Region Archives: US West

Special Feature

The next four years: Canada / US relations & forest products trade

By Kelly McCloskey
Tree Frog Forestry News
April 7, 2025
Category: Special Feature
Region: Canada, US West

The COFI Day 1 luncheon panel on Canada–US relations and forest products trade brought together political veterans and policy thinkers to unpack the next four years of cross-border dynamics and what they mean for British Columbia’s forest sector. Moderated by Corinne Stavness, Vice President of Corporate Affairs at Western Forest Products, the discussion featured Glen Clark, Chair of BC Hydro and former Premier of BC; James Moore, Senior Advisor with Edelman and former federal Industry Minister; and Mark Cameron, Fellow at the Public Policy Forum and leader of its Canada–US Relations Strategy. Clark opened with a clear warning about the US election. “We are entering a period of maximum unpredictability.” …James Moore stressed that Canada must shift from reacting to shaping outcomes. …Mark Cameron provided a broader policy context, noting the bipartisan consensus around economic nationalism is unlikely to shift.

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Business & Politics

Vaughn Emmerson Named Vice President of Lumber Operations

Sierra Pacific Industries
April 7, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US West

Vaughn Emmerson

Anderson, CA — Sierra Pacific Industries (SPI) has appointed Vaughn Emmerson as Vice President of Lumber Operations, which includes millwork, veneer, biomass energy, fabrication and trucking. …Vaughn brings over 12 years of experience in the wood products industry, including a decade at SPI. He has played a key role in sawmill construction and rebuild projects, workforce training programs, and manufacturing operations. Since 2020, he has led SPI’s Engineering, Technology, and Fabrication division, overseeing three facilities that support operations ranging from equipment repairs to sawmill construction. …Before joining SPI, he worked at Boise Cascade. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from UC Merced and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Oregon State University. He serves on the Softwood Lumber Board. In another leadership change, Todd Payne is stepping down as Sierra Pacific’s President of Lumber. In the interim, he will work alongside Vaughn to ensure a smooth transition.

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Tariffs Will Hurt Wood Products Industry In Vermont

By Ed Barber
Newport Vermont Daily Express
April 2, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US West

President Donald Trump is prepared to impose tariffs on many Canadian products that are shipped to the United States. Included on the list of tariffs are the wood products industry, which is facing a 25 percent tariff on products shipped south of the border. In response to the President’s actions, the Vermont House Committee on Agriculture and Forestry took testimony from two employees at the Agency of Natural Resources last week… In the past two years Vermont has lost two sawmills, becoming more reliant on Canada. Vermont imported $52 million in sawmill and wood products from Canada in 2024. Pierson said some of the wood was shipped from Vermont to Canada where it was processed and shipped south.

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Willis’ new wildfire resilience insurance to focus on risk mitigation

By Kassandra Jimenez-Sanchez
Reinsurance News
April 2, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US West

Willis, a business of WTW, and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) have launched a new $2.5 million wildfire resilience insurance for the Tahoe Donner Association in Truckee, California. Described as “first-of-its-kind,” this policy directly links insurance costs to proactive wildfire risk mitigation efforts. Developed in partnership with UC Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy and the Environment, the policy aims to demonstrate how ecological forest management practices can lead to reduced premiums and increased insurance availability. Such techniques include tree thinning to improve the health and growth of the remaining trees and planned fires to clear out flammable vegetation, both proven to reduce wildfire risk and make forests healthier. Tahoe Donner has completed forest management projects over 1,520 acres since 2015. …This new policy, covering 1,345 acres of Tahoe Donner’s land, secures a 39% lower premium and an 89% lower deductible than would have been possible without the nature-based forest management.

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Dean, Whitehouse Lead Bicameral Bill to Preserve Northern Rockies Ecosystem

Office of Rep. Madeleine Dean, Pennsylvania
March 27, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US West

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representative Madeleine Dean (D-PA) and U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) introduced legislation to protect more than 23 million acres of public land in Idaho, Montana, Washington, Oregon, and Wyoming — safeguarding endangered and threatened species, preserving biodiversity, and combating climate change by preserving millions of trees that serve as a carbon sink. In addition to roughly 20 million acres of federally protected wilderness, the NREPA would also designate: Specified federal lands as biological connecting corridors and as special corridor management areas; Segments of specified rivers and creeks in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System; and Specified areas as wildland recovery areas. Wildland recovery plans would be required for each recovery area. Full bill text is available here.

