Publication archives

The western suburbs, their forests already clogged by buckthorn plants, face invasion by an equally nasty invasive plant species. The plant, going by the flavorful name "garlic mustard," could cause an "ecological disaster," according to one local expert.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources next month will hold a public hearing on a plan to tighten restrictions on the movement of firewood into state forests and parks. The DNR currently bans wood from out of state coming into state lands. The proposal would ban wood from anywhere farther than 50 miles, even from within the state.

Member companies of the International Council of Forest and Paper Associations (ICFPA) have signed on a major new leadership agreement on sustainability. The agreement was signed by 59 company CEOs and association presidents -- representing some of the largest pulp, paper, and wood companies in the world -- during the second meeting of the ICFPA Global CEO Roundtable.

A pest blamed for killing millions of trees across the Midwest has reached Illinois, prompting state officials to prepare a detection and eradication plan they expect to begin within the next few weeks, according to the state agriculture department.

Is the World Trade Organization's Doha Round failing? Carin Smaller discusses WTO developments from Geneva; Jim Kleinschmit talks about how the emerging bioeconomy, like corn-based fuel and plastics, can revolutionize rural America; Minneapolis's Wedge Co-op starts the Sow the Seeds Fund to support local farmers, and Townhall Brewery unveils a beer made with fair trade Peace Coffee.

The state of Minnesota and private conservation groups are joining to buy development rights on up to 50,000 acres of former Boise Cascade forest in Itasca and Koochiching counties. The Department of Natural Resources and Trust for Public Land will provide the cash to buy the easements in and around the remote George Washington and Koochiching state forests.

The wildland fires are coming. The fire management plans are not. Even as California's fire season heats up, the Forest Service is snuffing out plans written for individual forests. Twice in the last three weeks, the agency has abandoned its diligently crafted documents: one covering the Sequoia National Forest and one for the Six Rivers National Forest in Northern California.