TimberWest - May/June 2022

May/June 2022

www.forestnet.com

THIRDGENERATION LOGGERS

Hiett Logging Burlington, WA

TECH REVIEW DRONES TIGERCAT 180 FIELD TESTING Tioga Logging ALL AROUND LOGGING

NW Oregon Operator of the Year

SIMPLE PLAN, COMPLICATED WORLD Wood River Timber Klamath Falls, OR

ON THE COVER Tioga Logging field testing the Tigercat 180.

May/June 2022 Vol. 47 No. 05-06

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A Simple Plan in a Complicated World

According to Ray Driscoll, owner and operator of Wood River Timber in Klamath Falls, setting out on a logging career path “just happened.”

A Simple Plan in a Complicated World

Tioga Logging – Spearheads Tigercat 180 Field Testing

Extracting timber from steep hillsides has become more challenging and more expensive. To that end, Tigercat Industries developed its first model for cable logging operations: the Tigercat 180 swing yarder.

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Firebreak Column – Putting Infrastructure Cash to Work

The federal government is finally implementing Confronting the Wildfire Crisis: A Strategy for Protecting Communities Resilience in America’s Forests.

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Third-Generation Loggers

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Restoring Forests to a Natural and Healthy State

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Founded in 1953, Hiett Logging is a thirdgeneration logging company that operates out of Skagit County, Washington.

According to Connor Craig, the owner of Wildfire Home Protection and Wildfire Safe, the best wildland firefighting is done before a potentially catastrophic wildfire threatens forests and other wildlands.

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Tioga Logging — Spearheads Tigercat 180 Field Testing

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All Around Logging Mean All Around Customer Service

All Around Logging LLC was selected the 2021 Northwest Oregon Operator of the Year. Principal owner Aaron Silbernagel feels he was simply doing what he is supposed to do.

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Tech Review - Drones

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Guest Column – Why Anti-forestry’s Fight over Old Growth Won’t Work this Time

A look at a variety of drones on the market and services companies provide.

As if the old Timber Wars never ended, antiforestry groups are waging a new well-funded and organized campaign to ban logging of “old-growth” forests.

DEPARTMENTS Page 4.....................................................................In the News Page 19........................................................ Association News Page 35.............................................................Machinery Row Page 36............................................................... New Products Page 37............... Calendar of Events, Subscription/Ad Index

Restoring Forest to a Natural and Healthy State

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

8 Third-Generation Loggers

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IN THE NEWS Managed Forests Contribute to Carbon Mitigation

Washington State’s actively managed forests are critical to mitigating climate change and addressing global carbon emissions. In its Sixth Assessment Report, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) found that the use of wood products contributes to carbon mitigation in two distinctly different ways: carbon storage in wood products and material substitution.

Wood products and the managed working forests that supply the wood are climatefriendly building materials. That’s because when the sustainably harvested wood is used for the manufacture of wood products, the carbon remains stored throughout the wood product’s lifespan. Wood that is substituted for other building materials that are not renewable, or require more energy to produce, helps communities achieve sustainability goals, including climate neutrality by 2050.

“Washington is one of the major timber producing regions in the United States, manufacturing and supplying long-lived wood products from harvested trees. To meet the needs of our growing population, we need to grow and manufacture wood in our region, which has some of the highest level of environmental regulations in the nation,” said Jason Spadaro, Executive Director of the Washington Forest Protection Association.

Elliott State Forest Compromise Finally Codified

It has taken several years and a lot of negotiating, but a deal has been reached to keep Elliott State Forest in public ownership and preserve it for future generations. The 91,000-acre forest is located east of Coos Bay in southwest Oregon.

Editor: Diane Mettler, diane@forestnet.com Managing Editor: Lindsay Mohlere, lmohlere@forestnet.com Copy Editor: Beth Szyperski Contributing Editors: Rachel Ori, Jack Petree, Nick Smith, Rick Stedman ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Send both OLD and NEW Circulation information to: TimberWest Magazine Attn: Subscriptions P.O. Box 610, Edmonds, WA 98020 Fax: (425) 771-3623 • subscribetw@forestnet.com PUBLISHER’S EDITORIAL STATEMENT: TimberWest reports on the logging and lumber segment of the forest industry in the Western United States with emphasis on the states of AK, WA, OR, ID, MT and CA, providing current information on timber harvesting techniques, sawmill operations, news, legislation, events, people and products pertinent to this market.

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A state senate bill signed by Oregon Governor Kate Brown will transition the Elliott into a research forest but will also allow some logging.

The Elliott State Forest is full of oldgrowth trees and is a habitat for several endangered species. Since 1930, timber sales from the forest were part of funding K-12 education in Oregon.

In Senate Bill 1546, the state will pay more than $200 million to the common school fund; in exchange, the forest will no longer be counted on to financially support public schools.

“Some thought the Elliott Forest would not be able to contribute to the future of Oregon’s education system,” Governor Brown said at the ceremonial signing in Salem, “but through this decoupling effort, the full value of the forest will be there for Oregon school children for decades to come.”

It was a heavy lift for a lot of the people who attended the Salem ceremony. A number of competing interests came together over the past three years to create a comprehensive plan for the forest.

“A research forest with the scale and diversity of the Elliott is unique in the United States, and it’s rare in the world,” said Ed Feser, Oregon State University provost and executive vice president.

NASA Releases Breakthrough Forest Biomass-Carbon Product

NASA’s Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) mission has reached a major milestone with the release of its newest data product, which provides the first near-global estimate of aboveground forest biomass and the carbon it stores—filling a key gap in climate research.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

The data enables research into how Earth’s forests are changing, what role they play in mitigating climate change, and the regional and global impacts of planting and cutting down trees.

GEDI is a high-resolution lidar instrument designed specifically to measure vegetation. From its vantage point aboard the International Space Station, GEDI rapidly bounces laser pulses off the trees and shrubs below to create detailed 3D maps of forests and land formations. The resulting data product, processed and gridded at a 1-km (0.39-square mile) resolution, allows researchers to study questions about forest ecosystems, animal habitats, carbon content, and climate change.

In its first three years in orbit, GEDI has captured billions of measurements between 51.6 degrees north and south latitudes (approximately the latitudes of London and the Falkland Islands, respectively).

Private Forest Accord Ends Timber Wars

An historic agreement between the timber industry and environmental advocates that the Oregon state legislature recently passed into law forms a comprehensive set of changes to the Oregon Forest Practices Act and is the result of months of negotiations facilitated by Gov. Kate Brown in which, among others, Roseburg Forest Products directly participated.

Known as the Private Forest Accord (PFA), negotiations started in early 2020 when a delegation of Oregon timberland owners and conservation groups began working together in mediated sessions to (continued on page 6)

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IN THE NEWS industry in Oregon,” Roseburg President and CEO Grady Mulbery says. “Through the Private Forest Accord, we minimize the risk of unscientific ballot measures and never-ending bills before the legislature in favor of long-term certainty that allows us to maintain our commitment to our timberland resources in this state.”