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Finance & Economics

An Alaska logging site is an early casualty of Trump’s trade war with China

By Avery Ellfeldt
Alaska Public Radio
March 14, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States, US West

Canadian lumber company Transpac Group confirmed on March 13 that it’s largely shutting down its site on Afognak Island near Kodiak, effective immediately. Representatives of the company say that’s because earlier this month, China halted imports of U.S. logs in response to tariffs President Donald Trump imposed on Chinese goods. Charles Kim is Transpac’s CEO. He says the company is sending most of its staff home because it cannot find new customers despite trying to divert its products to other countries, including India. …The company has a contract for the logging site at Danger Bay on Afognak Island, just north of Kodiak. The site is owned by the Afognak Native Corporation, which could not be reached for comment. Kim says that contract also means it has certain obligations, including road building and maintenance. Transpac also harvests and exports timber from Canada, Oregon and Washington.

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Wood, Paper & Green Building

Green Globes for New Construction certification or Green Globes Journey to Net Zero eligible for reduced cost financing

The Green Building Initiative
April 10, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: United States, US West

Portland, Ore.  – The Green Building Initiative (GBI) announces the inclusion of both Green Globes and Green Globes Journey to Net Zero certification systems in PACE Equity’s CIRRUS C-PACE program. Projects achieving Green Globes for New Construction certification or Green Globes Journey to Net Zero Recognized or Certified status for new, major renovations, or addition projects are automatically eligible for reduced cost financing capital that rewards building efficiency and carbon impact.  “GBI is excited to work alongside PACE Equity to help property owners reduce their carbon footprint and increase energy efficiency,” said Vicki Worden, GBI President & CEO. “Green Globes and Green Globes Journey to Net Zero programs demonstrate accountability and can unlock critical lower cost capital to support projects that are focused on improving the sustainability of the built environment.”

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Oregon State Releases Permit Ready Plan For Decks

My Central Oregon
April 4, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: United States, US West

The Oregon Building Codes Division (BCD) has published its first permit-ready plan under the state’s updated Permit-Ready Plans Program. The building plans, available free to the public, are for a code-compliant residential deck. The Permit-Ready Plans Program creates an efficient pathway for the state to develop and make publicly accessible building plans that meet the requirements of the state building code. Plans are published to the BCD website. …The first plan published is a single-level, wood-framed, exterior deck attached to a building regulated by the Oregon Residential Specialty Code. BCD anticipates publishing more permit-ready plans for other residential accessory structures such as pole buildings, detached garages, patio covers, and carports later this year. The division will start developing plans for smaller detached dwelling units by the end of 2025.

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Oregon’s timber industry: Lumbering back?

By Michael Dunne
Oregon on the Record
March 31, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: United States, US West

Oregon State University

No industry in Oregon has suffered as much decline over the decades than timber. What was once THE key product in our state is not what it used to be. The fact that our new nicknames of Silicone Forest and Silicone Shire illustrate how tech is seen as our key industry now. Yet, technology may be a key factor in reviving our timber industry. On this edition of the show, you’ll hear from Iain Macdonald of the TallWood Design Institute and Tom DeLuca, Dean of the OSU College of Forestry about how technology in the form of Mass Timber is leading to a resurgence in the timber industry here in Oregon. Aimed to both collaborate and compete with steel and concrete, Mass Timber is a renewable resource that can build structures that are getting taller and more robust than once thought possible.

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Homebuilder unveils ‘fire-resilient’ neighborhood to limit devastation from wildfires

By Daniella Genovese
NY Post
March 27, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: United States, US West

KB Home on Thursday unveiled its first wildfire-resilient neighborhood in Southern California, marking one of the many solutions the homebuilding industry is working on to protect structures and communities from the devastating effects of natural disasters. KB Home announced that KB Home’s Dixon Trail community in Escondido is the first in the nation that meets the home- and neighborhood-level wildfire resilience standards developed by the independent nonprofit research organization Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety. The community was built with fire-resistant materials and is “designed to IBHS’s highest level of protection against direct flame contact, radiant heat and embers, which helps to meaningfully reduce the likelihood of wildfire spread,” the company said. …For instance, the company has installed Class A fire-rated roofs, noncombustible gutters, upgraded windows and doors, and ember- and flame-resistant vents for homes. It also created a 5-foot noncombustible buffer around structures.

