National Association of Conservation Districts

National Association of Conservation Districts

NACD's mission is to serve conservation districts by providing national leadership and a unified voice for natural resource conservation.

Forestry Notes

March 2009
Volume XVIII, Issue 4

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  1. Building a Better Habitat
  2. New Ideas, Hard Work Needed in Tough Times
  3. Emerging Biomass Markets Face Several Obstacles
  4. Four Receive AFF Award
  5. Forestry Briefs

1.Building a Better Habitat
South Dakota partnership has restored cottonwood along several Missouri tributaries

When Garrett Schweitzer was hired to coordinate The South Dakota Riparian Restoration Project—a partnership whose mission was to restore remnant cottonwood stands in the northwestern part of the state—he wasn’t thinking about the credit the project would later receive, only the need to make it a success.

When the project wrapped in the fall, some 8,000 trees had been planted on a total of 33 acres along tributaries of the Missouri River. The accomplishment was in the ground, but since then the accolades have started to flow.

Schweitzer was in New Orleans at the NACD national convention to accept the National Wild Turkey Federation 2008 Conservation District of the Year Award on behalf of the rest of the Project team.

Originally, the project was the vision of South Dakota State Forester Ray Sowers. “He was interested in finding a program to supplement our riparian areas because our cottonwoods are in such poor condition,” said Schweitzer. “Almost all of those areas have no recruitment. This was a project Ray wanted to implement in drainages, many adjacent to the Missouri River.”

Six conservation districts in northwest part of the state applied for a grant, and when Schweitzer came into the project, the existing group had already secured a $98,000 grant from the South Dakota Conservation Commission. Knowing the project was going to be expensive for landowners to implement, Schweitzer contacted the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks to receive an additional $20,000 in cost-share funds.

“A lot of the costs for the landowner to do the project were above the maximum costs allowed by the Conservation Commission grant,” said Schweitzer. “The Game, Fish and Parks didn’t have those caps, so that money could be used to supplement material and labor costs for the landowner.”

The group later obtained additional offerings from the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks, the National Forestry Foundation, the U.S. Forest Service, and NWTF. By summer of 2008, the Project was armed with a total of $180,000 in grant funds, including money to staff Schweitzer as the Northwest Area Forester (coordinating this restoration effort is only part of his duties).

The work was done on a combination of U.S. Forest Service and private lands throughout the Grand and Moreau River watersheds. Said Schweitzer, of the 8,000 tress that were planted, the majority were cottonwood (a few were green ash).

“When I got involved, Jared McJunkin of the Turkley Federation was already on board with the planning committee,” said Schweitzer. “He was phenomenal. He helped us learn about project information, such as tree tubes.” The NWTF funds were used on federal lands.

Schweitzer is currently working with the Forest Service to map out new planting locations for 2009. On a daily basis he is also meeting with new landowners to place tree orders. The group has received additional funds, he said, in large part due to the warm response the group’s 2008 work has received. “The project is very popular. We would like to do another 18 to 20 acres on private lands, and 20 acres on federal lands this coming spring.”

The group has applied for another NWTF grant, and has added Pheasants Forever to its list of partners. Added Schweitzer, “The number of partners involved helped make this project a success, and all of them bring something to the table.”

Schweitzer was humbled by the NWTF award, but believes the collaboration with NWTF is something that should be going on in other districts around the country. “You talk about a conservation group that is putting money toward getting habitat work done on the ground … they are by far the leader in taking on that role,” he said.

“NWTF is very willing to get involved. If districts are looking to secure funds, and the project can in some way benefit turkeys, the Turkey Federation is the first group the district needs to call. They don’t just talk about getting work done, they’re getting it done.”


2. New Ideas, Hard Work Needed in Tough Times
The City of New Orleans served as the host for the 2009 National Association of Conservation Districts annual meeting in early February. Much of the convention’s forest-related discussion centered around the rough economic climate and the new programs and opportunities that might soon be available for forest landowners.

In her speech to the membership, NACD Chief Executive Office Krysta Harden challenged conservation district leaders to buckle down and to continue their good deeds, especially in such difficult times.

Asked Harden, “It would be easy in this economy to let others do it, and I assure you they will. But … I think we want to do it.”

