Association News

Ziemer Steps Down at RRLC

The Redwood Region Logging Conference (RRLC), which is held alternate years in Eureka and Ukiah, California, has a new Executive Director.

After 21 years at the helm, Katherine Ziemer stepped down at the completion of the 2022 conference, held March 17 to 19, in Eureka. This year’s theme was The Timber Industry, An Essential Industry.

The new Executive Director of RRLC is Jeannie Fulton.

First-of-Its-Kind $10M Green Bond Issued to Finance Family Forest Carbon Program

The American Forest Foundation has announced that its affiliate, the Family Forest Impact Foundation, issued a $10 million Series 2022A taxable bond to finance the Family Forest Carbon Program. It is the first green bond designed specifically to support the generation of nature-based carbon credits. Morgan Stanley served as the sole underwriter on the transaction.

Developed by the American Forest Foundation and the Nature Conservancy, the Family Forest Carbon Program enables family forest owners, who own the largest portion of America’s forestland, to address climate change, improve forest health, and earn income from their land through carbon markets.

Oregon Logging Conference Introduces New Theme

Green Trees Matter: Healthy Forests = Healthy Future, is the theme for the next Oregon Logging Conference. The new theme, which was selected at the May 21st Oregon Logging Conference (OLC) Board of Directors meeting, is a combination of two themes suggested by Directors Mack Brown and Rob Vance.

“Growing, harvesting, and manufacturing green trees is the poster ‘green’ alternative for healthy forests and the future, on so many levels,” said OLC Director Brown. Vance added, “Forests need to be thinned to remove suppressed, dying, and overstocked timber to keep our forests green. Future generations deserve healthy federal lands for our great grandkids to enjoy and use, Vance added.”

The 85th Annual Oregon Logging Conference is planned for February 23 – 25, 2023.

FIT-Forestry Institute for Teachers in Shingletown, Ca

The FIT Camp crew; Dennis Mitchell, Brian Brown, Lisa Bye & Jeanne Tomascheski put on an exceptional six-day training for a group of 25 educators who traveled from San Diego, New York and places in-between to Camp McCumber, in Shingletown in July.

Camp participants are actively engaged in dig-in-the-dirt, get out and measure and write those measurements down educational activities. The educational activities are coordinated with breakout sessions such as Forest Science that dealt with soil science, water quality, wildlife biology, fuels and fire, silviculture, and forest management. USFS personnel, California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, private industry registered foresters and Project Learning Tree Education Specialist and Project WET hosted grade level training stations. This was just one day!!

In addition, Sierra Cascade Logging Conference President, Jim Ostrowski, took the group on a tour so participants could see reforestation projects and the devastation from recent fires in the Lassen region to fully grasp the need for forest management.

We Say a Sad Goodbye to Lindsay Mohlere

We are all saddened at the sudden passing of our TimberWest editor, Lindsay Mohlere.

An an avid hunter and fisher from Idaho, Lindsay had a long and varied career as a writer, photographer and even seaman, before becoming a freelance writer for TimberWest in 2015. He didn’t know a lot about forestry equipment when he started, but he picked it up quickly and was out in the woods covering operations across the state in record time.

Over the years, Lindsay has written dozens of articles and columns for TimberWest and this year, he stepped up as the publication’s new Managing Editor. Lindsay was embracing his new role and responsibilities like he had everything else — with great gusto.

Lindsay will be truly missed and our hearts go out to his family and friends during this difficult time.