Dec 16th, 2011
What you do is important. Your values, goals, objectives – the things you stand for and the actions you take.
Here at the PFLA blog we stand for responsible stewardship of B.C.’s private forestlands – our actions as forest stewards support government policies that balance environment, community and commerce.
Like the PFLA, the Washington Forest Protection Association (WFPA) represents private forest landowners (only they do it in Washington state).
In 1990, the WFPA initiated a major public opinion survey. At the time, the general belief was that private forest landowners were careless with their timber harvests, and causing harm to forests, streams and wildlife. Not true in practice, pollsters believed the public’s negative reaction resulted, in large part, because forest owners weren’t communicating their story.
More than ten years later, public perception has changed. The WFPA spent time and resources letting people know who they are and what they do, and it turns out, Washington voters “like” private forest landowners.
In fact, a 2011 public opinion poll showed:
- 70% believe private forest landowners protect wildlife habitat on their forestland “very” or “fairly” well.
- 66% think private forest landowners protect fish habitat in streams “very” or “fairly” well
- 64% think water quality in streams on private forestland was “very” or “fairly” well protected
- Finally, there’s widespread agreement throughout the state among all voter subgroups that habitat and water quality on private forestland was “very” or “fairly” well protected.
Who the WFPA is, and what they do, didn’t change – they just did a better job of letting people know about it.
That’s why PFLA spends time, effort and resources letting the public know who we are, what we stand for and how we do what we do. Intuitively, we knew this was a good idea, but a little evidence never hurt anyone.
Posted in International Perspectives, Stewardship
Tags: British Columbia, private forest land, Washington
Jun 12th, 2011
Washington Forest Protection Association
724 Columbia St. NW, Suite 250
Olympia, WA 98501
Phone: 360-352-1500
Fax: 360-352-4621
Email: info@wfpa.org
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We’re managing private forests so they work for all of us.®
Action: WFPA Summer Intern Jennifer Arnold researched the forest tax statutes and the legislative record leading to those statutes. She further researched other states timberland tax treatment, and their requirements for public access.
Background: Increasing population has placed greater demand for public access to private forest lands. With this increased pressure, the nature of public recreation and access on private forest lands has changed. Some landowners have responded by restricting vehicular access at certain times of the year. This has angered those who have traditionally recreated on private forest land such as hunters and fishers. They have contacted their legislators asking that something be done to force private landowners to grant vehicular access year round. For property tax purposes, private timberland is valued according to its current use, which is the growing and harvesting of trees, rather than its highest and best use which could include development potential. This current use value is then taxed at the same rate as all other property in the taxing district. This change was made in order to promote forest sustainability. If timberland were to be taxed using development values, then the landowner would be forced to develop in order to pay the property tax.
Result: These conclusions were presented in testimony to the House Natural Resources Committee earlier this Fall.
- Nowhere in the timber tax statutes or the legislative record is there a requirement for private forest landowners to provide public access, nor a discussion of any such requirement.
- The issue may be confused by the intent language which discusses why it is a good idea to promote forest sustainability. A list of the public benefits of private forest land includes, among others, enhancing water supply, minimizing soil erosion, providing raw materials, and scenic and recreational
- There may be confusion between the Open Space (RCW Chapter 84.34) and Designated Timberland (RCW Chapter 84.33). Open Space at one time did require public access, and in some instances, still does. Designated Timberland never did.
- Every other state with timber production has some form of current use tax treatment.
- Only four states have any requirements for public access. The requirements are very limited, none require providing vehicular access.
- Some legislators have wondered if the tax treatment of private forest lands requires public access.
For more information, contact: John Ehrenreich, Director of Forest Tax & Economics, jehrenreich@wfpa.org
Posted in International Perspectives, Policy & Legislation
May 27th, 2011
Forest Management: News and Highlights
Written by: Richard B. Standiford
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Although the weak housing markets have continued to suppress prices for logs and stumpage for California forest landowners, there has been tremendous growth in opportunities from the export market. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in International Perspectives, Log Exports
May 18th, 2011
Comment:
A government program in Oregon intended to preserve private working forest land by various means, including compensating owners for not converting the land into more lucrative types of land uses. Perhaps some alternative approaches to downzoning and imposition of restrictions without compensation? -
Coordinated and Strategic Investment of USDA Forest Service State and Private Forestry Programs
STATE AND PRIVATE FORESTRY PROGRAM ELEMENTS
Forest Legacy Program
Scope – Oregon’s Forest Legacy Program addresses privately owned forestlands that face threats to
conversion to non-forest use by urbanization, rural residential development, parcelization and other development pressures. Forest Legacy provides funds for the purchase of development rights to eligible private forestlands through either conservation easement or fee-title acquisition into public ownership. The goal of the program is to maintain working forests that conserve important commodity as well as non-commodity forest resources and conservation values including water flows and quality; fish and wildlife habitat (especially for threatened and endangered species); stores of carbon; and biodiversity. In addition, the Forest Legacy Program promotes stewardship and sustainable management of private forest lands. All properties entered into Oregon’s Forest Legacy Program – either through conservation easement, fee acquisition or donation – have their forest resources and conservation values protected and managed in accordance with a State Forester approved Forest Stewardship Plan. The program operates in areas where forests may be lost to nonforest uses and seeks projects that strengthen local communities through state, local and private partnerships in conservation. Landowner participation in the Forest Legacy Program is voluntary. Oregon entered the Forest Legacy Program in 2001 with approval of Oregon’s Assessment of Need by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. However, due to political concerns about the government facilitating the acquisition of interests or fee title of private forestlands, Oregon did not receive State legislative authority to implement the program fully until 2007. Oregon’s 2001 Assessment of Need was based on the following key factors:
Oregon’s statewide land use planning laws effectively protect commercial forestlands – especially large tracts of industrial private forestlands – from non-forest conversion. Under Oregon’s land use planning laws, development pressures consist mostly of expanding urban and existing rural-residential areas, and an increase in the number of structures placed on lands still in forest use. Mostly non-commercial forest types are threatened by development: oak woodlands and savannas, bottomland gallery riparian forests, and ponderosa pine woodlands. Since that time, the key factors have changed due to the following:
For the full pdf file please go to: Oregons Forest Resource Strategy
Posted in International Perspectives, Policy & Legislation, Stewardship
May 17th, 2011
But rapid increase in amount of wood leaving country is raising concerns
By Gordon Hamilton
Vancouver Sun May 17, 2011 5:33 AM
METRO VANCOUVER – When Port Alberni Mayor Ken McRae sees a freighter leaving his coastal sawmilling town loaded with wood, the pride he once felt has turned to a deep concern for the future of the British Columbia coastal forest industry.