Signatories to the agreement from the timber industry perspective include Campbell Global, Greenwood Resources, Hampton Lumber, Lone Rock Resources, Manulife Timberland & Agriculture

(continued from page 4) update the state’s Forest Practices Act based on best available science. After nearly two years of work, the group reached agreement October 2021 in a move heralded as the end to the Timber Wars waged in the legislature and the ballot box over the past several decades. The legislature passed three bills that emerged from the PFA, codifying the agreement into state law.

“This agreement is an investment in the long-term viability and sustainability of our

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

(formerly Hancock), Oregon Small Woodlands Association, Port Blakely, Rayonier, Roseburg Forest Products, Seneca Sawmill Company, Starker Forests, and Weyerhaeuser.

Microsoft Taps Freres Biochar

ACT’s Freres Biochar CO2 Removal Project was selected by Microsoft for its 2022 Carbon Removal Program. Freres Engineered Wood is certified as a Carbon Removal Supplier through the Puro. earth marketplace for its biochar product, which stores carbon and has a half-life of thousands of years.

ACT helps organizations around the world reduce their carbon footprint by backing high-impact climate projects that generate renewable certificates and carbon credits. As part of the path to its carbon negative goal by 2030, Microsoft will purchase biochar-based carbon removal credits from Freres via ACT. Freres is affirming its leadership role in the wood products industry as a responsible steward of the environment with its biochar program and is committed to investing part of the sales proceeds from this project to the research and development of biochar production, among other sustainability initiatives.

ITD Releases Upgraded 511 Mobile App

Idaho Transportation Department’s (ITD) 511 mobile app for traveler advisories and information has been upgraded!

The new and improved app features roadway events, road conditions, traffic cameras, weight limit restrictions, and much more.

Mirroring the 511 website, users can now create or log in to their already existing personalized accounts, giving people the ability to save cameras or locations and receive text or email alerts on their mobile device.

Truckers who currently use the CARS Hwy app will be notified through a pop-up display directing them to switch to the new app. Existing users of the CARS Hwy app can still use it but are encouraged to make the change.

The free app will be available on iOS and Android devices through the App Store.

Improving the user interface will allow Idahoans to control their trip planning and daily driving habits. It’s the next step in giving people the freedom to make safe decisions when hitting the roads.

Over the summer of 2022, more features are scheduled to be rolled out, including electronic signs, share events and cameras, weather radar overlays, and much more.

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IN THE WOODS

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ContractorProfile Driscoll's John Deere 648L stands ready and waiting to get into the action.

A Simple Plan in a Complicated World Klamath Falls, Oregon

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ccording to Ray Driscoll, owner and operator of Wood River Timber in Klamath Falls, setting out on a logging career path “just happened.”

Starting out at 19 years old with a pickup and a chainsaw, Driscoll began working in the woods as a contract timber faller and set about making a living for himself and his

family. One of his first contracts was with Erickson Air Crane. His days with Erickson were short lived and he came back home and started contract timber falling in the Klamath basin.

“It’s funny,” Driscoll says, “My timber falling was going to the wayside with the mechanical harvesting. That was in 1996, and I decided to buy a Timbco. Going into

the logging business just happened.”

Buying his first tree harvester and putting it to work was anything but a bed of roses. “My payments on the Timbco in 1995 were $12,333 a month. I was so broke, I had to finance my down payment. It was a tough run in the beginning, but we just plowed through.”

At that time, Driscoll had one machine and one employee, and he was still taking hand falling jobs to supplement his income.

“I still do a portion of my own timber falling—unfortunately my body doesn’t like it as well as it used to,” Driscoll said.

Driscoll explained that building his logging company wasn’t the result of a dynamic business plan, but rather rolling with the punches, trying to keep moving forward through the industry changes and challenges, and doing whatever worked best.

“I never wanted to be a logger, I was perfectly content cutting, but there just wasn’t the money in it that there should have been.

I’ve had to change directions several times since I started in the business from hand falling, to mechanical harvesters, to putting together a logging side, but staying ahead of the industry has been probably the biggest challenge we’ve faced,” he said.

Keeping It Small by Design The Wood River Logging crew: Jeramy Mcfarland, Rusty Green, Leevi Lane, Troy Davidson, Jan Driscoll, Ray Driscoll and Muck the dog.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

Wood River Timber works one side at a time, and fields a crew of five, along with Driscoll. According to Driscoll, he has a

ContractorProfile

very good crew and little interest in growing any bigger. “That’s all I want,” he said.

“I watch a lot of these guys get big, and I think it’s a losing proposition for most loggers when you start getting bigger.”

Having a solid equipment philosophy has helped Driscoll keep his operation small but profitable. “We’ve been able to run older equipment for a lot of years because we’ve taken good care of our iron, and we’re real vigilant about maintenance. That’s another huge factor. If you don’t take care of your people and your equipment, you’re going to have problems.”

Currently, Driscoll’s equipment roster is heavy John Deere, featuring a John Deere 859M feller buncher, a John Deere 643L rubber tire feller buncher, and a 648L skidder. In addition, Driscoll has a CAT 324D delimber, John Deere G2 and G3 skidders, and a Hitachi log loader. Two log trucks/low boys, a water truck, and a dump truck round out the stable.

When needed, Driscoll can convert one of his skidders into a skidgen (a cross between an engine and a tracked skidder).

Driscoll’s skidgen is unique in that the tank is a separate unit from the skidder. Driscoll cut down an old 1000-gallon propane tank, inverted it, put a pump engine in it with a door, and covered it back up. The end product is a versatile 500-gallon water tank that is all self-contained with pump and hose.

“We built it for my logging jobs. If you have a fire up on a hill somewhere that you can’t get your fire trailer to, the skidgen is perfect. The skidder runs up, grabs [the tank] just like a log, takes it right to the fire; you start the pump engine, reel out the hose, and put the fire out.”

Skidgen goes to work. segment of his business to alleviate the toll fire has on logging operations. “I’ve been doing it 36 years. I like going on the fires because fire danger is such a pain in the butt.

You’re between fire watch and limited hours.

Your production is so far down. And then

you’ve got the constant worry of starting a fire. So, I’ve been working fires virtually my entire career.”

Driscoll said the 2021 Bootleg Fire near (continued on page 10)

Forged by Fire

When Driscoll first started out in 1984, he was also contracted as a cutter on fires.

Since then, he has continued working fires, not as a supplement to his logging, but as a TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

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ContractorProfile (continued from page 9)

Leevi Lane, operator and driver, poses next to a John Deere 648L Skidder.