Out-going NACD President John Redding supported Harden’s call for continued hard work, and as part of his five goals for attendees emphasized the need now more than ever for districts to spread the good word about the work being done; Redding also asked members and partners to plant trees in their home areas as part of the Olin Sims Legacy Program.

During Tuesday’s general session, Craig Hooks of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency encouraged district members to serve as a go-between for industry and environmental disputes. “We need a lot of cooperation to solve our problems,” said Hooks. “Who better than conservation districts to help. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t trust you all.”

The Forest Resources Policy Group met Monday morning to receive a report from each of its partner representatives and to discuss pending resolutions. The Forest RPG also further discussed objectives for its 2009 plan of work and its summer meeting.

The following forest policy resolutions were adopted by the NACD Board of Directors at this year’s annual meeting:

For more information on the New Orleans convention, visit the NACD Web site at http://nacdnet.org.


3. Emerging Biomass Markets Face Several Obstacles
A struggling economy compounded by a downturn in traditional forest markets has generated concern—even panic—in some corners of the country. Due to a shrinking market, lumber usage for housing projects this year will be less than half of what it was two years ago, and lumber prices are expected to reach a 30-year low, according to a recent Forest2Market report.

Conversely, there is genuine excitement for biomass markets and their role in the future of alternative fuels. And the pellet industry is in very good health, thanks to a thriving European market and a growing interest in pellet stoves in this country. That same report quotes one industry source who predicts that the wood fiber demands needed to satisfy the emerging biofuel and pellet markets will rise by 37 million tons this year.

But wood industry experts are concerned that public’s perception about biomass potential may not exactly mesh with the reality of what the future holds if current trends continue. There are strong feelings on both sides of the issue, but the common theme is that more work is to be done and partnerships must be created. 


Growing Interest, Concern in Wood as a Fuel Source

John Stewart, the Biomass and Forest Health Program Manager for the Department of Interior, is encouraged by the new administration’s interest in wood-to-energy data. During the transitional phase in Washington D.C., Stewart says there was a request from the incoming administration on wood’s potential as an alternative fuel source.

“It’s not just the Obama Administration,” says Stewart. “It’s government and it’s public sentiment that we need to focus more heavily on forest health issues. It’s something that has slowly been growing, starting back even before the Clinton Administration.”

The largest obstacle for a strong biomass market has always been transportation costs.

Adds Stewart, “In today’s economy, with more attention being paid to transportation costs it’s a tight dollar.”

Can there be enough left in that dollar to squeeze profits from the biomass market?

Most will say it depends on the market for biomass material, and how well transportation and other costs can be managed. Ultimately, however, the power to limit transportation costs is controlled through having a shortened travel radius; any project, whether it’s Fuels for Schools or a proposed cellulosic ethanol plant, needs to be able to pull material from the forest as close to that consumption as possible. The combination of the declining traditional markets and the increasing number of pulp and paper mill closings is having an indirect (and sometimes direct) effect on whether new biomass projects can get off the ground.

Neil Sampson is the president of the Sampson Group, an established natural resources consultant. He believes that the excitement over the alternative fuel is premature.

Says Sampson, “We continue to hear talk at the local level about people building this or that, but it never seems to go beyond that. Talk is much different when gasoline is $4 a gallon versus when it’s $2 a gallon.”

An industry overhaul would demand a two- or three-year gestation period, suggests Sampson, and the gas crunch didn’t last long enough for things to go full cycle.


Other obstacles to consider

John Heissenbuttel, formerly of the American Forest and Paper Association, has a different opinion. He is now involved with the Council on Sustainable Biomass Production—a group whose members include Chevron and BP representatives, environmentalist groups, and farmers. The goal is a sustainable biomass marketplace, something most everyone at the table agrees is a necessary component to offering stability and longevity to emerging forest markets.

Heissenbuttel is quick to “correct” a misconception that the material that will be used is the secondary, unwanted stock.

“I think people think it’s going to be the leftovers and the slash that feeds these bio-refineries,” says Heissenbuttel. “It’s not true, in my mind. It’s going to be the wood that traditionally went to pulp, and that’s the rub right now.”

The fear is that government subsidies could give the biomass market an unfair advantage. However, a market absent of subsidies could work, suggests Heissenbuttel, as it would create healthy competition. “I believe the free market helps the forest landowner,” says Heissenbuttel. “An important caveat is that this needs to be a level playing field.”