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Lessons From Paradise: What L.A. Homeowners Should Learn From Survivors of Devastating Camp Fire

By Snejana Farberov
Realtor.com
March 27, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: United States, US West

More than six years before Los Angeles and its suburbs were overwhelmed by January’s devastating wildfires, the small town of Paradise, CA, nestled in the Sierra Nevada foothills, was virtually wiped off the face of the earth by the Camp Fire inferno, the deadliest in state history. Fast-forward to March 2025, Paradise is just 33% rebuilt and has less than half of the population it had pre-disaster. Paradise Mayor Steven Crowder said that homeowners in areas hardest hit by the latest round of wildfires, including the wealthy enclave of Pacific Palisades and the suburb of Altadena, should temper their expectations when it comes to the pace of the recovery, which could take decades. …Crowder said that the pace of Paradise’s rebuilding has been relatively slow, in part because of the dramatically elevated construction costs. Before the wildfire, people were building homes for $175 to $200 per foot. Overnight, that surged to $350 a foot.

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Forestry

Trump’s order to expand US timber production includes all of California’s national forests

By Hayley Smith
The Los Angeles Times
April 5, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

A federal order to increase US timber production by 25% will touch all 18 of the Golden’s State’s national forests, officials said. The USDA said it does not yet have information about how many acres in each forest will be affected. California’s national forests are on the chopping block — literally — in the wake of the Trump administration’s April 5 order to immediately expand timber production. Last week, US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins issued an emergency declaration that ordered the US Forest Service to open up some 112.5 million acres of national forestland to logging. The announcement included a grainy map of affected forests, which did not specify forest names or the amount of impacted acreage in each. However, USDA officials have confirmed that the order will touch all 18 of the Golden State’s national forests, which collectively span more than 20 million acres. [to access the full story a Los Angeles Times subscription is required]

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Judge Halts North Idaho Logging Project to Protect Grizzly Bear Habitat

By Eric Tegethoff
Northern Rockies News Service in The Daily Fly
April 11, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

BONNERS FERRY, ID – A federal district court has stopped a logging project in northern Idaho that would have carved more roads into the area and harmed the Selkirk grizzly population habitat. Only about 50 grizzlies live in the region. Mike Garrity, executive director of the Alliance for the Wild Rockies, which has been in litigation with the U.S. Forest Service over this issue for nearly six years, said the project would have resulted in more roads than is allowed under the agency’s rules. “The Forest Plan, which is their management plan that governs the forest, limits road density in Selkirk grizzly bear habitat,” he said, “because most grizzly bears are killed within a third of a mile of a road, and it’s usually a logging road.” The court decision found the government had been violating road construction limits for years. Court documents show the goal of the Hanna Flats Good Neighbor Authority Project was to reduce wildfire risk.

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Experts dubious Trump logging push will diminish wildfire risk

By Greg Wong
The San Francisco Examiner
April 11, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

CALIFORNIA — State experts said they’re dubious about President Donald Trump’s claims that his directive opening up well over half of the country’s forests to logging will reduce wildfire risk and “save American lives.” Some, such as University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources climate-change scientist Daniel Swain, flatly called the administration’s rhetoric disingenuous and misleading. “It’s BS, frankly,” Swain told The Examiner. “Are we going to try and justify logging forests commercially under the guise of wildfire-risk reduction? …The Trump administration says the benefits of these actions are largely twofold: It will reinvigorate the economy by boosting a stagnant timber industry and significantly mitigate wildfires tearing through the West. …UC Berkeley wildfire researcher Scott Stephens said that logging can be a viable way to mitigate fire risk, as long as it’s done sustainably and arborists are strategic about what trees they’re chopping down.

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Alberta spending $900K to upgrade wildfire monitoring as season begins

By Matthew Scace
The Canadian Press in Global News
April 10, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, US West

As Alberta heads into the heart of wildfire season, the province is committing almost $1 million to upgrade its early-warning systems. Forestry Minister Todd Loewen says $900,000 is being allocated to upgrade and expand its network of 150 weather stations. These stations monitor environmental conditions, like temperature, humidity, wind and moisture, in real time to help fire crews know where they will be needed when the weather gets hot and dry. The monitors will also be able to keep track of snowpack levels, which are strong indicators of Alberta’s fire risk early in the season. Alberta’s wildfire season has been slow off the mark, with 65 wildfires recorded so far compared with the 115 blazes that had started by this time last year. …Loewen said they are preparing as best they can for the inevitable.

