Western woods first-hand

Industry facts fight the enviros

E|OR DECADES, the marketing of l' forest products has included tours of lumber mills and trips to the woods to view logging operations. Both the companies and the tree tourists bnefit from the efforl The understanding and appreciation of the prducts produced and the required techniques of production help both parties.

In today's environmentally conscious world, these tours have taken on added importance as industry strives to tell its story to as many as possible.

A recent tour sponsored by the Western Wood Products Association is a good example. As part of its Western Wood Works environmental program, six editors from across the U.S., representing both trade and consumer magazines, recently received an intensive four-day crash course in forestry and lumber manufacturing.

After converging on Portland, Or., the editors, including one of our staffers, received an overview, the frst of a series of inputs from exp€rts in fields as diverse as forestry, biology and hydrology, plus equipment operators, saw filers, marketers, managers, professors, fre expers and others. All the people behind that miracle known as a 2x4.

By the tour's end, the consensus among the journalists was that the information had been presented in a calm, measured, thoughtful man- ner. The forest poducrs indrsry was indeed a responsible steward of its lands. Unlike the environmentalists with their shrill rhebric and casual disdain for facts, industry had brcked up its assertions with carcful scbne. Indee4 industry had effectirrely -ode its case of the need to manage the forests by science, not politics.

Leaving Portland, the group proceeded north to Shelton, Wa, !o sndy the Simpson Timber Co. lands and mill operations. As was the case throughout the trip, experts ftom govenrment, associations and area ufversities were present o verify industry claims and expand on mill and forestry tryics, adding tbeir considerable expertise.

At tbe end of a long first day in tbe field, the editors heard after-dinner speakers Dr. Jim Agee and Dr. Chad Oliver, both professors, rqlk on the role of fire in forest mnnagement. and various forest management options available !o p(es€rve, extend and utilize fmests.

Tbe following day was spent in tbe Gifford Pinchot National Forest in Randdl, Wa. Named after the first head of the U.S. Forest Service, the lands bave p'roduced hundreds of millions of board feet of lumber over decades. Now, due to political prcssules, the area is slatexl O hmrest less than 10% of the historic allowable cut, testimony !o the effectiverpss of the environmental lobby and Pres. Clinton's fcest manegement plans.

After a flight from the moistureladen woods of Western Washingon to drier Eastern Washington, the group visited Vaagen Brothers Lum(Please tum to pagc 5O)

Story at a Glance

Forestry and mlll operations get scrutinlzed by the press as industry strives harder to tell its story through trade and consumer publications.

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