NWFP Federal Advisory Committee Recommendations – A Change in The Status Quo
In June 2023, the Forest Service convened a Federal Advisory Committee (FAC) made up of 22 private citizens with varying degrees of experience and knowledge of the original Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP)successes and failures. I was honored to be selected to represent FRA members. Also on the Committee was Travis Joseph, President of the American Forest Resource Association, and together, we represented the forest industry. The Committee met several times from September 2023 to April 2024 to develop recommendations to amend the NWFP.
Many topics were discussed, including Tribal Inclusion, Economic Opportunities and Sustainable Communities, Fire Resilience, Climate Impacts, Carbon Sequestration, Community Protection Areas, Adaptive Management, and Forest Stewardship, which will most impact the timber industry within and around the NWFP area.
Forest Stewardship
The Committee parsed out this conversation by coarsely filtering the NWFP forests into dry and moist forests and discussed several scenarios that addressed improving forest health. Through this collaborative process, the Committee developed recommendations to “…provide a predictable supply of timber and non-timber products as well as other economic opportunities to support the long-term sustainability of communities near National Forest System lands and economically connected to forest resources.”
The Committee’s recommendations can be summarized as follows:
- Conserve remaining unprotected old moist forests across Matrix lands and Adaptive Management Areas (AMAs) and modify the management of older mature stands with an origin date of 1905 or before.
- This specific recommendation removes the idea of a “rolling green-out” where stands in the Matrix and AMA age out of management. This recommendation allows management in perpetuity of stands that were established in 1905 or later.
- Retain the passive management paradigm of Late-Successional Reserves (LSRs) intended to conserve and recruit large, contiguous blocks of mature and old-growth forests.
- Raise the age to which younger age classes of moist forests in LSRs can be managed to enhance late successional characteristics to 120 years.
- Emphasize timber production that incorporates ecological forestry principles in plantations and other younger age classes of moist forests across designated Matrix lands and available Adaptive Management Areas.
- Accelerate ecological restoration of dry forests in all land use allocations as necessary to conserve older trees, restore characteristic old forest conditions, conserve wildlife habitat, and promote forest resilience in the face of climate change and fire.
- At the request of Tribes, accommodate and support Tribal cultural uses and co-stewardship across all Land Use Areas (LUAs) and forest types
- Permit salvage logging in Matrix and available AMAs regardless of age class and forest type (moist/dry) that retains important biological legacy features.
- Prohibit salvage logging in Late-Successional Reserves regardless of age class and forest type (moist/dry).
Conclusion and next steps:
On July 12th, the Committee delivered the recommendations to Tom Vilsack, USDA Secretary of Agriculture, and Randy Moore, Chief of the Forest Service. The Forest Service will take these recommendations and consider incorporating them into the Draft NWFP Environmental Impact Statement, with an anticipated publication date in late August.
The Committee is scheduled to meet in September and will work on “leadership commitments” and areas where the Forest Service can change how they conduct work across the NWFP area. An example would be changing the “survey and manage” requirements for management on Matrix lands. The administration hopes to complete the NWFP amendment and sign a decision by the winter of 2024-2025. While this amendment is neither a full revision nor perfect, if the Forest Service analyzes and implements these recommendations as stated, it will positively impact the timber supply chain by increasing management opportunities and timber supply across the Pacific Northwest.
