Additional funding that could aid forest management in a number of areas - areas designated in recent national forest plans in Minnesota - could be on the way, if Congress and the president approve funding sought by Minnesota Sens. Norm Coleman and Amy Klobuchar.
A press statement in late March states Coleman 'was successful in attaching his amendment to protect and sustain Minnesota's forest and timber industry' to the Senate's budget bill for 2008. The amendment would provide $50 million for forest management plans.
Klobuchar was a co-sponsor of the amendment, which would help fund implementation of forest plans (documents addressing 10 to 15 years of management of national forests) in the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan.
Tim O'Hara, of Duluth-based Minnesota Forest Industries, said funding is only half of what's needed for full implementation of the various plan; lack of funding has resulted in either 'partial completion of portions of the plans,' or handcuffing managers in addressing some aspects of the plan.
MFI, an association representing the state's forest products companies, says limited funding has reduced the level of timber harvest in national forests to about half the level the plan recommends. That's putting a strain on timber harvest companies and Minnesotans who work in forest industry factories, like pulp mills.
'Currently, Minnesota is being forced to try and sustain its forests with only half the amount of money that has been allocated,' Coleman said in a press release. 'This is simply unacceptable. In order to prevent further layoffs in the timber industry and keep the cost of raw materials competitive, we need to provide the U.S. Forest Service with the necessary funds that we have all agreed they deserve.'
Kay Getting, public affairs officer for Chippewa National Forest (one of two national forests in Minnesota; Superior is the other) said management plans for both national forests were approved late in 2004. Development of the plans began in the late 1990s.
Getting said the Coleman amendment 'has a long way to go' as it makes its way toward Congressional approval, and later, President George W. Bush approving the budget bill.
Further, should funding be approved, Getting said it's unclear if it would be appropriated for general plan implementation, or if it would be earmarked for specific aspects of implementation.
John Halverson, a constituent liaison for Sen. Coleman, said the funding would address not only timber management, but also other habitat projects, a 'broad range of forest plan issues.'
Getting said the timber industry in the Great Lakes area - Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin - has been subjected to economic pitfalls, including a decrease in new home demand.
However, forest plan implementation involves a host of issues, from environmental concerns to timber management, to hunting, to tourism.
Forestry officials say a steady funding stream for carrying out forest plans would be a better alternative than year-to-year, indefinite funding from Congress.
That funding not forthcoming, forestry interests stress that timber management must be improved - and timber sales increased - to ensure a healthy forest.
'The big problem in Minnesota is not that there's not enough wood,' said Bob Anderson, public affairs manager for Boise Cascade, a pulp and paper mill in International Falls. 'What's happening, is (national forests) don't have the dollars to put the wood up for sale. They've been putting up less and less wood for the past 12 years.'
Setting up timber sales is a labor-intensive, time-consuming process on national forest land, Anderson said. It involves determining the trees that will be cut, the method of harvest, completing a statement of environmental impact, and eventually putting the timber up for sale, assuming a lawsuit hasn't been filed to impede the process.
Anderson said active management of national forest is important for neighboring forest owners, too.
'In Minnesota, it's a patchwork of ownership,' he said. 'If you don't take care of your property - sometimes hundreds of acres - fire or disease can spread onto other properties. We need everybody managing (their property) to have a healthy forest.'
Anderson added that healthy forests also are important for animal and fish species. Groups like the Ruffed Grouse Society support active forest management to provide new-growth forests for ruffed grouse and other species that prefer the young forests.Minnesota Outdoor News