Beatty, Oregon, was probably one of the most complex fires he has ever been on. The fire scorched more than 400,000 acres and was the third- largest fire in Oregon since 1900.

“The Bootleg Fire was the most consecutive days of heavy concern that I’ve ever had on fires. Normally, the Forest Service uses our equipment as a contingency tool. You’re cutting line a mile out in front, or they’re going to back burn off your line to box in the fire. The Bootleg, we were right up tight to the fire a lot of times. And the fire was moving at such a rate. It was a bizarre fire for a lot of seasoned firefighters,” Driscoll said.

Saving the Mitchell Monument

In July 2021, Driscoll and crew were on the Bootleg Fire clearing timber from the area surrounding the Mitchell Monument, located in the Fremont-Winema National Forest near the town of Bly, Oregon.

The stone monument commemorates the only Americans killed as the result of enemy action in the continental United States during World War II. The site is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and honors six people who were killed by a Japanese balloon bomb more than 75 years ago.

Melsness Logging had begun prep work on the area but had been pulled by the Forest Service the previous day. When the fire started moving in the direction of the monument, the Forest Service asked Driscoll to move in to help save the monument.

Driscoll studied the fire and determined where he could put his people and equipment.

He brought in the skidder first. Then Driscoll went in with his feller buncher and took out a patch of reprod across the road from the monument as the fire was coming at it.

“We continued to cut and skid out the reprod that was adjacent to the monument.

We didn’t go all the way around it. Hand crews had done some really good work clearing brush and stuff like that.”

With pyrocumulus clouds developing, Driscoll raced to clear the site. “Looking back, when we got on the low boy in the afternoon about 6:30 p.m., we were about five to six miles away when the clouds collapsed,” he said.

When they returned the next morning, Driscoll says, “A bunch of the turns that we couldn’t skid out because we ran out of time were all burned up, everything was gone.”

Driscoll noted that the air support, the work done by Melsness Logging, and the hand crews were a big part in saving the monument. Due to the efforts of everyone involved, the monument remained unscathed.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

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ContractorProfile

Tioga Logging

Spearheads Tigercat 180 Field Testing

By Rick Stedman

F

or the last few decades, the worldwide timber industry has been trying to develop equipment that enables loggers to work smarter, not harder. Extracting timber from steep hillsides has become more challenging and more expensive. To that end, Tigercat Industries developed its first model for cable logging operations: the Tigercat 180 swing yarder.

Longtime Oregon logger Bruce Rider,

owner of Tioga Logging in Myrtle Point, has years of experience using a variety of towers. That background gave him the knowledge he needed to be the first to order a Tigercat 180.

Rider bought the first Tigercat 180 in October 2021 and officially began field testing it in January 2022. None of this would have happened if not for his close ties with Triad Machinery sales manager Terry Haskin.

Bruce Rider and Terry Haskin have worked together for more than a decade.

There is a lot to be said about establishing good customer relations when it comes to your clients. Haskin has perfected that quality by knowing the preferences of his customers. Thus, when he first heard of the Tigercat 180, he immediately thought of Bruce Rider.

Haskin says, “Bruce is a strong believer in the Tigercat product. When he first learned about the Tigercat 180, he bought it right then and there. His decision was based on an engineering concept drawing that he saw oneand-a-half years before it was actually built!”

You could call Bruce Rider a bold businessman, for this is simply blind faith at its best!

Tigercat 180 working steep slope turns on a gray day near the Oregon coast.

The Tigercat 180 is paired with a ACME grapple carriage, with a 360-degree rotation, low-pressure hydraulics, single solenoid valves, and a patented skyline clamp with replaceable aluminum jaws.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

ContractorProfile Tigercat 180's cab is efficient and comfortable.

Haskin shares that since the initial Tigercat 180 sale to Rider, he has had numerous inquiries and visitors interested in the product.

“I recently hosted visitors from Ecuador who are interested in purchasing the newest Tigercat,” he says. “I also have visitors coming from Australia who want to see a first-hand sample of the Tigercat 180.”

In addition, Rider shares that he has had numerous inquiries about his newest acquisition. “I’ve had lots of phone calls, and several interested parties have been out to see the 180 in action.”

Tioga Logging in for the Long Haul

Tioga Logging has operated out of southwest Oregon, specifically the Roseburg area, since opening its doors in 2007. Bruce Rider, however, has worked in the logging industry for 43 years.

“I started right out of high school in 1979,” he says, “and I’m a third-generation Rider to work in the logging business.”

While he has worked in a variety of jobs and for various companies over the years, Rider started his first company in 1995. “At one point, I had about 40 employees working for me,” he says. “But one thing led to another, and I eventually dissolved that business, then formed Tioga Logging in 2007.”

Bruce’s 15 employees have some longevity in the industry. “The average age of my staff is 48,” he says. “That’s the one thing about the logging industry, it’s challenging to get younger people to work in this field.” According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, the median annual wage for logging workers was $46,330 in May 2021.

Even with the possibility of earning good wages, Bruce says, “They [the younger generation] just don’t want to do it.”

Rider’s main equipment lineup includes a host of Tigercat machinery. In addition to the Tigercat 180, his other machinery includes (continued on page 14)

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Bruce Rider, owner of Tioga Logging TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

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ContractorProfile (continued from page 13)

Closed loop hydraulic circuits drive winches with variable speed control.

a Tigercat LX855E grapple, LX855E bar saw, Tigercat LX830D feller buncher, 610E skidder, Tigercat 880D log loader, Link-Belt 4040TL processors, a 623 Waratah, pair of 4040TL log loaders, a Link-Belt 4040 tether machine, and a Link-Belt 370LX Tether.

Many of these sales resulted from the long-standing relationship between Rider and Terry Haskin.

Haskin has been in the logging business for a long stretch as well, though from the sales end of things. In fact, being a sales representative runs in his family. The RiderHaskin relationship actually began long before Bruce and Terry got into business.

Terry Haskin’s father Robert sold

equipment to Bruce Rider’s father, Gene, when the two were actively working in the industry! Robert Haskin was a sales rep and part owner of Interstate Tractor and Equipment, while Gene Rider was employed at International Paper. Today, their sons have continued that collegial relationship.

Bruce Rider is not bashful when it comes to professing his devotion to Tigercat machinery. “I love Tigercat equipment,” he says.

“I’ve had seven of them over the years, but the latest addition, the Tigercat 180, is special. In fact, it’s a game changer!” At press time, Rider indicated that he has already logged more than 700 hours on his Tigercat 180.

The Tigercat 180 Specs

Tigercat Industries shares some of the highlights of the new 180 swing yarder that has caused a lot of stir in the logging industry.

The new Tigercat 180 swing yarder combines the speed and stability of a conventional yarder with the mobility and simpler controls of an excavator-based yarder.