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Curtis joins bipartisan bill to reduce wildfire risks in the West after years of devastating blazes

By Alixel Cabrera
Utah News Dispatch
April 11, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

Amid a growing number of wildfires, mostly across Western states, a U.S. Senate bill is aiming to protect areas where communities are most vulnerable to fires, using “good neighbor” agreements, cross-boundary collaboration and the expansion of tools to prevent fire hazards. The bill, titled the Fix Our Forests Act, was introduced Thursday by Sens. John Curtis, R-Utah, John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., Tim Sheehy R-Mont., and Alex Padilla D-Calif. to “combat catastrophic wildfires, restore forest ecosystems, and make federal forest management more efficient and responsive,” according to a news release. …The U.S. House version of the bill, sponsored by Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., passed the House in January. The legislation designates the top 20% of the landscape areas where wildfires are likely to spread and impact communities, including tribal areas, as so-called Fireshed Management Areas. The areas would be selected based on factors including risks to communities and to municipal watersheds.

Los Angeles Times by Faith Pinho: California Sen. Padilla hopes Fix Our Forests Act will prevent more L.A. fires

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Man pleads guilty to rig bidding fuel services to U.S. Forest Service wildfire fighters

NBC Montana
April 9, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

A Salmon, Idaho man has pleaded guilty to a seven-count indictment for his role in schemes to rig bids, allocate territories, and commit wire fraud over an eight-year period while providing fuel truck services to the U.S. Forest Service’s wildfire fighters. Kris Bird, 62, pleaded guilty at the end of March to all counts two weeks before trial, with no assurances from the government as to what sentence will be recommended when he goes before a judge with another involved executive in June 2025. The men were indicted after a federal wiretap investigation in December 2023… “The defendant illegally profited from American taxpayer money,” said Special Agent in Charge Mehtab Syed of the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office. “The FBI and our partners are committed to rooting out fraud and protecting fair competition in the bidding for government contracts.”

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Oregon wildfire map may be swapped for voluntary incentives

By Mateusz Perkowski
Capital Press
April 9, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

A contentious Oregon wildfire map that imposed new regulations on high-risk landowners may be swapped for incentives meant to promote home hardening and defensible space. The Senate Natural Resources Committee has unanimously voted to scrap the state’s wildfire hazard map, originally approved in 2021, as well as the enhanced building code standards and other requirements it entailed. Repealing the wildfire map involved a “difficult conversation” but it’s proven necessary, not only because the provisions were deeply unpopular but because they were impractical, said Sen. Jeff Golden, D-Ashland, the committee’s chair. Senate Bill 83, which is now headed for a vote on the Senate floor, would eliminate the map and instead allow local governments to adopt model building codes intended to increase fire resilience.

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What Trump’s “emergency” logging declaration could mean for Colorado’s U.S. Forest land

By Tracy Ross
The Colorado Sun
April 10, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

Environmental groups are sounding the alarm after the U.S. Department of Agriculture declared more than 100 million acres of national forest land “an emergency situation” that can only be helped with chain saws, wood chippers and the bigger, more destructive tools of industrial logging.  But an attorney specializing in environmental litigation and a longtime forester and policy analyst both say contrary to how bad the memo from USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins may sound, its contents could be a shot in the arm the U.S. needs to ramp up its response to the growing wildfire crisis and continue much-needed work on forest health and restoration where mill infrastructure exists… Trump’s executive order says the U.S.’ inability to “fully exploit” its timber supply has, among other things, contributed to wildfire disasters.

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‘Ill-advised and unwise’: Critics question plan to open California forests to major logging

By Janet Wilson
Palm Springs Desert Sun
April 8, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

Gary Earney

The USDA’s order for the U.S. Forest Service to increase lumber production by 25% is being panned as both unwise and infeasible in Southern California’s sprawling national forests due to a lack of quality wood and nearby sawmills. But those four forests were heavily logged from World War I through the Korean War for soldier barracks and equipment needs, and then to support rapidly growing post-war housing markets, said Gary Earney, who managed timber sales and other multiple use permits for the San Bernardino National Forest from 1978 through 2007, and was a consultant to the forest through 2014. …A public lands advocate said via her action, Rollins is decreeing the agency only needs to propose one action for a given logging project, not the typically legally required range offering less and more environmentally harmful options, and also eliminates the public objection process.

