Blog
NASF joins Forest Service, NRCS and NACD in signing MoU at Annual Meeting
Posted on Tuesday, September 30, 2008On Monday, September 29, the National Association of State Foresters joined the USDA Forest Service, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) in signing a joint Memorandum of Understanding that defines future goals and cooperative activities between the four organizations. The MoU was signed at NASF's Annual Meeting in Hyannis, MA, and is intended to strengthen cooperation in the interest of forestry-related conservation assistance delivered to private landowners. Improved coordination will sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America's private working lands.
Hardwood Forestry Fund seeks applications for 2009 tree planting
Posted on Friday, September 26, 2008The Hardwood Forestry Fund seeks applications for 2009 tree planting and hardwood management. The Fund supports sustainable forestry by funding selective tree planting, direct seeding, natural regeneration, management, and hardwood research requests.
NASF Office Closed September 29 - October 3
Posted on Friday, September 26, 2008The NASF Washington DC office will be closed next week while members and staff are attending the 86th Annual Meeting in Hyannis, MA. Regular business hours will resume Monday, October 6. There will be no NASF Washington Weekly Report next week; publication will resume Friday, October 10.
Mountain pine-beetle kill alters climate
Posted on Thursday, September 25, 2008Scientists from the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder are studying whether mountain pine beetle kill is altering the very climate of the Rocky Mountain forests - from temperature to rainfall to air quality. The four-year international study will gauge how trees influence rainfall, temperatures and other aspects of the atmosphere; preliminary results suggest that the beetle-ravaged trees can lead to temporary temperature increases of about 2 to 4 degrees and alter cloud and rain patterns for a decade or more.
House passes disaster supplemental funding with $910 million for wildfires as part of CR
Posted on Thursday, September 25, 2008The continuing resolution approved by the House of Representatives this week included a disaster relief package with $910 million to reimburse non-fire accounts used to fund fire suppression efforts during this year's near-record fire season, fund hazardous fuels reduction and rehabilitation work, and assist with fire fighter retention. Earlier this month, NASF sent a letter to committee leadership urging passage of these emergency supplemental appropriations.
House leaves rural schools money out of bills
Posted on Thursday, September 25, 2008After passing in the Senate earlier in the week, partisan bickering in the House resulted in the rejection of the extension for the program of payments to rural counties hurt by federal logging cutbacks. The House removed the provision from a huge spending bill after the White House objected to the legislation. The bill approved by the Senate includes a four-year, $2.1 billion reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000, commonly known as "county payments." The bill also provides $1.7 billion for a separate program that compensates states for lost tax revenue from federally owned land. Both provisions were removed in the House bill.
Continuing Resolution should restore forestry cuts
Posted on Wednesday, September 24, 2008The continuing resolution, or CR, that Congress must pass by September 30 should allow the Forest Service to reverse devastating cuts it has made to other programs in order to cover firefighting costs this season, according to an article in E&E News (subscription): The CR contains $775 million for the Forest Service and $135 million for the Bureau of Land Management for wildfire costs, according to a draft released by the House Appropriations Committee. *Update* The House passed the CR on Wednesday.
Extension of payments for rural counties approved by the Senate
Posted on Wednesday, September 24, 2008The U.S. Senate has approved provisions allowing $3.8 billion worth of rural county timber payments within an energy tax bill. Lawmakers had earlier this year discontinued the payments to more than 700 counties nationwide. The payment extension is a federal safety net designed to prop up communities that had relied on logging revenue. The measure now heads over to the House.
State Foresters partner with Arbor Day Foundation
Posted on Tuesday, September 23, 2008In a new partnership, the Arbor Day Foundation is working with NASF and individual State Foresters to identify proposals for reforestation projects to help offset the costs of seedlings for planting. The Foundation helped to plant more than 3 million trees in national forests in 2008 and is now turning its focus on state forest land in 2009 and beyond.
Computer models estimate impact of climate change on Ozarks
Posted on Tuesday, September 23, 2008The vastly forested Ozarks region is the subject of computer model analysis over the effects of climate change. Forecasts range in their predictions: one suggests that the oak and hickory that dominate the forest will be replaced by pines, while another says the forest could evolve into savanna or even grassland.
USFS 2009 woody biomass grants
Posted on Friday, September 19, 2008The Forest Service State and Private Forestry Technology Marketing Unit announced in the Federal Register on September 11th, 2008, a Request for Proposals for Woody Biomass Utilization Grant - Forest Restoration Activities on National Forest System Lands (PDF, 60 KB) for woody biomass utilization grant applications for 2009.