The result: A more powerful and versatile Tigercat yarder designed for extreme terrain logging applications.

The 305 kW (409 hp) carrier was carefully designed with a component layout, hydraulic system, drivetrain, and boom system optimized for yarding. The result is high line pull, excellent stability, and efficient operation.

The 180 is also designed to achieve exceptional stability. In most operating conditions, it can achieve high line pull without the use of guylines. The purpose-built undercarriage has a reinforced pedestal and carbody with an extended blade for added stability. The blade mounts are tied directly into the carbody for added strength.

The machine can be moved quickly to the next set-up by simply lifting the blade. In operating situations where additional stability is required – like extremely long yarding distances or low deflection conditions – a simple static guyline can immediately be set up, and the machine still retains the ability to swing with the guyline attached.

The purpose-built winches are driven with efficient dedicated closed-loop hydraulic circuits for smooth operations and infinitely variable speed control. The closedloop circuits provide energy when lowering the load for increased efficiency. Intuitive joystick controls, along with many programmable features, reduce operator training time and increase production.

As Bruce Rider indicates, the Tigercat 180 is a game changer for the logging industry.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

FireColumn

Putting Infrastructure Cash to Work

By Lindsay R Mohlere

T

he federal government is finally putting its money where its mouth is by the implementation of Confronting the Wildfire Crisis: A Strategy for Protecting Communities and Improving Resilience in America’s Forests.

It’s all part of the huge infrastructure plan the Biden administration inked a few months ago. The work will focus on confronting the wildfire crisis in the Northwest region to reduce wildfire risk to communities and support forest health. The first blush is $131 million, of which $29.1 million in funds will be directed to increasing treatment on two landscapes in the Pacific Northwest Region.

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With this new strategy of protecting communities, comes new vocabulary. Today’s hot word is “Fireshed.” Wildfire moves across the land based on fuels, wind, and terrain and often moves in and out of drainages and watersheds. As defined, a fireshed is an area where social and ecological concerns regarding wildfire overlap and are intertwined, or rather a boundary between places in which a wildfire would move in different directions.

According to the Forest Service, less than ten percent of firesheds are responsible for 80 percent of community exposure to wildfire. In Oregon and Washington, fireshed areas have been identified and fit within the scheme of the landscape-scale approach that is necessary for improving overall forest health and resiliency.

TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

The two landscapes in question span national forest, state, and private lands.

In Washington, the work will focus on five high-risk firesheds across four central Washington counties and on the OkanoganWenatchee National Forest. In Oregon, the selected landscapes include the Deschutes National Forest and Crooked River National Grassland.

These initial landscapes are the first part of a large-scale, science-backed strategy designed to focus additional support to landscapes where treatments will have the most immediate and greatest effect. Restoration work across this landscape capitalizes on strong, existing partnerships to reduce the risk of wildfire through targeted investments over the next 10 years.

FireColumn All this has the blessing of the states, tribes, partners, and communities to conduct fuel reduction treatments, including mechanical thinning and prescribed fire, along with aquatic restoration.

The funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will kick in this year on 24,000 acres in Washington and 5,000 acres in Oregon. Down the road, another 175,000 acres are targeted between 2022 to 2024.

Hopefully, the radical forest litigators will stay out of the way as this strategy unfolds. It’s a long-range plan that has some legs. I say let it run.

Grim Outlook for Firefighter Staffing

Fire season this year has got everyone shaking in their boots, and well they should. New Mexico’s Cerro Pelado and Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak fires that incinerated more than a quarter million acres, and California’s Coastal Fire that devoured millions of dollars of prime real estate in an afternoon, kicked off the game. However, it seems the Forest Service is a few steps behind the front line. Word has it that it’s short thousands of wildland firefighters as fire season 2022 starts.

The U.S. Forest Service was thinking hunky-dory with the new funding brought on by the massive infrastructure infusion.

Unfortunately, that isn’t the case.

Promised a $600 million pay raise approved by Congress, which pencils out to raises of about $20,000 a year, fire crews were expecting a shot at a decent living wage. It was a good carrot, but firefighters have yet to see a cent of it. The funding is stuck in the bureaucratic mud ball as the government figures out how to implement the raises. Yup, here it comes, the firefighters are getting the short end of the stick once again.

Forest Service Chief Randy Moore Announces Pause of Prescribed Fire Operations

B

ecause of the current extreme wildfire risk conditions in the field, I am initiating a pause on prescribed fire operations on National Forest System lands while we conduct a 90-day review of protocols, decision support tools, and practices ahead of planned operations this fall.

Our primary goal in engaging prescribed fires and wildfires is to ensure the safety of the communities involved. The communities we serve and our employees deserve the very best tools and science supporting them as we continue to navigate toward reducing the risk of severe wildfires in the future.

In 99.84 percent of cases, prescribed fires go as planned. In rare circumstances, conditions change, and prescribed burns move outside the planned project area and become wildfires.

The review I am announcing today will task representatives from across the wildland fire and research community with conducting the national review and evaluating the prescribed fire program, from the best available science to on-the-ground implementation. Lessons learned and any resulting program improvements will be in place prior to resuming prescribed burning.

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(continued on page 18)

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FireColumn (continued from page 17) Even the designated mouthpiece, Forest Service Deputy Chief Jaelith Hall-Rivera, got her foot stuck in the mess when she said the agency has 90% of the staff. In fact only 73% of the force is on track to battle this year’s fires.

Meanwhile, federal firefighters, who battle fires in national forests, rangelands, and other federally owned properties, are quitting in large numbers, while a broad, nationwide labor shortage is making it more difficult to recruit replacements. Compounding the wage debacle, firefighters are facing affordable housing shortages—which adds another log to the fire.

The crews sticking around and gearing up for fire season are worried. According to data obtained by BuzzFeed News, without a serious staffing push, engines will sit idle, helicopters will stay on the ground, and crews won’t be able to start the season on time.

With forecasters predicting another savage fire season, you would think the bureaucrats would put in the hurry up. Granted it’s a tight labor market and there’s a lot of competition for firefighter skills, but bringing the new salary guidelines up to parity with private, county, and state crews would

18

certainly open the doors for more recruits.

Firefighters with the Forest Service earn about $38,000 per year, while their counterparts working for private or state firefighting agencies make closer to $70,000 to $80,000, acting Forest Service chief Vicki Christiansen said in a hearing last year.

Entry-level firefighters make as little as $15 per hour, less than a burger flipper at your local drive-in.

Those holding the purse strings need to quit playing acey-duecy with this budget stuff and ante up to keep and attract crews, and then get them trained up and in the field.

It’s ridiculous to think that they’re going to leave $600 million sitting on the table while the house burns around them.

What to Expect from Fire Season 2022

This year could be uglier than most.