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Bark beetles killing more trees along the front range, according to a Colorado State Forest Services report

By Ashley Michels
KDVR.com
April 8, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — The latest findings about the health of Colorado’s forests are a “mixed bag”, according to forestry experts. On Tuesday, the Colorado State Forest Service released its annual report tracking the damage from forest pests. “Insects are so closely tied to a lot of that temperature and precipitation so in Colorado it’s really been a number of years, actually 31 years, since we’ve been below average temperatures so that makes it really hard to be a tree in Colorado,” CSFS forest entomologist Dr. Dan West said. …According to the report, the front range is experiencing a surge in activity from the mountain pine beetle. In 2021, the insect impacted 1,500 acres statewide. In 2024, that number grew to 5,600 affected acres and included areas in Jefferson County and Castle Rock. …Not only do the dead trees cause forests to be less visually attractive, but they also create more fuel for more damaging wildfires.

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Bill to eliminate controversial Oregon wildfire risk map moves forward

By Zach Urness
Statesman Journal
April 8, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

An Oregon bill that would eliminate a controversial wildfire hazard map moved one step closer to reality on Tuesday after unanimously passing the Senate Committee on Natural Resources. Senate Bill 83 would repeal a map meant to identify parts of Oregon at high risk of catastrophic wildfires but has become a lightning rod for anger from rural residents who say it places an unfair burden on them. The bill moves to the Senate floor for a vote by the chamber. It would need to pass the House and be signed by the governor before becoming law. Most lawmakers say it’s likely to pass all of those hurdles. …The map was roundly condemned by impacted residents who said it was inaccurate, decreased property values and imposed burdensome regulations. Republicans who made killing the map a priority this session celebrated the progress.

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Forest management company buys 68,000 acres on North Olympic Peninsula

By Emma Maple
Peninsula Daily News
April 5, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

Bettina von Hagen

PORT ANGELES — EFM, a forest investment and management firm based in Portland, Ore., has purchased 68,000 acres on the North Olympic Peninsula with plans of managing the forests through climate-smart practices. These coastal temperate rainforest acres were purchased for more than $200 million under the newly established entity Olympic Rainforest LLC, according to a press release. …The land was purchased from Rayonier, Inc, a timberland real estate investment trust which had owned the land for more than 80 years and used it for timber production, according to EFM CEO Bettina von Hagen. With its management strategy, EFM will prioritize sustainable forest management, landscape conservation, enhanced biodiversity, cultural significance and public recreation. …In addition to the management techniques, part of the company’s FSC-certified approach includes using diverse revenue streams from forests such as carbon credits and conservation easements, as well as traditional forest products, according to a press release.

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Timber groups urge revamp of Northwest Forest Plan following Pres. Trump’s push for more logging

By Rigo Aguilera
KCBY News 11
April 3, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

ROSEBURG, Ore. — Timber organizations are calling for action on the Northwest Forest Plan after President Donald Trump issued an executive order for the immediate expansion of American lumber production. This comes as the U.S. Forest Service considers an amendment to the plan that aims to address fire resilience, economic opportunities, and updated guidance on conserving old growth, with a public comment period that ended in March. Following the executive order from the president, Douglas Timber Operators, a local forest products organization, issued a letter to the U.S. Forest Service calling for a full revision of the Northwest Forest Plan that was initially written in 1994. …According to the U.S. Forest Service, the forest plan covers 24.5 million acres of federally-managed lands found in western Oregon, Washington, and northwestern California. According to DTO’s letter, the plan provided an annual allowable sale quantity of 78 million board feet that has never been met on the Umpqua National Forest…

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A notorious, tree-chewing pest could be making a comeback in Colorado

By Sam Brasch
CPR News
April 2, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

An insect known for turning entire mountainsides the color of rust could be making a resurgence in Colorado.  The pest is none other than the mountain pine beetle. After a roughly decade-long period of relatively lower populations, the bugs are rebuilding their numbers along the Front Range and in southwest Colorado, according to an annual forest health report published by the Colorado State Forest Service in late March. “I’m a little concerned moving in this summer because we really haven’t had any precipitation,” said Dan West, the forest entomologist for the Colorado State Forest Service. “I’m worried bark beetles are going to increase their populations in these drought-stricken trees.” Few bugs have had a more visible impact on forests across the western U.S.

