May 2016



To build public trust, address the tough issues


Two tough issues the forest sector faces with the public are clearcutting and herbicides. There's just no getting around them. While not all forest landowners use these tools, a majority of the industrial landowners do, and their lands are often visible to the public.
 
These tools are legal, responsible and defensible from a silvicultural perspective, but they're not well understood by a skeptical public. That's one reason we talk about and explain them on OFRI's websites and in our educational materials.
 
That's also why we sponsor, with others, landowner training on such things as best practices for applying herbicides to forestland, and tips on how to soften the visual impact of clearcut harvests. Landowners and managers must do the very best job they can, meeting all the rules and regulations and even exceeding them when it's appropriate to do so.
 
If the public does not trust that the sector is managing forests in the best possible way for now and the future, extremists can use that mistrust to incite controversy and foment needless regulation.

For the forest,
 
Paul Barnum
Executive Director



Herbicide webinars planned


A four-part webinar series offered next month will discuss best practices for applying herbicides to forestland.
 
Registration is now open for the Herbicide Best Practices for Oregon Forest Management web learning series, scheduled for 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. on June 8, 15, 22 and 29. The registration fee is $100.
 
During the live, interactive webinars, senior foresters will share how they've adapted to new regulations, and how a forester's current practices can - and should - proactively exceed regulatory requirements. Experts from the timber industry and academic community will talk about the science behind controlling a broad range of weeds and how to keep them in check without impacting sensitive environments. Regulators and public interest groups will also discuss new ideas for maintaining healthy forests and good relationships with neighbors and the general public.
 
This is the first time OFRI has used the internet to deliver live video content, with the benefit that participants can save travel time and receive the training at their computers.
 
OFRI Director of Forestry Mike Cloughesy will moderate all four events, which feature original in-cockpit helicopter footage demonstrating the latest application techniques as well as GPS technologies used for precision guidance.
 
"These webinars offer a chance to learn from the masters," he says. "We are very excited to have an incredible cast of foresters, herbicide experts and regulators who will share their wisdom."
 
Each webinar addresses a different theme. "Why We Spray" kicks off the series on June 8, followed by "Pre-Operations Planning" on June 15, "Managing the Day of the Event" on June 22 and "Being a Good Neighbor" on June 29.
 
The webinars are being produced by the Western Forestry and Conservation Association and the Emerging Tech Accelerator with funding from OFRI, Oregonians for Food & Shelter and CropLife. 



New forest career videos debut
 

 
Stewardship forester, maintenance manager and forestry teacher are the most recent forest sector occupations to be featured in the OFRI video series highlighting the diverse range of forest-related careers.
 
The three new videos join 11 others in the "Find Your Path" series aimed to generate interest among middle- and high-school students in forest sector careers. Each 2-minute video in the series gives an overview of a different career.
 
The latest videos follow a stewardship forester as he meets with landowners and forest operators to ensure their understanding of Oregon's forest practices laws; a maintenance manager overseeing the repair and maintenance of a lumber company's equipment fleet; and a high school forestry teacher as he leads his students on a hands-on field trip.
 
Other careers featured in the series include wildlife biologist, forest hydrologist, wildland firefighter, electrician and seedling nursery manager. All the career videos, plus more information about forest sector careers, are available at OregonForestCareers.org



Portland events focus on mass timber 

Proponents of mass timber construction reached large audiences last month during two separate events in Portland intended for the commercial real estate industry and business leaders.
                     
CREW Portland, a professional organization for the commercial real estate industry, hosted an April 14 luncheon with a panel discussing the Framework project, a 12-story cross-laminated timber building planned in Portland's Pearl District. The following week, the Portland Business Alliance put on a breakfast event on April 20 featuring the British architect and CLT expert Andrew Waugh (pictured above, far right). OFRI was a sponsor for both events.
 
The CREW luncheon panel offered the perspectives of different members of the project team for the proposed 12-story Framework building, which recently won a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Panelists included Anyeley Hallova, partner with development firm project˄; Eric McDonnell, an associate with KPFF Consulting Engineers; and Jonathan Heppner, project manager with LEVER Architecture. They discussed the challenges of getting the project off the ground and how the USDA grant has helped fund testing of CLT construction methods.
 
Speakers at the Portland Business Alliance breakfast also discussed the Framework project. Waugh was joined on the stage by Thomas Robinson, a principal with Portland-based LEVER, which designed Framework, and D.R. Johnson Lumber President Valerie Johnson. Southern Oregon-based D.R. Johnson is the first U.S. supplier of structural-grade CLT.
 