Record drought and other elements of climate change have stacked the deck. So far in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, wet and cooler weather patterns have helped stave off early season flare-ups, but you can bet that’s going to change. And that change could happen very quickly.

We might get lucky, but the indicators are stacked against us. So far nearly 400,000

TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

acres have burned in 11 uncontained large fires across several states. More than 4,600 wildland firefighters and support personnel are assigned to incidents. Eight incident management teams (IMT) are assigned to large fires in the Southwest area. One complex IMT is committed to the High Park Fire in Colorado. Evacuation orders are in place for the Hermit’s Peak, Black, and Cerro Pelado fires in New Mexico, the High Park fire in Colorado, and the Blue Lakes fire in Michigan.

To date, 25,637 wildfires have burned 1.3 million acres. This continues to be well above the 10-year average of 18,945 wildfires that have burned 753,855 acres. Long-term forecasts indicate a hot and dry summer across the entire United States — potentially fueling quick-spreading fires in many different parts of the country.

Bottom line. It doesn’t look good. Might be a good idea to keep those COVID masks handy. They might help if you’re outside in the smoke.

That’s a wrap.

Talk back at twfirecolumn @gmail.com.

Stay safe out there.

(Source: USDA, Wildfire Today, OPB, NIFC, Register Guard, USFS)

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ASSOCIATION NEWS Winners Announced for Thru the Trees Second Annual Video Contest

Thru the Trees has announced the winners of its popular video production competition for students ages 14 to 18. The event challenged students from Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington to create a video highlighting the value of careers in the forest products industry.

Participating industry organizations from Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington joined together to develop the contest to promote and encourage students to consider careers in the forest products industry.

First Place - $1100 award – Bugs Eye View – Team of Brecon Bates, Aaron Johnson, Jonah Johnson, Max Johnson, Tess Johnson, Sam Johnson, and Josie Koeplin from Victory Middle School, Meridian, Idaho Second Place - $600 award – Importance of Forestry – Luca McMurrin and Emma Parker from Early College High School, Salem, Oregon Third Place Tie - $350 award Learning About Forestry – Anne Nevis from Banks High School, Banks, Oregon Forestry Jobs – Patrick Wilcox from Sweet Home High School, Sweet Home, Oregon This year, teacher incentives of $500 were awarded to Blake Manley of Sweet Home High School (Oregon) and Angela White of Pleasant Hill High School (Oregon).

For more information and to view the winning videos, visit www.thruthetrees.org.

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Alliance 643 is great with bogie tracks!

NASF 2022 Smokey Bear Awards

The partners behind the wildfire prevention legend Smokey Bear and his public service advertisement campaign—the longest running in United States history—are pleased to announce the 2022 Silver Smokey Bear Award honoree: Mark Wiles, a wildfire mitigation specialist for the Georgia Forestry Commission. “The 2022 Smokey Bear Award winner is being honored for the dedication, innovation, and energy he brings to wildfire prevention,” said USDA Forest Service Chief Randy Moore.

In the world of wildfire prevention, there is no greater honor than to receive a Smokey Bear Award. From the 1950s to today, the Smokey Bear Awards program has been managed by the National Association of State Foresters (NASF), the Ad Council, and the USDA Forest Service.

Smokey Bear Awards are reserved for individuals, teams, and organizations that provide outstanding service with significant and sustained program impact in the wildfire prevention arena.

www.yokohama-oht.com | 800-777-9926 | @yokohamaohta

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

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ContractorProfile

Shane Hiett and father Jeff insist customer service is job one.

Third-Generation Loggers Hiett Logging, Burlington, Washington

By Rachel Ori

T

he lush tracts and tree plantations sandwiched between North Cascades National Park and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest in Washington State have been home ground for Hiett Logging Inc. for nearly 70 years.

Founded in 1953, Hiett Logging is a third-generation logging company that operates out of Skagit County, a little more than 100 miles from Seattle. The growing company specializes in clear-cut logging, road maintenance, removing hazard trees for homeowners, and new home site prep work.

Shane Hiett is the third-generation family member now running the business.

His grandfather, Roy, founded the company, and Shane and his father, Jeff, are still working side by side.

Most days, the small team at Hiett Logging can be found harvesting trees at a designated tract or clear-cut area. The company produces sawlogs, which are transported

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

ContractorProfile by truck to a pulp mill for processing, and logs that are made into telephone poles.

Logging Challenges

As a smaller company, Hiett Logging prioritizes customer satisfaction. Often, when picking up jobs, the team is dealing directly with the landowners they are doing the job for.

“We want to make sure that the people we work for are happy with the quality of work we do,” Shane Hiett says. “We do what we can within our limits to make that happen.”

Hiett explains that the timber market in the Northwest has varied during the last couple of years. With only two major sawmills in his area, it can be difficult for the company to find enough work. Going into the winter months, many landowners don’t hire work for erosion or road control.

“Currently, the job we’ve started is something that is a little farther away than our usual area, but we didn’t have much else to go to,” he says.

The job is located at Stossel Creek in Duvall, Washington, about 30 miles northeast of Seattle. Used for recreation as well as logging, the 154-acre Stossel Creek forest features walking and biking trails. The specific site is owned by the government and billed as a “forest for the future.” The patch of land that Hiett Logging employees are working is roughly 10 acres.

For this project, the typical workday for Hiett Logging employees begins early in the morning, with the Doosan log loaders processing and stacking logs well before 8:00 a.m. The machines work on an incline, with harvested logs left near the bottom of the site to be collected. Throughout the day, as trucks roll in to haul away the finished logs, you can find Shane Hiett assisting wherever he is needed, whether that’s helping secure the harvested logs on the trucks or showing a new hire around the site.

Hiett acknowledges that he and his team will not be the last people working in this field once they finish the project later this year. Washington State has some of the most strict forestry laws in the country, and the harvested area of the forest must be replanted within three years.

“Eventually, someone will come by and replant, allowing for the growth to continue,” he says.

A strong and dependable machine, the DX300LL log loader is well suited for allday forestry work. It features a fully guarded, heavy-duty undercarriage and upper structure designed specifically for forestry applications.

“We were in the market for something new, and we wanted something that was capable of doing the job,” Hiett says. “We figured it was the most bang for our buck.”

Extended maintenance intervals and easy access to service points increase machine uptime and productivity of the Doosan DX300LL-5. Examples include centralized grease points, wide side access doors for cleaning the cooling system, boom pivot bushings with greasing intervals, and a largecapacity engine air precleaner that removes more than 99% of airborne particles and extends filter cartridge service life.

The company also owns a DX225LL log loader, which is used to move and stack the finished logs. It features a fully guarded, high-walker undercarriage and upper structure that are designed to hold up to all-day forestry jobs. The operators at Hiett Logging enjoy the comfortable cab with ample foot space and better visibility. (continued on page 22)

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Doosan Enters the Picture

Hiett Logging has been operating Doosan equipment since 2013 with the purchase of their DX300LL log loader. Hiett says they mounted a processing head to the log loader, which became their “Number one processor.”