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Logging company fined $16K for ‘Yellow Lake Fire’

By MI Jewkes
ABC4
April 1, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

The U.S. Forest Service has imposed the maximum penalty of $16,000 on the logging company it holds responsible for starting last autumn’s Yellow Lake Fire. The penalty comes after a three-month-long investigation conducted by fire investigators with the U.S. Forest Service. At about 11 a.m. on Sept. 28, 2024, the only person on shift at the Duchesne Ridge Fuelwood Sale Site in the Uinta Mountains left for the day. Just over four hours later, dispatch received the first report of smoke in the area. According to the report, the fire was most likely started by friction from the logging company’s equipment. Despite having officials on the scene early, the fire grew to 150 acres overnight. The fire eventually became Utah’s largest wildfire in 2024, growing to over 33,000 acres.

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Wildfires in California are threatening the world’s oldest trees

By Jeanine Santucci
USA Today
April 1, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

Firefighters in central California were working Tuesday to contain a wildfire near the Nevada border threatening a forest home to the oldest trees in the world, after making good progress on Monday, officials said. The Silver Fire broke out Sunday near Bishop, California, in Inyo County and has burned ‎1,589 acres. It was 50% contained as of Tuesday morning. “The fire still threatens structures, critical infrastructure, watersheds, endangered species, and cultural resources,” the Cal Fire San Bernardino Unit said in a post to social media on Tuesday. Less than 15 miles from the fire, the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest contains trees that are more than 4,000 years old. The Patriarch Tree is the world’s largest bristlecone pine tree.

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Oregon conservationists celebrate legal victory against BLM’s old-growth logging

Assoicated Press in KPIC
April 1, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

EUGENE, Ore. — Conservation groups across Oregon have won a lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management’s logging plans. On Monday, a federal judge ruled that the BLM had illegally authorized the logging of old-growth forest lands within protected areas called late successional reserves. Those are reserves specifically created to protect old-growth forest ecosystems. The court pointed out that logging in these reserves would increase fire hazards and harm nearby habitats. The Cascadia Wildlands Group, alongside other conservation groups, add that they’re hoping to get BLM forest managers on board with fire resiliency projects and fire fuel reduction rather than further timber sales.

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Meet the Coloradans Working To Save the West’s Wildfire-Ravaged Forests

By Elisabeth Kwak-Hefferan
5280 | The Denver Magazine
April 1, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

There are a number of ecological incentives for keeping the West forested. Trees stabilize soil, preventing flooding and landslides. They keep sediment out of rivers and streams, protecting aquatic habitats and drinking water. Forests help preserve mountain snowpack, replenishing groundwater reserves. They provide a home for wildlife, from bugs and birds to elk and black bears. And trees sequester carbon, a crucial tool in the fight against climate change. Beyond science, though, the desire to preserve forests feels deeply personal. “Forests are like Colorado’s DNA,” says Catherine Schloegel, watershed forest manager for the Colorado branch of the national nonprofit the Nature Conservancy. “We love to hike in them, bike in them, ski through the trees. They’re a huge reason why we live here. The legacy of Colorado is our forests.”

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Controversial logging bill makes it through Oregon committee

By April Ehrlich
Oregon Public Broadcasting
March 31, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

Lawmakers have moved forward a controversial logging bill that could open the state up to lawsuits if Oregon doesn’t log enough timber in a given year. Representatives in the House Committee on Natural Resources unanimously advanced House Bill 3103 early Monday. The bill would allow counties and the timber industry to sue the state forester if Oregon logs less than the Department of Forestry forecasts in its once-a-decade estimates. There are exceptions if a large mass of trees are destroyed by wildfires, diseases or storms… Every decade, the Oregon Department of Forestry estimates how much timber it could log from state land for the next 10 years. Timber industry representatives and county officials say the department tends to over-promise and under deliver, making it difficult for them to plan ahead.

