| Industry gears up for
Katrina timber salvage 19 billion board feet of pine, hardwood timber estimated down in affected states By
JACK M. WILLIS Among the casualties of the devastating Hurricane Katrina on August 29th, 2005 were thousands of acres of forested areas in Louisiana, and sister state Mississippi. As a result of the damages incurred, a Hurricane Katrina Task Force comprised of groups of professionals associated with the forestry industry has been formed and is already in full operation to attempt to maximize recovery from an estimated 19 billion board feet of damaged and downed timber in the three-state area of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Mississippi, lying in the main path of Hurricane Katrina's winds, suffered the heaviest timber damage. Louisiana's total damage is estimated as 1.3 billion board feet. On an upbeat note, mills in the area including those operated by Temple-Inland at Bogalusa, Hunt Forest Products at Natalbany, and Weyerhaeuser company in Mississippi, experienced only minimal damages from the hurricane. They were down for only a short time due to power outages which were quickly restored. Two of the industries were generous with endowments totaling $1,000,000,000, given to governmental bodies to aid in recovery efforts. Temple Industries gave $300,000 to the City of Bogalusa and $200,000 to the Washington Parish Police Jury. Weyerhaeuser Corporation contributed $500,000 to the areas in which their mills are located in Mississippi. The Louisiana Forest Recovery Task Force, working hand-in-hand with a similar agency in Mississippi, has been created to help salvage the over three billion board feet total of timber downed or damaged by Hurricane Katrina. The coalition of state, private and federal agencies will work to maximize the recovery of the Louisiana timber located primarily in three parishes of southeastern Louisiana. "The most heavily damaged areas of our forests were in Washington, St. Tammany and Tangipahoa parishes." said Paul Frey, state forester and co-chair of the task force. "We want to move damaged timber as quickly as possible to mills and storage areas," stated C. A. "Buck" Vandersteen, executive director of the Louisiana Forestry Association and also a co-chair of the task force. "Much of the wood has been broken which will be challenging to clean up," stated Vandersteen. The value of the timber has been reduced due to its condition, the difficulty in logging it and the tremendous amount on the ground in both Louisiana and Mississippi. In terms of percentages of timber down, approximately 65 % is pine and 35 % is hardwood. "We are working on several short term remedies such as expedited permitting to help our landowners and loggers in this tenuous situation. For one thing, we've received a waiver on the regular axle weights to raise them to a maximum of 95,000 lbs., and we're negotiating with some Police Juries to raise the load limits on some parish roads where extra tonnage on bridges can be tolerated. We are also updating "bingo cards" to allow timber contractors to operate without being concerned about hauling across state lines. Negotiations are ongoing to waive the restrictions on dyed fuels, due to gasoline and diesel shortages, so they can be utilized for on-road as well and normal off-roads hauls." Vandersteen said. Vandersteen also urged landowners to get professional guidance on their timber. He said, "Lists of consultants and loggers are available through the local county agents, although phone service may not be back to normal as yet." County agents in the affected parishes are: Those seeking information may also call the district
office of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and
Forestry: St. Tammany: Troy Turner, 985-893-6212; tturner@ldaf.state.la.us Landowners may also contact the area Forestry Extension Agent Brian Chandler at 225-683-3101. The Louisiana Forest Recovery Committee is working closely with FEMA, arborists and tree trimmer companies. The focus in the initial effort will be directed at salvage of downed forestry timber, blocked thoroughfares and freeing up homes damaged by the downed timber. As a result, several Louisiana Forest Recovery Committees have been formed that are co-chaired by Paul Frey, Louisiana State Forester, 225-925-4500, paulf@ldaf.state.la.us and C.A. "Buck" Vandersteen, Louisiana Forestry Association, 318-443-2558.lfa@laforestry.com The working groups include: Wood Utilization Committee, Carl Wells, chair. carlwells@templeinland.com , 985-732-8810. Goals: Locate markets for salvage materials; Identify and minimize impediments to utilization of salvaged wood; Monitor quality of salvaged wood. Communications Committee, Janet Tompkins, chair. jtompkins@laforestry.com , 318-443-2558. Goals: Report on salvage efforts and provide regular updates; Coordinate contacts with media, Perform outreach and education to address landowner's questions about salvage. Forest Health and Regeneration Committee, Louis Heaton, chair. louish@ldaf.state.la.us 225-925-4500. Goals: Identify needs for site preparation and planting; Assess effectiveness and need for federal and state incentives; Monitor and assess danger for wildfire and insect infestations. Governmental Affairs Committee, George Guidry, chair. ghguidry@gapac.com 225-388-9061. Goals: Coordinate needs with local, state and federal agencies; Coordinate requests for expedited permit variances for air, water and transportation; Liaison with state agencies, governor's office, state and federal elected officials. Data Collection and Reporting Committee, Todd Shupe, Co-chair. tshupe@agcenter.lsu.edu 225-578-6432 and Louis Heaton, co-chair. louis h@ldaf.state.la.us 225-925-4500. Goals: Collect data on the extent of timber damage and the amount salvaged; Collect data on extent of reforestation efforts and areas needing further attention. Louisiana Forest Recovery Task Force Mission: Objectives: Move damaged timber as quickly as possible
to wood utilization and storage area. Remove barriers to
safely, effectively, and economically harvest, process
and transport damaged timber. Effectively communicate the
challenges and success of the timber salvage efforts to
landowners, wood-using facilities, professional loggers,
foresters, and the general public. |