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

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ContractorProfile

The Doosan 225LL moves and stacks logs at one of the landings.

(continued from page 21) Hiett estimates that both of their Doosan log loaders have more than 12,000 hours on them, adding, “We have a few issues here and there, but compared to some of the other brands of equipment we’ve had and used, we’ve had really good luck with these.”

When the occasional issue does arise, Hiett Logging’s dealer, Cascade Trader of Chehalis, Washington, is always there to support them. Hiett’s main contact at the dealership is Shannon Pesicka, who according to Hiett would “come at the drop of a hat

“I officially started when I was 18,” Hiett says. “Sometimes I’m running one crew while my dad runs the other. Sometimes I turn wrenches—whatever needs to be done to keep things flowing in the right direction.”

Hiett and his wife welcomed a baby boy earlier this year, and while he says that he won’t push his son into the family business, his son is sure to grow up around logs. With a strong crew and dependable machines, Hiett is confident that the family business will continue to grow for years to come.

“The team wants to do a good quality job.

We enjoy what we do,” he says.

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if we needed something. And we’re a threehour drive from the dealership.”

Hiett Logging fields a crew of 12, including Shane and his father. In addition to the Doosan machines, they also use a Tigercat 855 feller buncher, a Madill swing yarder, and a Kenworth logging truck.

A Family Affair

Despite the challenges, Hiett knew from a young age that he wanted to one day take over the family business. Growing up, he assisted on projects after school and on weekends.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

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ContractorProfile

Restoring Forests to a Natural and Healthy State

By Jack Petree

A

ccording to Connor Craig, the

owner of Wildfire Home Protection and Wildfire Safe, the best wildland firefighting is done before a potentially catastrophic wildfire threatens forests and other wildlands. “We need to set ourselves and wildfire up for success, not catastrophic failures like we’ve witnessed over the last few decades,” Connor contends. Further, “We need to give firefighters a fighting chance when the time comes.

The only way to do this is to take an aggressive stance on forest restoration including thinning and prescribed burning. My mission, from my first day in business, is wildfire prevention through restoring our forests to a natural and healthy state.”

Prior to leaving the U.S. Forest Service to go into business on his own, Connor was a six-year veteran firefighter on the Entiat Hotshot Crew, fighting large fires across the United States, including Alaska. Connor explains, “It seemed like we were either doing large burnouts [backfires] because the fire behavior was too extreme to go direct—due to our forests being extremely overstocked and unhealthy—or we were reducing fuels around homes and neighborhoods to protect them from the oncoming fire. I thought, every year we are losing thousands upon thousands of acres of precious forestlands,

The Fecon 150 FTX and two ASV RT120's along with a Bandit 15 XPC are ready to roll.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

ContractorProfile gone for centuries because we haven’t prepared the forests for fire beforehand. That’s not acceptable!”

Connor’s formal education in natural resource management at Central Washington University and his years of experience firefighting and managing crews finally led him to go into business himself—something he had always thought about doing. “I had the knowledge, and I saw the need for the service. I wanted to see if I could achieve the American Dream, work for myself, and build something I could be proud of.”

Connor’s company specializes in noncommercial thinning forest restoration projects. Connor says, “We do everything from smaller fire-wise projects within the wildland urban interface (WUI) to large-scale restoration projects in the front country.”

From the beginning, Connor has shaped his company to specialize in preparing forests in advance for health and resilience after those forests have either experienced controlled fire or uncontrolled wildfire; he leaves the harvest end of the equation to others.

“We mainly stick to non-commercial thinning, but we do work with a few different loggers and foresters cleaning up slash postharvest,” he comments.

Connor says he generally runs a crew of four or five people. “We do a variety of both large and small jobs, but I like the larger projects because our goal is to restore the forest on a landscape level.”

Fecon's got the teeth for the job. to control. By restoring our forest to a more historical state, we will also restore a more historical fire regime. A regime closer to what Mother Nature intended for our beautiful neck of the woods. We need to remember that wildfire is Mother Nature’s forester, limiting disease and promoting healthy forests by governing itself through a healthy fire regime

and a mosaic landscape. Wildfire should not be viewed as the Wicked Witch of the West.”

To tackle the range of jobs Connor’s team handles, the company’s equipment roster includes a 150 FTX forestry mulcher that is especially utilized on steep slopes and (continued on page 26)

Striving for What Mother Nature Intended

Connor’s business efforts are more than just a job for him, they represent a way to realize his passion for forest restoration, bringing the forest to a place where the forest is healthy, resilient, and resistant to catastrophic fire. “This is a HUGE job, and our team is more than qualified, willing, and able to tackle this one acre at a time,” he said.

“Our team implements restoration techniques that dramatically reduce the forest’s hazardous fuel load. This greatly reduces the risks associated with living in the wildland urban interface. We also strive to make our forests more heterogenous, thus increasing the forest’s resistance to fire and enhancing resilience (the ability of a forest to bounce back to its original condition) after fire.”

Specialized Equipment for a Variety of Jobs

According to Connor, homogenous and overgrown forests are much more susceptible to bug infestation and disease, which coupled with other factors can increase a fire’s intensity and the speed the fire will spread. “This type of fire will quickly spread through the crowns of trees and become extremely hard TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

25

ContractorProfile

The Fecon FTX 150 is built rough and ready to easily tackle steep slope terrain. (continued from page 25) in snowy conditions. Two ASV RT120 forestry mulchers are mostly put to work doing forest thinning on flat terrain. A Takeuchi TB290 excavator mulcher handles roadside clearing, and a Bandit 15XPC wood chipper is utilized for reducing fiber to chips when needed and is also an important resource made available to the Forest Service during firefighting season.

“There is only so much forestland on the eastern slopes of the Cascades,” Connor continues. “We need to act. We need to preserve and conserve this resource for future

26

generations. We need to protect our homes and communities in the wildland urban interface. We need to give firefighters a fighting chance when the time comes to actually fight an active fire.”

Cooperation Is the Start

An important part of Connor’s work on behalf of clients is helping them interact with Washington’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR). “Ninety-five percent of what we do is on private land,” he says.

Connor points out that successfully treating forests for health and resilience in the face of fire requires considerable cross-jurisdictional

TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

cooperation. “Wildfire doesn’t care about lines on a map or about who owns the land, so we work closely with the DNR.” Connor says he advises landowners to contact DNR about cost-sharing programs for home and property owners, some of which will cover up to 75% of fuels reduction and restoration costs.

