By JAMES RONALD SKAINS

The 54th annual meeting of the Louisiana Forestry Association has taken the theme "Impact Forestry-Making a Difference," at its meeting in Lafayette, August 28-39.

Highlighting the speakers' agenda and carrying the "Impact" theme forward are two distinguished warriors for the forest industry on the national level, Dr. Patrick Moore and well-known author Ron Arnold.

As a founding member of Greenpeace, Dr. Moore has since criticized the movement and focused his attention on his primary topic, "Trees Are the Answer." His latest book and website, "Pacific Spirit-The Forest Reborn" traces the ecological process of the forest in re-establishing itself on the land against all obstacles.

Dr. Moore, a native of the Vancouver, B.C. area and an environmental forest ecologist by education and training, notes how quickly a forest can re-establish itself with help from modern day Best Management Practices.

Arnold, also a Pacific Northwest resident, is well known for his writing on natural resource and social conflict subjects. His latest book, "Undue Influence," chronicles the role of foundations, grants to environmental groups and even governmental agencies have on our resource issues.

Arnold notes in "Undue Influence," the role that the Joyce Foundation has played in financing the puesdo-environmental movement that has embattled the forest industry on all fronts the last decade. The Joyce Foundation assets are based on monies earned from the growing and harvesting of pine trees in north Louisiana from 1900 through 1974 by Tremont Lumber Company.

Tremont Lumber Company first came to Louisiana and established a sawmill in Lincoln parish at a place named Tremont that is still found today on Louisiana road maps. The Tremont Lumber Company later had sawmills at Eros, Rochelle, and last at Joyce before selling out in 1975 to Crown Zellerbach.

The proceeds of the sale of the Tremont Lumber company funded the coffers of the Joyce Foundation that Arnold notes in his book, "Undue Influence."

Also, on the speakers agenda for the Thursday, August 30 breakfast is Gary Raven of Triangle-Pacific Corporation. Raven will outline the story of how his company fought back against the puesdo-environmental movement in the West Coast timberland country and survived the spotted owl hoax.

The 54th LFA convocation actually kicks off at 10 a.m. on Tuesday morning, August 28 with Shotgun start for a 4-man scramble Golf Tournament at Squirrel Run Country Club near New Iberia off Hwy 182 on Darby Lane. Also scheduled for a 10 a.m. start on Tuesday at the Vermillion River Gun Club.

Official registration for the LFA meet begins on the second floor of the Lafayette Hilton at 3 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. The President's Gala, honoring the First Lady of Louisiana Forestry, Joy Hodges, is scheduled for a 6 p.m. start. Joy Hodges, longtime LFA member and timberland owner became the first female ever elected to the office of LFA President.

Joy Hodges of Alexandria is now serving the first year of a two year term as LFA President. The gala in her honor will include dinner and music by the Steve Wells band. The band's repertoire of music goes from rock and roll to country favorites for dancing, with a few popular ballads for your listening pleasure.

Champagne for the President's Gala is being furnished by the Consulting Foresters firm of Willis and Taylor. The silent auction of Executive Committee gifts wraps up the Tuesday night affair.

Wednesday, August 29 is the big day on the LFA agenda with events starting at 7:30 a.m. and ending with the Jimmy Thibodeaux Cajun Zydeco Band's performance that night. The Louisiana Logging Council breakfast sponsored by the ICT Group and Webco Tire company features the well known Georgia logger, Travis Reed. Reed will address the LLC breakfast meeting about what he knows a lot about first hand, "Logger Activism."

Paralleling the Loggers breakfast is the Louisiana Foundation Board breakfast which is followed by the opening of the General Session at 9:00 a.m. The first speaker on the General Session agenda is John Lovelace, an assistant district chief in charge of the hydrologic investigations section for the U.S. Geological Survey.

Although Lovelace oversees all investigative project work in the Louisiana district, he personally remains active in studies of water quality and water levels in two of the major underground aquifers in Louisiana, the Sparta and the Chicot. Following Lovelace to the speakers podium at the General Session will Bo Bolourchi.

Bolourchi, a Civil Engineer by trade and education is chief of the water resources section for the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. Bolourchi will discuss recent efforts to develop a Water Policy for Louisiana.

Author Ron Arnold will keynote the general session with a discussion of the state of affairs of those groups who are able to exert "undue influence" on both industry and government.

The first of several key awards will be made on Wednesday at 11 a.m. with the presentation of the prestigious "Future Forest Award." followed at the noon general membership luncheon with the Tree Farmer of the Year award; the Lifetime LFA Member Recognitions, and of other Membership awards.

Also, during the luncheon, Jon Caulfield, vice president of the Georgia based timber research and investment firm of TimberVest, LLC will address the LFA meeting. Caulfield, who holds masters and Ph.D degrees in forest economics from North Carolina State University, will discuss the evolving issue of, "Forest Certification and the Future of the Family Forest."

The featured speaker for the 2 p.m. Board of Directors and General Membership Meeting will be Ed McMillan, executive vice president of Willamette Industries Building Materials Group. He will discuss the hot topic of "How Certified Wood Impacts Markets."

The Consulting Foresters will meet at 4 p.m. Wednesday followed by the 6 p.m. kickoff of the Friends of Forestry Social. At 7 p.m., the Amerisafe Fun Night starts in earnest. It is during the Amerisafe Fun Night that the Outstanding Louisiana Logger of the Year will be named and the winners of the Executive Committee Silent Auction will be announced.

The Thursday wrap-up session will be all fun and games and rock and rolling, with internationally known Jimmy Thibodeaux and his Rockin Cajun Zydeco band.