Ellen Engstedt - July 04, 2005
Montana Wood Products Association
Good News for Now
KUFM COMMENTARY – JULY 4, 2005
Good news for the timber community came last week in the form of a press release from the University of Montana stating strong prices have increased lumber production and employment. This was also good news for Montana’s economy because during the first quarter of 2005 lumber production and employment were both higher than in 2004. Wages paid to production workers at timber processing facilities and plants processing wood fiber residue in that quarter meant $34 million into state coffers and that figure does not include the several thousand workers in logging, trucking and other timber related jobs.
Another positive word on Montana’s economy is that housing construction is booming. To construct a home made of wood 1,800 square feet in size approximately three truckloads of raw logs are needed. Logs are measured in the term of “board feet” which means the measurement is a piece of wood 12” by 12” by 1”.
To make one million board feet, a common timber term, it takes about 200 truckloads of raw logs. The effect on Montana’s economy for every one million board feet produced is 23 direct, indirect and induced direct jobs along with $765,000 in labor income. Along with the jobs and labor income, of course, comes federal and state income taxes paid by those workers.
While the news for now is good for Montana’s economy, the future supply of wood fiber remains discouraging even though we are all surrounded with dead and dying trees on public land.
With no change in the current annual harvest level of 700 million board feet Montana will likely see the closure of more than one of its largest timber processors along with the shut-down of several smaller mills. The 70 percent reduction of timber harvest over the past dozen years on federal land is the direct cause of this situation.
There are a number of reasons for the decline of national forest timber harvests, including the reduction in Forest Service budgets, but the most egregious cause is appeals and litigation of timber sales by those who abuse the system for whatever their motives. It is unclear to me why an extremely small number of individuals purporting to be “public benefit corporations”, whatever that means, are allowed to disrupt the lives of hard-working men and women who simply wish to care for their families. Our folks are the ones who provide value-added products for use by Montana consumers and who take pride in their work and contribute positively to their communities.
Montana’s nine national forests along with the rest of the country continue to suffer unhealthy conditions even though the Forest Service is attempting to correct this through proposed active management. These efforts are being stymied by irresponsible litigation and appeals. Nationwide almost two billion board feet of timber is being held up in court while it rots on the stump waiting for the next strike of lightening to set it on fire. This is an unconscionable waste of a valuable renewable resource.
In Montana there is over 300 million board feet under litigation including the Basin Creek reservoir and watershed, the city of Butte’s main source of drinking water. When this acreage burns and the water supply is contaminated, the estimated cost by Butte officials for a filtration system to clean the water is approximately $15 million. These are dollars that will come from the taxpayers of Butte, Silver Bow County and Montana. This situation could easily be avoided if the Basin Creek project could go forward without further obstruction by those who do not live in Butte.
The fact that a few individuals can devastate our local economy and the health of our national forests by irresponsible actions must cause rational leaders to pause and think about creative ways to neutralize the fringes.
The families of the Montana Wood Products Association wish you a happy Fourth of July. God Bless America and Montana! I’m Ellen Engstedt and thanks for listening.
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