“Our vision is to see timber management policies established that will withstand the test of time and politics; policies that are embraced by a vast majority of our citizens and legislators.” — Mike Albrecht, President, American Loggers Council
'A BETTER VISION' ON TIMBER
I ’M GOING TO START WITH SOME FACTS THOSE OF US WORKING IN THIS INDUSTRY WE CALL TIMBER ARE PAINFULLY AWARE OF, ESPECIALLY YOU FOLKS IN ALASKA. For the past three decades, our industry has been in a serious state of decline. Many sawmills and pulp mills are now on single shifts or shuttered. Too many loggers and truckers have downsized or auctioned off their businesses. America’s National Forests are burning, important forest man- agement projects are mired in litigation, and America, now the leading importer of lumber in the world, is dependent on other countries for its wood products. This is the 2025 American timber industry backdrop the Trump administra- tion inherited. They have taken immediate action to repaint the backdrop. What follows is a brief summary of changes in timber policies in America since President Trump took office. Two executive orders that were signed March 1, titled “Immediate Expansion Of American Timber Production” and “Addressing the Threat to National Security from Im- ports of Timber, Lumber” deliver a clear message: America will “increase timber production and decrease timber supply uncertainty” and provide “policy recom- mendations for strengthening the United States timber and lumber supply chain through strategic investments and permit- ting reforms.” Additionally, Trump called for an immediate 25% increase of harvest quotas on America’s National Forests. In March, many of the dark clouds over America’s timber industry parted, and rays of sunshine began to show through. For Alaska, the clouds quietly began to part even earlier. On Jan. 20, President Trump signed Executive Order 14153 titled “Un-
sion planning limits from 3,000 to 10,000 acres. Our lobbying efforts around the FOFA have paid off, as the bill has strong bipartisan congressional support. There remain sticking points between the House and Senate versions, but we fully expect a final bill to reach Trump’s desk soon. The sweeping changes being promot- ed by the Trump Administration around management of our national forests are not without controversy. The issue of tariffs on Canadian timber has been on-again, off-again, and the proposed 25% additional Canadian timber tariff is on hold until later this year while the existing 14.5% tariff remains. Layoffs of Forest Service and Bu- reau of Land Management employees have proven controversial, with some question- ing how more work will get done in our national forests with fewer employees, and with agency budgets being cut. There is no question “belt tightening” is painful, but in many cases warranted. No one knows this better than loggers who have had to down- size when local timber markets disappear. The American Loggers Council looks forward with great anticipation to the “dawn” of better days ahead for America’s timber industry. Our goal is to help loggers prosper by continuing to raise the bar on everything we do in the woods, from safer operations to providing the highest quality timber products, all while maintaining a thriving forest environment. Our vision is to see timber management policies estab- lished that will withstand the test of time and politics; policies that are embraced by a vast majority of our citizens and legislators. We believe the forest management groundwork currently being laid fully supports that vision.
leashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential.” Section One reads like this: “The State of Alaska holds an abundant and largely untapped supply of natural resources including, among others, energy, mineral, timber, and seafood. Unlocking this bounty of natural wealth will raise the prosperity of our citizens while helping to enhance our Nation's economic and national security for generations to come.” With all of this great news in our “hip pocket,” the American Loggers Council (ALC) went to Washington, DC in April for our annual “Fly-in.” We carried with us our professionally done handout titled “The Dawn of a New Age in the American Tim- ber Industry ... a Road Map to Recovery.” It outlined our recommendations for better forest management, trade policies, interstate truck weight restrictions, trucking safety improvements and workforce development. I have been to eight D.C. fly-ins, and I can tell you our industry has never been received so well as we were at the event this year. We met with key congressional leaders who were genuinely interested in all things timber — from rebuilding our markets and reducing timber imports to thinning out our forests to mitigate cata- strophic wildfires. They want to see dead trees harvested and new trees planted. At our Congressional Reception we presented the 2025 Congressional Leadership Awards to Senator King (Maine), Senator Risch (Idaho), and Congressman LaMalfa (Ca- lif.) in recognition of their strong support and legislative leadership for our industry. We lobbied hard for the “Fix Our For- ests Act” (FOFA). This bill aims to reduce the time it takes to plan a timber harvest from years to only months, to restrict frivo- lous lawsuits, and expand categorical exclu-
36
ALASKA RESOURCE REVIEW SPRING 2025
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter maker