Connor emphasizes, “The only way to do all of this is to take an aggressive stance on forest restoration, i.e. thinning and prescribed burning. We need to start at the local level treating our residential properties and then work our way out to larger private and public sectors of land.”

Connor’s education in natural resource management and his experience as a wildfire fighter informs his approach to every job. “I usually look at the property as if I was rolling in there with my fire crew back in the day with a wildfire burning nearby on a windy late July afternoon. That’s where I start. I look at it through the eyes of a firefighter and work backwards from there,” Connor says about his planning strategy.

Connor is passionate about developing healthier forests. “We take great pride in our work and treat each project as if we were working on our own property.

Understanding we need fewer, healthier trees per acre on this side of the mountains, we work to restore forests to approximate their original condition as forests capable of withstanding the kinds of traditional fire events some forests need to be fully healthy.

Our goal is to restore forests on a landscape level, protecting homes and communities, and making fires burn with less intensity in order to both improve the forests and to make fire suppression, when needed, safer and more manageable.”

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ContractorProfile

All Around Logging Means All Around Customer Service

By Rick Stedman

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Aaron Silbernagel, Owner/Operator of All Around Logging.

28

he Oregon Board of Forestry selected All Around Logging LLC as the 2021 Northwest Oregon Operator of the Year. Though humbled by the award, principal owner Aaron Silbernagel feels he was simply doing what he is supposed to do—providing people with the best service he knows.

The award specifically recognized Silbernagel’s efforts assisting landowners who were devastated by the September 2020 Beachie Creek Fire, which burned 193,000 acres in eastern Marion and Linn counties.

The humble Silbernagel initially balked at being singled out by the Oregon Board of Forestry for his detailed work on Taylor Park just after the fire. “This is what we’re supposed to do, and to me, it’s simply another job that needed attention,” he says. “I treat all property that I work on as if it were my own, and the standards I have for myself are exactly what people expect from me.”

One of Silbernagel’s longtime customers is Randall Tinney; they’ve worked together for nearly two decades. Tinney is manager of Taylor Park, a private 230-acre campground that has been in the Tinney family since 1867.

“Aaron Silbernagel was the first person who called me after the fires ceased, and he was simply trying to help,” says Tinney.

TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

“Before the fire, every couple of years, I would go through and salvage trees around all the campsites,” says Silbernagel. “But immediately after the fire, Randall needed me to assess the marketability of the logs, determine how we were going to access it, and deal with it. Fortunately, there was a lot of salvageable lumber.”

According to Tinney, “Aaron removed more than two million board feet of timber from Taylor Park, while leaving everything that was viable.” Prior to the Beachie Creek Fire, Taylor Park offered 623 campsites, but only 550 have been rebuilt.

Tinney notes, “Not only did Aaron determine the damage of the various trees throughout the property, he also marketed the logs to ensure I received a fair price. He never sent me a bill for his efforts, but he clearly had my interests in mind. You simply can’t find anyone more honest and caring when it comes to looking out for customers, and you can’t put a price tag on that kind of customer service.”

Immediately after the fire, Tinney noticed a lot of unethical behavior. “Many loggers were simply trying to make a quick buck, and the quotes for clearing damaged timber were unrealistic and overpriced.”

Tinney also shares that Silbernagel hired a few loggers to assist him with clearing the Taylor Park property shortly after the fire.

ContractorProfile Again, there were no extra fees charged to Tinney, but those loggers were paid, obviously by Silbernagel. “On his own volition and own dime, Aaron hired crews to conduct the reforestation after clearcutting portions of the damaged property,” says Tinney.

Silbernagel also extended his heartfelt thanks to all the mills and others who assisted in the clean-up and timber removal efforts after the Beachie Creek Fire.

All in the Family

Another Silbernagel client is Mason, Bruce & Girard (MB&G), which was established in 1921 and is one of the nation’s premier natural resource consulting firms. For the last five years, Silbernagel has worked with MB&G senior forester Edie Dooley, who oversees a large track of land dubbed the Family Farm.

Dooley describes Aaron’s work ethic: “Aaron loves his work and takes immense pride in it. This shows in the condition he leaves the ground after harvest. His units are always immaculately piled, while protecting the old duffy logs and important large leave material. Only having worked with Aaron on ground-based clearcuts, his clean-up efforts have given me a skewed impression of what is normal. He takes the time to get the job done right, so there aren’t issues to try to fix which aren’t fixable—like cutting the wrong trees.”

Dooley adds that when the 2020 Labor Day fires threatened their property, Aaron “was completely devoted to protecting the Family Farm and helping out in any way that he could.”

The Silbernagel family logging business was built on providing outstanding customer service, so you could say that those customer service skills are part of Aaron’s DNA. The Silbernagel name has been linked to Oregon forestry for a number of years.

Aaron’s father Cliff and older brother Jeff taught him most everything he knows today about the timber industry. Aaron recalls, “They taught me how to be a conscientious logger, and how to treat people the way you want to be treated.”

Aaron began working in the early 1990s as a heavy equipment mechanic. He then worked with his dad and older brothers. “I moved on to work as a timber faller, and that was my passion,” he says. Aaron worked as a timber faller by day, came home, showered, and then continued with equipment repair.

“I didn’t need much sleep back then, and I was always ready to take on more.”

Aaron’s dad also paired him with older brother Jeff in a large stand of timber, which gave Jeff an opportunity to share his knowledge and skills. “For that, I am forever grateful. We were always looking out for one

another, which is how it should be with coworkers working in the field,” Aaron said.

“We routinely focused on how to do the best job we could.”

Starting All Around Logging

When Silbernagel ventured out on his own in 2003 forming All Around Logging, he already possessed the necessary skills for success, and his background in equipment repair came in handy given the variety of machines he ended up owning and operating on a regular basis.

He also became quite fond of Cat products and the Cat dealer, Peterson Cat. “I’ve dealt with the people in parts when I was in equipment repair, when I did equipment mechanics in the early 90’s. I’ve dealt with them for my own business, well, nearly 20 years,” he said, adding that they had helped “out on a couple of used machines, and then went out of their way to assist on some stuff that wasn’t exactly right with it. Peterson Cat. Yeah, they go the extra mile.” (continued on page 30)

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

29

ContractorProfile (continued from page 29) Currently, Silbernagel’s equipment roster includes a Cat 568 equipped with a QS600 Southstar processor, Cat 322 log loader, Cat 517 tracked skidder and a Cat 325 excavator.

In addition, Silbernagel fields a Cat 320C equipped with a Waratah processor, a Cat 229 log loader and a Cat 518 rubber tire grapple skidder.

Currently, Silbernagel’s equipment roster includes a Cat 568 equipped with a QS600 Southstar processor, a Cat 322 log loader, a Cat 517 tracked skidder, and a Cat 325 excavator. In addition, Silbernagel fields a Cat 320C equipped with a Waratah processor, a Cat 229 log loader, and a Cat 518 rubber tire grapple skidder. “I learned a lot about Caterpillar products during equipment repair,” he says. “I also learned about their dependability.”