Waugh's London-based firm Waugh Thistleton Architects has designed 21 CLT structures. He also was one of the judges for a USDA tall wood building design contest that split $3 million in prize money between Framework and a project in New York. During the breakfast talk, Waugh praised Framework as the best project submitted to the contest and said he's thrilled to see CLT construction gaining traction in the U.S.
 
"It's such an exciting process. It's a new way to look at architecture and to look at construction," he said. "I encourage everyone to build their own solid timber building."



Workshops: Take the bite out of clearcuts 

Two workshops last month in Oregon and Washington offered guidance to about 100 participants on mitigating the visual impact of clearcuts.
 
OFRI co-sponsored the workshops on April 13 in Springfield and April 19 in Grand Mound, Wash., in partnership with the Oregon Forest & Industries Council, Washington Forest Protection Association, and the Western Forestry and Conservation Association. Speakers included University of Washington emeritus professor Gordon Bradley, Oregon State University emeritus professor Loren Kellogg and OSU professor Doug Maguire.
 
The aim of the workshops was to help forest managers plan timber harvests with a goal of gaining broader social acceptance, says OFRI Director of Forestry Mike Cloughesy, who gave a presentation about the findings of a public opinion poll on clearcutting. About 50 people attended each workshop, and their feedback on the program was overwhelmingly positive, he says.
 
Among the attendees of the Springfield workshop was a Capital Press reporter who covered the event in a recent article that summarizes the speakers' presentations.



Teacher workshop touts sustainable forestry

OFRI is partnering with Central Oregon Community College to offer a three-day workshop on sustainable forestry for high school teachers next month in Bend.
 
The June 26-28 workshop will offer field training on the social, economic and ecological aspects of sustainable forestry, with a focus on forest health, threats and collaboration. Workshop participants will tour federal and private forestland, the site of a recent forest fire and a mill, among other first-hand activities with forestry experts. They'll also receive supporting educational resources and instruction on teaching a 12-week high school forestry curriculum.
 
All the lodging at the Mount Bachelor Village Resort, plus meals and transportation for the workshop, is provided, but spaces are limited. The deadline to register is May 19.
 
Along with OFRI and COCC, the workshop is sponsored by Oregon State University, the Oregon Society of American Foresters, the Oregon Department of Forestry, the U.S. Forest Service and the Deschutes Collaborative Forest Project. 

Oregon Forest Resources Institute �  OregonForests.org 
The Oregon Legislature created the Oregon Forest Resources Institute in 1991 to advance public understanding of forests, forest management and forest products and to encourage sound forestry through landowner education. A 13-member board of directors governs OFRI. It is funded by a dedicated forest products harvest tax.
   
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Copyright � 2016, Oregon Forest Resources Institute. All Rights Reserved.

Recently on the blog 

OSU hosts leadership academy

Oregon State University is now taking registrations for next month's 2016 Natural Resources Leadership Academy.
 
The continuing education program for graduate students and natural resources professionals is scheduled to take place June 12-17 and June 20-24 at Kearney Hall on the OSU campus. The academy will offer the opportunity for students and professionals to learn side-by-side about natural resources topics, as well as to network and find opportunities to collaborate.
 
Planned session topics include natural resources and community values, collaborative governance, water conflict management, and resilient and robust resource management.  

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OSWA plans
annual meeting 

The Oregon Small Woodlands Association is gearing up for its 2016 annual meeting next month in Baker City.
 
This year's meeting is scheduled for June 9-11, with the theme of "Sustaining Family Forests - Celebrating 75 Years." The event will be hosted by OSWA's Baker County chapter in partnership with OFRI, the Oregon Tree Farm System and the Oregon Department of Forestry.
 
The program includes a Howdy Neighbor Woods Tour on June 9 that will focus on dealing with fire, an awards banquet and silent auction on June 10, and the 2015 Oregon Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year Woods Tour on June 11.
 
American Forest Foundation President Tom Martin is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the June 10 meeting, and OFRI Director of Forestry Mike Cloughesy will serve as the master of ceremonies.
  

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Conference to explore 'biochar'

Registration is now open for an upcoming conference in Corvallis on biochar.
 
The Biochar 2016 conference on Aug 22-25 at Oregon State University will address the advantages of biochar, a charcoal derived from woody biomass that's used as a soil amendment, and its connections to ecology soil, food and energy.
 
The cost of attending the conference is $325 prior to July 16 and $375 for later registrations.


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Get Outside:
Blue Pool

A portion of the McKenzie River Trail, east of McKenzie Bridge, leads hikers to the beautiful Blue Pool, also known as Tamolitch Pool. The easy, 4-mile hike passes through an old-growth Douglas-fir forest before reaching the turquoise-colored pool where the river emerges from underground.