Forest Service report details sustainable certification study on national forests
Posted on Friday, September 19, 2008The U.S. Forest Service is considering a sustainable certification program for national forestlands using standards set by two certification programs, the Forest Stewardship Council and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, for private and state-owned forests in the U.S. In a study commissioned by the agency, the Pinchot Institute for Conservation evaluated the management of five national forest units over two years and found that many of the agency's forest management practices were already in line with sustainable certification requirements, but the backlog of forest health management and road maintenance projects would pose challenges. Click here to read the study's Executive Summary.
New guide empowers communities to prepare for wildfires
Posted on Wednesday, September 17, 2008NASF Press Release: Communities where homes are intermixed with forests and wildlands have a new fire-fighting tool that will help protect property in the event of a wildfire - the "Community Guide to Preparing and Implementing a Community Wildfire Protection Plan." Developed under the leadership of the Wildland Fire Leadership Council, the new Community Guide offers innovative strategies, case studies and other resources to improve coordination and communication among stakeholders as they develop, implement, and monitor the success of a CWPP.
WI DNR Forestry hiring deputy administrator
Posted on Wednesday, September 17, 2008The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is currently seeking a progressive, strategic thinker and seasoned manager to serve as the Deputy Administrator to lead the internal operations of the Division of Forestry. For more information and application materials, please go to http://dnr.wi.gov/employment/fte/ - Job Code: 0802678. Application deadline is October 1, 2008.
Wildland Firefighter Foundation provides vital aid to wildfire fighters and their families
Posted on Wednesday, September 17, 2008Since 1999, Vicki Minor has dedicated herself to providing emergency assistance and ongoing support to injured and fallen wildfire fighters and their families nationwide through her Wildland Firefighter Foundation. Wildland firefighters are called into action when the United States' vast natural resources are threatened by fire.
Housing market decline acutely felt in WV timber industry
Posted on Tuesday, September 16, 2008Sawmill operators in West Virginia are telling State Forester Randy Dye these are some of the worst times in recent memory for the state's $4 billion timber business. Dye blamed the demise of so many sawmills on a downturn in the housing market and a decline of imports coming into the United States. There are about 65 fewer sawmills running than there were only two years ago, according to the Division of Forestry, and certified loggers in the state declined from 1,141 in 2004 to 932 this year.
DE State Forester appointed as Acting Secretary of Agriculture
Posted on Monday, September 15, 2008Effective September 15, Delaware's Secretary of Agriculture Michael T. Scuse becomes Governor Ruth Ann Minner's new chief of staff; the governor has appointed State Forester Austin Short as Acting Secretary of Agriculture. Short joined the Delaware Department of Agriculture in 1992 as a service forester. In January 1995, he became a Senior Resource Planner with the Department's Planning Section and then State Forester in August 1995.
NASF urges emergency supplemental appropriations for wildfire operations
Posted on Thursday, September 11, 2008NASF sent a letter to appropriations committee leadership in the House and Senate today urging them to provide emergency supplemental appropriations to the Forest Service and Department of the Interior for wildland fire operations. An extensive and destructive fire season across the U.S. has drained the agencies firefighting coffers, leading to a transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars from non-fire accounts to support fire suppression efforts. Read the full text of the letter here.
New tax package includes breaks for renewable energy
Posted on Thursday, September 11, 2008The leaders of the Senate Finance Committee, Max Baucus (D-MT) and Charles E. Grassley (R-IA), released a new tax package in another effort to extend tax breaks for renewable energy. The measure includes tax incentives for carbon sequestration, plug-in hybrid vehicles, conservation, wind energy, solar energy, nuclear energy and biofuels.
Old forests may be better at sequestration than previously thought
Posted on Thursday, September 11, 2008Findings in a new study published in the latest issue of Nature challenge the long-held assumption that trees older than 150 years are "carbon neutral" and not as effective as absorbing greenhouse gas as their younger siblings. Research from a group of forest scientists from the U.S. and Europe found that most forests between 15 and 800 years old store more carbon dioxide than they release, and the total amounts to about 10 percent of the net carbon uptake worldwide. The results may bolster arguments in favor of including credits for preserving old growth forests in the Kyoto Protocol and cap-and-trade schemes for controlling greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming.
