The Mississippi state legislature has approved Governor Barbour's special session request for a $75 million loan to KiOR for a proposed development of five biofuel plants. The projects will create 1,000 direct and indirect jobs over a five-year period and will generate $85 million in incremental payroll for the state, according to KiOR. In addition, timber feedstock for the woodchip-based pyrolysis process will be acquired in Mississippi.

An infusion of federal stimulus funds is bringing a new Forestry Sciences Laboratory to the Fort Collins-based Rocky Mountain Research Station of the USDA Forest Service. The $5.3 million state-of-the-art facility will allow scientists to expand their research on forest-health issues such as bark beetles, climate change and water quality, officials say.

A feature article by NASF Fire Director Dan Smith was published recently in the magazine Fire Management Today (Vol 70, No. 2) titled, "State Forestry's Role in Wildland Fire: Suppression, Community Protection, Cooperation and More."

The  Washington State Department of Natural Resources is seeking a Forest Biomass Contract Specialist in Olympia, WA. First review begins September 6.

In a letter to the New York Times, National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) president Steve Robinson offers a reminder that the Environmental Quality Incentives Program goes beyond the cattle industry, and "helps farmers, ranchers and forest owners carry out conservation practices that provide countless public benefits." The program has recently been at risk for cuts that would shift funding to school nutrition programs.

More than half of the National Park Service positions in the Northeastern U.S. could become vacant in the next five years, according to Chief Ranger Jill Hawk, who said that positions in urban parks are difficult to maintain because they run counter to the "myth" of the wilderness ranger. The agency is aggressively recruiting college students for summer internships that could lead to full-time jobs.

A new report from Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics and Ecology, "Getting Burned: A Taxpayer's Guide to Wildfire Suppression Costs," (PDF)  argues that the presence of private property or human structures in the vicinity of wildfires is a major factor affecting the rise in suppression costs.

USDA Forest Service Deputy Chief of State & Private Forestry Jim Hubbard has confirmed that all 59 Statewide Forest Resource Assessments and Strategies completed by NASF members have been approved on behalf of USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. To learn more about the assessments and strategies and access a growing list of the documents posted online, visit http://www.stateforesters.org/issues/issues_and_policy/forests_in_the_farm_bill.

The Voluntary Public Access-Habitat Incentives Program (VPA-HIP) provides grants to states and tribes working with private landowners willing to open their land to public access for wildlife-dependent recreation. States have until August 23 to submit 2010 proposals. Click here for a factsheet on the program (PDF) or here for application information.

A new USDA Forest Service report entitled "Private Forests, Public Benefits," shows that privately held forests in the U.S. are under substantial stress from development and fragmentation and that increased housing density in forests will exacerbate other threats to forests from wildfire, insects, pathogens and pollution. "The [report] shows that now, more than ever, we need to take an 'all lands' approach to managing our nation's forests, whether they are national forests or under the stewardship of state or private entities," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Oregon Senator Ron Wyden is pressing the Obama administration to act against Chinese subsidies that he says are unfairly hurting the U.S. paper industry. More than 100 members of Congress sent a letter to President Obama on Wednesday, seeking an in-depth examination of Chinese subsidies to its paper industry.

The USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station (SRS) is offering gardeners, foresters, landowners and others concerned about nonnative invasive plants in the South free copies of "A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests." The book is an update of the popular "Nonnative Invasive Plants of Southern Forests: A Field Guide for Identification and Control," published by the Station in 2003.

The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) has announced the discovery of emerald ash borer for the first time in the state. The detection of the destructive tree pest has led the TDA to plan for a quarantine in Knox and Loudon counties prohibiting the movement of firewood, ash nursery stock, ash timber and other material that can spread EAB.

MORE: Tennessee is also now dealing with the first instance of thousand cankers disease.

New Jersey State Forester Jim Barresi is the new Forest Service State & Private Forestry Deputy Director for the Northeastern Area. Barresi, who served as the New Jersey State Forester for 14 years, began his new role on August 2.