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Wilderness permits for Oregon parks returns despite uncertainty over ranger staffing

By Zach Urness
The Register-Guard
March 31, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

The sometimes controversial permit system meant to limit crowds in three of Oregon’s most popular wilderness areas will return this summer, despite questions about who will enforce the system following widespread layoffs and another round of anticipated cuts to the U.S. Forest Service… The agency stated: “For the Deschutes, we will still have a wilderness ranger presence this summer. We also have a dedicated cadre of trained volunteer wilderness backcountry rangers who focus on education and mitigating impacts as well as a robust volunteer group that staffs wilderness trailheads to ensure awareness of and to gain compliance with the permit system (including redirecting people who do not have permits to other opportunities within the 60 available self-issued permit wilderness trailheads).”

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As wildfire season approaches, budget woes and federal uncertainty have put states’ plans at risk

By Martha Bellisle
Associated Press
March 27, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

SEATTLE — Budget woes, combined with cuts to the federal wildfire-fighting workforce and President Donald Trump’s tariff and sovereignty threats against Canada, have made it more difficult for state officials to plan for the upcoming wildfire season. In Washington, a $12 billion budget shortfall prompted majority Democrats in the Legislature this week to propose slicing spending on wildfire prevention and fighting by one-third to two-thirds. “These massive cuts are putting lives and homes at greater risk,” said state Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Dave Upthegrove. …Meanwhile, tensions between the U.S. and Canada over Trump’s proposed tariffs and calls to make the country the U.S.’s 51st state have also complicated wildfire planning, especially in border states, Geissler said. Washington state has maintained a solid relationship with British Columbia for decades, but it’s unclear how firefighting will work if the borders are closed due to federal tensions, he said.

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Outbreaks of Forest Pests Expected During Warm Years

By Kristy Burnett
Pagosa Daily Post
March 27, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

The annual forest health report, released today by the Colorado State Forest Service, assesses the condition of Colorado’s forests during another warm, dry year for the state. Following a wet and cool year in 2023, the shift back to near-record temperatures and below-average precipitation in Colorado last year stressed trees needing several years of mild conditions to build defenses against attack from forest pests. Bark beetles and other insects are building populations in forests across the state and changing fuel dynamics for wildfire as they leave dead and dying trees in their wake. “Trees in Colorado can’t catch a break as our climate becomes warmer and dryer in Colorado,” said Matt McCombs, state forester and director of the CSFS. …The 2024 Report on the Health of Colorado’s Forests details what insects and diseases remain the most prevalent forest health issues and where they are increasing their footprints, as well as the science behind the management actions taken to promote wildfire-resilient forests and healthy watersheds.

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Colorado Forest Service measures forest carbon emissions

By Rebekah Barry
The Rocky Mountain Collegian
March 27, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

A recent study published by the Colorado State Forest Service took a deeper look into the impact of Colorado’s trees and how they store carbon. The findings reported that some of Colorado’s forests release more carbon than they draw due to dying trees that are actively decomposing. …it should be kept in mind that this data applies to recent years, and results fluctuate and can be nuanced. “(The) bigger picture of this report found that Colorado’s forests hold a lot of carbon, and that continues to this day, and it’s just in recent years that it’s releasing slightly more carbon than it adds,” Vorster said. “But when you just put it in perspective, if you were to compare the amount of carbon that it holds compared to what it releases, it’s like 0.06%, so a very tiny fraction of it at least every year. … It’s pretty close to a balance.”

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Oldest whitebark pine tolerates Idaho’s harsh climate, crucial for ecosystems

By Anna Daly
BoiseDev
March 27, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

IDAHO — The Western Pine may be Idaho’s state tree – but… the Whitebark Pine survives harsh weather conditions and can live over 1,000 years and grow over 90 feet tall. …In addition to feeding several birds and mammals, the tree provides shelter and nest sites for many animals including deer and elk. It is also key to helping with Idaho’s water supply. …Another interesting fact about the Whitebark Pine is that it relies solely on the bird – the Clark’s nutcracker – to reproduce. “Carrying the seeds in a pouch under its tongue, the bird buries them in shallow soil caches, sometimes up to 10 km away,” the National Park Service notes on its website. “Nutcrackers are known to cache up to 90,000+ seeds in a good seed crop year!” These trees are very slow-growing. …In 2022, the Whitebark Pine was officially listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. 