“If biomass for energy is subsidized, and it puts pulp and paper at a disadvantage, I don’t know if that’s a good thing … But the competition is terrific.”

“It’s a myth that biopower is a threat to the pulp and paper industry,” says Bill Carlson, the vice president for Wheelabrator Environmental Systems, which works with biomass groups from around the country. In addition, Carlson is Chairman of the USA Biomass Power Producers Alliance and a member of the joint USDA/DOE Biomass Research and Development Technical Advisory Committee.

The issues America is having with gas prices and the fear over what the importing of gas means to our national security gives Carlson confidence that developing alternative fuel sources, wood included, is more of a need than merely the talk of the day.

“I think it’s clear that the status quo is not sustainable,” he says. “We have to do things on our own, and renewable energy is something we can do on our own. That’s a solid trend that will continue in its current direction for decades.”

In terms of the logistics, what can make emerging biofuel markets work, says Carlson, is common-sense planning and the understanding that bigger is rarely, if ever, better in the biomass marketplace. It’s finding that perfect balance between the size of the fuel source and the demand of the product—and not too much or too little of one or the other—that will make for a successful plant.


For biomass to succeed, traditional wood markets must bounce back

Heissenbuttel said that regardless of the current obstacles and economic challenges, wood has a future. “It will happen,” he says.

Sampson agrees, but not with the same level of optimism. “Wood will be one of the choices, but everything we’ve seen to date suggests biomass for more energy is the lowest-priced commodity out of the forest, it’s the bottom feeder.”

The key, he said, is a forest market where industry works in unison rather than competitively. “Almost every biomass harvest I’ve seen was a break-even or associated with a wood harvest that was profitable. If all that’s left for forest landowners is a biomass market, at the prices we’ve seen, they’re in deep trouble,” said Sampson. “I’ve seen combined markets work well for biomass, but (on its own) I don’t see it working when biomass is $18 a ton.”


4. Four Receive AFF Award
The American Forest Foundation recognized three state conservationists and an assistant chief at the NRCS New Orleans leadership meeting for their outstanding support of conservation activities for private forestland owners.

The four winners—Gary Kobylski of Alabama, Roger Hansen of Missouri, Gus Hughbanks of Washington, and Eastern Region Assistant Chief Richard Coombe—each received a plaque to honor the contributions made by them and their staffs.

“I’m glad Missouri was recognized for the work we’ve done to assist the forest industry and forest landowners,” said Hansen. “But it’s been a collaboration, NRCS hasn’t done this alone.”

Said Kobylski of the award, “It was a surprise and quite an honor. In Alabama, we’ve been trying to advance the Forest Health Initiative. Many landowners are still not aware of the programs available to them and we’ve tried to reach out to them and teach them. We were able to do that with the help of our soil and water conservation districts.”

A bit about each award recipient:

For more information on the awards, visit the American Tree Farm System Web site at http://www.treefarmsystem.org.

The American Forest Foundation is a nonprofit conservation and education organization that strives to ensure the sustainability of America’s family forests for present and future generations.


5. Forestry Briefs
Stimulus Package Signed into Law Feb. 17
Final supplemental spending levels in the economic stimulus for programs related to NACD’s stimulus proposal include $290 million for Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations; $50 million for the NRCS Watershed Rehabilitation Program; $500 million for Forest Service Wildland Fire Management on federal, state and private lands; $125 million for Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Lands and Resources Management activities; and $15 million for BLM Wildland Fire Management activities.

USFS Offers Strategic Frameowrk for Responding to Climate Change
This document provides a road map to guide Forest Service actions for addressing climate change. Seven goals are outlined; in order to achieve these goals, the Forest Service is working with a broad range of agencies, scientists, stakeholders, tribes, international interests and the public at-large to make good use of diverse expertise and ideas.

To learn more about this topic, visit
http://www.fs.fed.us/climatechange/documents/strategic-framework-climate-change-1-0.pdf.

Video Aims to Stop the Spread of Invasive Species
 A new video titled, “How Hunters and Anglers Can Stop the Spread of Invasive Species” has been produced by the U.S. Forest Service, as part of the National Invasive Species Threat Campaign.

To learn more about the video, visit
http://www.fs.fed.us/invasivespecies/prevention/defending.shtml.