For years AFRC members and staff have urged the Bureau of Land Management to address the abuse of the administrative protest process by anti-forestry groups. In May, the Department of the Interior and BLM responded, announcing they were proposing updates to regulations “governing administration of timber sales and protest of forest management decisions.” In a separate news release, the BLM said they were also proposing to establish a new 5,000-acre categorical exclusion for routine timber salvage projects.
Once the rules are published in the federal register, the BLM will open a public comment period for 60 days on the forest management rules, and 30 days on the new timber salvage CE. AFRC is prepared to engage in the process to help ensure the final rules provide real relief for its members, its communities and the land managers seeking to do more work on the ground. In the meantime, AFRC thinks the announcement is an important step toward addressing the paralysis that administrative protests have caused in some BLM districts.
Pacific Logging Congress Holding Auction December 16The Pacific Logging Congress will be holding its annual auction virtually this year on December 16, 2021. All proceeds will be used to support the Pacific Forest Foundation, which provides a variety of educational programs — scholarships, Adopt a High School and Talking Timber podcast.
The live and silent auction already includes a number of great items, and more are being added. Just a couple of the standout items include an Ultimate Bull Elk Hunt in California where you and your friends will have 20,000 acres to yourselves to hunt the ultimate elk, and a fishing trip (3 nights, 4 days) at Ritchie Bros. private island. For more details go to
www.pacificloggingcongress.org
The AFRC reported that The Forest Service has initiated a process to consider amendments to the land management plans of six eastern Oregon and Washington national forests (Deschutes, Fremont-Winema, Malheur, Ochoco, Umatilla, and Wallowa Whitman) to revise a provision that limits harvesting trees larger than 21 inches in diameter.
This provision, often referred to as the 21” rule”, is one component of a unique portion of those eastside land management plans commonly referred to as the Eastside Screens. They are unique in that they were established as interim direction in 1994 in response to a petition by the Natural Resource Defense Council demanding that the Forest Service halt certain timber sales in eastern Oregon and Washington.
The interim nature of their genesis resulted in a set of guidelines that were not a product of a robust scientific review or public engagement process. These shortcomings were likely deemed acceptable at the time, since they were producing a product that was not intended to be permanent. However, a year later, the Regional Forester signed those guidelines, including the 21” rule, into permanent plan direction for all eastern National Forests.
On the Cover
JEM Forestry's and its Link-Belt and John Deere combo at work in the woods
Fourth-Generation Logger Chases Dream
Justin Everhart had always dreamed of striking it out on his own, and that’s just what he did.
Dream to Realty — One Step at a Time
Jim Gahlsdorf, president of Gahlsdorf Logging Inc., knows that overcoming the challenges of owning and growing a business depends upon the ability to embrace change.
After the Fire
On November 8, 2108, the world changed for Jenny Lowrey and her family as the forests of Butte County, California, exploded into flames.
It’s All About Solutions
John Boak credits his success to the philosophy — life is not about problems, it’s about solutions.
Tech Review
A look at the wide variety of forwarders on the market.
Emergent Technologies
New Technology on the fire line.
Guest Column
Vote: Your community, forests and livelihood depend on it
DEPARTMENTS