Once those ships were loaded with lumber. Now, half the cargo is logs.
Log exports have exploded in B.C. in the last few months, largely to feed China’s voracious appetite for fibre. McRae is not opposed to exports; they have a place in a healthy industry, he said. But he fears China’s appetite for B.C. logs is going to cut into manufacturing here.
“China, Korea and Japan are paying more for logs than most of our sawmillers can afford. It’s a huge issue that’s going to come back to bite us,” he said in an interview Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in International Perspectives, Log Exports
May 16th, 2011
By Yana Marull (AFP)
May 13, 2011
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BRASILIA — A bill being debated in Brazil’s Congress has sparked fierce clashes between environmentalists and supporters of farmers and ranchers over how to regulate the country’s vast but vulnerable wilderness.
After 20 hours of debate, a vote on the controversial measure in the Chamber of Deputies was postponed Thursday until next week. The bill would then move on to the Senate.
“We are running the risk of legalizing this country’s environmental tragedies,” Green Party legislator Aluizio dos Santos Junior said during the heated debate in the Chamber of Deputies.
At issue is a reform of the 1965 law regulating forestry. The current law forces land owners that have forest on their property to keep part of it intact.
Farmers and ranchers must also protect environmentally sensitive areas such as river banks and hillsides.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in International Perspectives
May 16th, 2011
openPR.com – worldwide communications
05-16-2011 09:38 AM
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openPR) – The world’s largest log exporter, Russia, increased the shipments of logs in the 1Q/11 after having declined for four years, reports the Wood Resource Quarterly. Russian exports of softwood lumber have also gone up substantially, especially to China, Uzbekistan, Japan and Egypt.
Seattle, WA, May 16, 2011 — Russia has for many years been, by far, the largest exporter of logs in the world. When the country announced a log export tax of 25 percent in 2007 and the intention to increase this tax to 80 percent in 2009, many forest companies in Asia and Europe decided to reduce their reliance on Russian logs. As a result, total log exports from Russia fell from 51 million m3 in 2006 to about 22 million m3 in 2009 and 2010.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in International Perspectives, Log Exports
May 11th, 2011
By Hakan Ekstrom
Seeking Alpha.com – May 9, 2011
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Japan is in urgent need of pre-fabricated houses and manufactured wood products in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that hit the country in early March. Longer term, it can be expected that imports of commodity products such as plywood, lumber and logs will increase to this country, which is already one of the largest importers of wood products in the world, according to the Wood Resource Quarterly.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in International Perspectives
Apr 12th, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 11, 2011
For more information, please contact:
Cindy Mitchell, (360) 791-9372
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Mark Doumit, Executive Director of the Washington Forest Protection Association, made the following statement today in response to Commissioner of Public Lands Peter Goldmark’s advocacy for increased timber fees. Private companies have been forced to reset the way they do business because of the national housing crisis, while housing starts remain at their lowest level since 1959. The state agencies need to reset the way they do business to reflect the realities of the current economy.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in International Perspectives, Policy & Legislation
Tags: environment
Feb 15th, 2011
Seeking alpha
February 14, 2011
By: Hakan Ekstrom
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The value of softwood logs and lumber exported from North America to China reached over US$1.6 billion in 2010. This was 150 percent higher than the previous year and more than ten times as much as in 2006, reports the Wood Resource Quarterly.
China has come to the rescue for many sawmills and timberland owners in the U.S. and Canada over the past year. The value of softwood logs and lumber shipped from North America to China is estimated to have reached over $1.6 billion in 2010, which is up dramatically from just a few years ago. In 2008, total exports were valued at $350 million, while they were only $125 million five years ago.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in International Perspectives, Log Exports
Tags: China, exports
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