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Oregon’s New Defensible-Space Standards Don’t Apply to Every Property, But They Should

By Steve Wilent
The Woodsman’s Take
March 27, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

The State of Oregon’s Wildfire Risk Explorer map was finalized in January, along with new defensible-space standards. A home-hardening building code (regulations designed to make homes more resilient to wildfire) is in draft form. …One Oregon lawmaker has proposed revising the map so risk levels apply broad areas rather than indicating the risk on individual properties. I’m sympathetic to the opposition to the map, etc., but scrapping it would be a mistake. …All tax lots in the state are assigned one of three wildfire hazard classes: Low, Moderate, or High; US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and other public lands also are rated. …Despite the sharp criticism, this effort is a much-needed and well-intentioned project. …However, there’s a big problem: The owners of the other 94 percent of tax lots—roughly 1,786,000—rated at Low or Moderate hazard will not be required to take any action to create defensible-space around their homes or businesses.

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Wood is key to building. Importing it is worse than responsible Washington logging – Opinion

By Amy Harding
The News Tribune
March 26, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

The Pacific Northwest is fortunate to have vast forests and ideal conditions for growing trees quickly. These forests have long been a cornerstone of our rural economies while also protecting streams, sequestering carbon and supporting wildlife. However, we face a troubling trend: a decline in local timber production and a growing reliance on imported lumber. We use science for active forest management with the toughest regulations in the world, we do forestry the best here. It’s time to prioritize local timber and rebuild a robust, sustainable industry right here in Washington… Prioritizing local wood production is a win-win for the Pacific Northwest. Wood is good, but local wood is best if we want to restore a vital, create economic stability and protect our environment.

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What will Trump’s order on logging mean for Montana’s timber industry?

By Ellis Juhlin
mtpr.org
March 26, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

It’s a cold day at Sun Mountain Lumber in Deer Lodge, Montana. Outreach Forester Sean Steinebach walks toward the mill’s massive kiln where freshly cut two-by-fours are dried. You can feel the heat radiating off the fresh boards. He stops and inhales. “It smells fresh and it smells bright and it smells wild,” he says. The mill’s lumber yard is filled with stacks of Douglas fir and lodgepole pine logs that will soon become lumber. Having a steady and reliable supply of logs is crucial to keeping the mill in business, says Steinebach. “We drive the economics of Powell County for sure, Anaconda, Deer Lodge County. We’ve got a lot of employees that live there. Granite County, we’ve got employees there. We’re a big impact in the whole state, I think. Forest products in general is a huge impact in the state of Montana.”

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Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy

New University of Wyoming Scientist Helps Show That Responsible Logging Can Help Eastern Forests

University of Wyoming
April 2, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: United States, US West

Dr. Sarah Germain

Responsible harvesting and other small disturbances can help make forests in the eastern United States more resilient to climate change, according to research by a new University of Wyoming faculty member… Forests of the eastern United States are important carbon storehouses. They remove carbon emissions from the air, packing them away into leaves, trunks, roots and soils. Eastern forests are responsible for 85 percent of all of the carbon taken up by U.S. forests. And the forests support biodiversity, timber products and other ecosystem services at the same time. But Eastern trees are becoming increasingly stressed by warming temperatures, which can slow their growth and reproduction. “It was comforting to learn that Eastern forests, which hold the most carbon in the U.S., are actually doing OK,” Germain says. “With moderate, status quo levels of disturbance, Eastern forests have the capacity to remain an important carbon sink.”

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Forest History & Archives

Beloved historic landmarks navigate an uncertain future after the Los Angeles fires

By Chloe Veltman
WBHM (Public Radio Alabama)
March 31, 2025
Category: Forest History & Archives
Region: United States, US West

The former home of one of the world’s most famous western novelists, Zane Grey, was a Mediterranean Revival house designed with high, wood-beamed ceilings and airy balconies. “It had almost a cathedral vibe when you walked in,” said Nathaniel Grouille on a recent visit to the site.  Grouille is now facing a big question: How to rebuild the site in a way that preserves Grey’s legacy while protecting it from the inevitable future fires and other disasters resulting from the impacts of human-caused climate change? Returning the property to what it was in Zane Grey’s day isn’t on the agenda. “This structure was incredibly unique, using really high quality old-growth wood and products that just don’t exist today,” Grouille said… Conservation experts are familiar with this tension. “How can we ensure that we can adapt the historic materials without losing the power these places have?” said Seri Worden, senior director with the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

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