Lawsuit filed over Canadian timber agreement
Posted on Wednesday, September 10, 2008Environmentalists are filing a lawsuit this week against the federal government for what they say was an illegal and unfair agreement with Canadian leaders to settle a dispute over timber sales. The environmental groups Conservation Northwest and the Center for Biological Diversity are filing their suit in U.S. District Court in Seattle and in the U.S. Court of International Trade in New York. The suit is focused on two of the three beneficiaries of the tariff deal -- the U.S. Endowment for Forestry & Communities and the American Forest Foundation. The money "helped us and other organizations with whom we work to break new ground in sustainability,"said Larry Wiseman, AFF president and CEO.
NH seeks State Forester/Director of Forests and Lands
Posted on Wednesday, September 10, 2008New Hampshire is seeking a new Director of Forests and Lands in the Department of Resources and Economic Development. Click here to read the full job announcement. Applications are due September 26.
Damaged power lines are blamed for destructive southern CA fires in 2007
Posted on Tuesday, September 9, 2008Improperly maintained power lines are to blame for some of the most devastating wildfires in Southern California last year, according to a report by investigators for the California Public Utilities Commission. The report supports the claims of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire), which identified damaged lines as the source of three San Diego County fires that burned more than 207,000 acres, destroyed 1,141 homes, killed 2 people and injured 40 firefighters.
AFF seeking nominations for NRCS award for forest stewardship
Posted on Friday, September 5, 2008The American Forest Foundation is seeking nominations for the 2008 Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) State Conservationist Award for Forest Stewardship. This award recognizes NRCS State Conservationists for outstanding technical and financial assistance to private forestland owners on forest conservation activities. Any individual, organization, agency, and others may nominate an NRCS State Conservationist for this award.
2009 Arbor Day Awards: call for nominations
Posted on Friday, September 5, 2008The Arbor Day Foundation is now seeking nominations for the 2009 Arbor Day Awards Program, which recognizes individuals, organizations, projects and communities for their extraordinary efforts in tree planting, conservation, stewardship, education, and the celebration of Arbor Day. Email education@arborday.org or visit arborday.org/programs/awards/nominate.cfm to submit a nomination. Deadline is November 15, 2008.
Nominations sought for Forestry Research Advisory Council
Posted on Thursday, September 4, 2008The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) of the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking nominations for the Forestry Research Advisory Council.The deadline for submitting nominations is October 10, 2008. Click here to view the full announcement that appeared in the Federal Register (73 FR 51437, September 3, 2008).
Uphill battle against EAB in Missouri
Posted on Thursday, September 4, 2008State officials in Missouri are facing an infestation of emerald ash borer they doubt they can eradicate, but are hopeful they can slow down. The beetle was first found in Michigan in 2002, and has reached at least seven other states, killing tens of millions of trees along the way. Missouri is the farthest south and west of the known infestation.
FL population boom could wipe out vast wildlife habitat areas
Posted on Thursday, September 4, 2008The expected doubling of Florida's population by 2060 will consume an estimated 7 million acres of wildlife habitat, according to an analysis by state wildlife officials. The report, based on estimates that Florida's population will grow from 18 million to 36 million in the next 50 years, raises concerns that wildlife habitat in the state could not only diminish but could also become fragmented and lead to a loss of diversity and recreational opportunities.
Forest management for a green planet
Posted on Thursday, September 4, 2008An Associated Press article looks to New York state forests for examples of forest management that improve the landscape's ability to provide a numer of ecosystem services. "North America's growing forests of the past century or more have been credited by scientists with absorbing as much as half of the manmade carbon that otherwise would be in the atmosphere," according to the article.
New USFS report on wildland fire and invasive plants
Posted on Thursday, September 4, 2008A new report from the U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station offers a review of information on relationships between wildland fire and nonnative invasive plants that can assist fire managers and other land managers concerned with prevention, detection, and eradication or control of these invasive species. The-16 chapter study summarizes fundamental concepts regarding fire effects on nonnative invasives, their effects on fuels and fire regimes, and use of fire to control plant invasions.
100-year study of forest management underway
Posted on Wednesday, September 3, 2008A group of researchers led by Purdue University has begun to sample data for a planned 100-year study designed to develop better forest management methods and measure how such practices affect resident plant and animal species. Results will inform a decision support tool to help people like forest managers and landowners predict the likely effects of specific management decisions. More information is available online at http://www.HEEForestStudy.org
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