industry for the 22-county region included in the unit. It’s necessary, the agency says, because the closure of the Pyramid Mountain Lumber sawmill and the Roseburg Wood Products facility have demonstrated the industry’s vulnerability. But at a recent hearing the Forest Service hosted in Helena, the proposal drew a mixed reception.
ARIZONA — Rim Country and the White Mountains are not alone in bracing for the 2026 fire season, which is approaching. A national April-to-July forecast shows nearly the entire Western United States faces an above-normal risk of wildfires over the next four months. Fire officials said two weeks of cloudy weather with scattered rain showers have given Northern Arizona some breathing room, but the lack of snowpack and above-normal temperatures will still result in an early start to the fire season. The National Interagency Coordination Center predicted above-normal fire threat in every Western state at some point between now and summer. Much of the Southwest faced high-risk conditions during an unusually warm March, and those hazardous conditions are expected to expand into other Western states this month. Forecasters point to record-low snowpack across much of the West. 
Flathead National Forest officials have authorized an emergency logging and thinning project in the Salish Mountains near Lakeside, three miles west of Blacktail Mountain, with the aim of reducing wildland fire risk and improving forest health. The decision authorizes 2,823 acres of commercial vegetation treatment and construction of approximately 5.6 miles of temporary roads. Crews will use more than 67 miles of existing roads and haul routes. First proposed last October, the West Truman Project advanced quickly through the U.S. Forest Service’s environmental compliance process under a categorical exclusion, receiving final approval on April 14. Implementation of the project could begin “as early as fall 2027,” according to the decision and finding of applicability and no extraordinary circumstances (FANEC) signed by Swan Lake District Ranger Sarah Canepa. …The project would commercially thin 736 acres while using improvement cuts on 939 acres. It would treat 346 acres for shelterwood and 802 acres for seed tree.
Three years ago, two big new wood-pellet manufacturing plants were proposed along the Washington coast — the first of their kind in the Pacific Northwest. The British utility Drax planned a facility in Longview next to the Columbia River. Another company, Pacific Northwest Renewable Energy Project (PNWRE), proposed a similar plant in Hoquiam, Grays Harbor County. These plans are now unraveling. Last year, Drax suspended work on its Longview plant, citing weak demand for wood pellets it planned to export to overseas power plants. The year before, Enviva, Drax’s biggest competitor declared bankruptcy… What we’re learning is the wood pellet industry can’t compete without extensive subsidies. …These adverse economic headwinds should serve as a warning sign… Most likely, the project will fail economically, saddling Grays Harbor with a costly cleanup project instead of providing the promise of new jobs or local revenue. It would be better to cut our losses now — before this doomed project is built. [A Seattle Times subscription is required for full access]
SEATTLE — Mast Reforestation today announced that less than six weeks after issuance, it has sold 100% of the 4,277 biomass burial carbon removal credits from Mast Wood Preserve MT1, its pioneering post-wildfire restoration project in southern Montana. New buyers include Bain & Company, a global management consulting firm, and BMO, a North American financial institution, joining earlier participants including Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), CNaught, a major corporate buyer advised by SE Advisory Services, Muir AI, and others. The sell-out follows MT1’s January 2026 issuance under the Puro.earth registry, which represented the largest issuance to date under Puro.earth’s Terrestrial Storage of Biomass (TSB) methodology and one of the fastest project development timelines globally for a carbon removal project, at just nine months. “High-integrity carbon removal is an important part of Bain’s strategy to address residual emissions while helping scale the climate solutions the world needs,” said Sam Israelit, Partner and Chief Sustainability Officer, Bain & Company.
LONGVIEW, Wash. — A massive chemical tank holding nearly a million gallons of a highly corrosive liquid imploded and collapsed Tuesday at a Washington paper mill, killing at least one worker and leaving nine others unaccounted for with no hope for rescue, authorities said. Another nine people were injured, some severely, in the spill at Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. in Longview. The cause remained unclear. “At the moment we are not aware of any rescues that are yet to be made,” Cowlitz Fire and Rescue Chief Scott Goldstein said during a Tuesday evening news conference in which officials repeatedly referred to the situation as a recovery effort. That effort would not resume until Wednesday morning, when emergency responders planned to work on stabilizing the collapsed tank, which still had about 90,000 gallons (more than 340,000 liters) of a chemical brew known as “white liquor” inside, and then search for the missing, Goldstein said.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A fast-growing wildfire sparked by the fatal crash of a small medical plane outside Ruidoso, New Mexico, has triggered evacuations for a rural area north of the Capitan Mountains and closures in the Lincoln National Forest, officials said Monday. The plane was en route from Roswell Air Center to Sierra Blanca Regional Airport when it crashed before dawn Thursday, killing the four people aboard. They were identified as pilots Keelan Clark and Ali Kawsara with the company Generation Jets and flight nurses Jamie Novick and Sarah Clark with Trans Aero MedEvac. …The wildfire grew rapidly over the weekend amid dry and windy conditions, nearly doubling in size between Sunday and Monday morning to more than 19 square miles (50 square kilometers). It was burning out of control in a sparsely populated area despite the efforts of more than 600 firefighters from the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management and several interagency Hotshot crews.