Today, Silbernagel’s All Around Logging is still a small business, though he occasionally takes on assistants if a job requires it.

Given his success as a sole proprietor for the last few decades, Silbernagel has a simple philosophy when it comes to customers.

“Give them the best you can by providing the service they want and expect. If you have done your best to accomplish their goals, you generally have a successful finish.”

Clean up and salvage starts on the private Taylor Park shortly after the Beachie Creek Fire.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

Drones

By Diane Mettler

Using drones allows DroneSeed’s team to achieve reforestation in terrain that is inaccessible or potentially too dangerous for handplanting. The aerial seeding enables deployment in the same season as the fire, rather than waiting years for the seedlings to be grown.

DroneSeed later follows up with hand-planting additional seedlings to achieve the best results. www.droneseed.com

Flash Forest

Candrone

Candrone is a robotics consulting firm that specializes in aerial and ground-based solutions. Candrone offers a full spectrum of services, including consumer drones, enterprise drones, custom engineering, and training to make the introduction and integration of robotic technology into your company as easy as possible.

With more than a decade of building drones and robotics, Candrone can handle almost any request. It can equip your drone with different payloads and industry-specific sensors to expand your toolset, collect more data, and give your business the competitive advantage. www.candrone.com

Flash Forest, Canada’s first-to-market and largest drone reforestation company, uses UAV hardware, aerial mapping software, automation, and biological seed-pod technology to reforest.

The team behind the Flash Forest reforestation company says they have developed drone technology that maps out the best areas for planting trees to absorb the most carbon dioxide, with an average density of 2,000 trees per nearly 5,000 acres.

DroneSeed

DroneSeed is a vertically integrated reforestation company that utilizes both rapid response and interplanting of seedlings to regrow healthy forests lost to wildfires. The company offers seeds, seedlings, planting, and aerial seeding services to landowners and land managers, as well as CO2 removal-based offsets to companies seeking carbon-neutral or carbon-negative status.

Flash Forest claims that one drone operator has the potential to plant 100,000 seed pods per day, with hopes to offset carbon emissions “enough to have a significant and measurable impact on climate change within the next decade.” www.flashforest.ca

Green Valley International

Green Valley International (GVI) currently offers a wide array of advanced, but easy-to-use, aerial, terrestrial, and mobile laser scanning technologies. The firm’s extensive product line features multiple high-precision 3D mapping hardware solutions including LiAir (unmanned aerial vehicle LiDAR), LiBackpack (handheld/mobile LiDar), LiEagle (fixed-wing/helicopter LiDAR), and LiMobile (vehicle-mounted LiDAR).

DroneSeed’s FAA-approved drone swarms use LiDAR technology to build a three-dimensional terrain map of the burned area. After processing the information, DroneSeed selects specific spots that are most promising for planting and sends in the preprogrammed drones (three to five per pilot) to seed the area with specially designed, proprietary ecosystem-correct seed vessels that contain nutrients and other material to support a higher yield of new trees. Each 8-foot diameter aircraft has six rotors and carries 57 pounds of seed vessels.

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

TechReview Along with the cutting-edge hardware, GVI provides versatile software solutions from mission plan (LiPlan) to data acquisition (LiAquire, LiBackpack Desktop), and from GNSS/IMU data processing (LiNav) to georeferencing (LiGeoreference). Additionally, LiDAR360 is a comprehensive point cloud post-processing software suite developed for terrain mapping, forestry applications, powerline survey, etc. GVI also provides customers with cloud-based services (LiCloud) to more easily process 3D data and manage their hardware systems. www.greenvalleyintl.com

Hilltop Aerial

Hilltop Aerial is a heavy-lifting drone manufacturing company that provides products and services to a variety of industries. The company’s focus is on providing solutions for logging and creating faster and more efficient road layouts. With Hilltop Aerial technology, operators are able to fly a specialized rope across the draw, eliminating the need to hand-pull heavy haywire. Jobs such as an entire road change that usually take hours to days can be done within minutes by flying the rope.

• Spotlight – The camera locks onto a subject while the aircraft moves freely.

• Point Of Interest – The aircraft circles around an object in a smooth, continuous orbit.

• Tripod – Safely navigates confined environments with precise UAV and gimbal control.

• ActiveTrack – The aircraft follows an object while keeping it in frame. indrorobotics.ca

Strategic UAV

Strategic UAV is a combination of foresters, biologists, GIS analysts, and incident management professionals, using drones to benefit clients. Everyone is capturing data with drones these days, but few are automating and extracting the best value from the data. That’s (continued on page 34)

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InDro Robotics is a leading Canadian UAV, ground, and sea robotics research and development company that is proud to hold a number of industry firsts. One of only four companies in Canada with Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) certification, InDro Robotics has accumulated thousands of safe and compliant flight hours.

Collaborating with leading bodies such as Transport Canada and NASA, InDro is constantly developing new equipment and technologies to expand use-case scenarios. The first Canadian UAV company to obtain Cargo certification, it is proud to work with First Responders, First Nations, and others putting this incredible technology to positive use.

InDro Robotics drones feature some of the following intelligent flight modes to assist with data collection:

The waterproof AGRI-COVER™ Switch Control comes fully assembled and epoxy potted with built-in overload protection.

LL

InDro Robotics

Repair tears in minutes with AGRI-COVER™ Emergency Repair Kit. Simply apply adhesive tape.

UT

Hilltop Aerial constructs two different models; the Hexacopter features 6 motors, and the Quadcopter features 4 motors, providing versatility to various operations. The company creates its drones to be versatile tools custom-fit to any operation. Custom additions include a variety of cameras such as thermal imaging or high-quality realtime video, loud speakers, and transport boxes. Spray tanks can be added for agricultural purposes.

For firefighting applications, Hilltop Aerial provides quick safety procedures to deliver rescue equipment to people in need on the ground or in the water. The company prides itself on service and will help in every way possible to successfully integrate its technology into all operations. www.hilltop-aerial.com

Rotating and telescoping motor mount reduces stress, no mid joint to fail.

Rear options available to accommodate doors, auger and more.

800-233-4655

TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

AGRICOVER.COM

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TechReview (continued from page 33)

TimberDrone

where Strategic UAV’s team is focusing its drone efforts, concentrating on three main sectors for adding value with Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS): forestry, mapping and surveying, and incident management.

The company operates seven main drones, and the number is expanding. Some of the drones can operate in inclement weather, which is important when traveling to project sites.

Strategic UAV has learned that the professional experience of the drone operator is a crucial component of getting the best value from drone use. Interpreting what the drone sees, having a vision for the data, and capturing the right scenes and metrics are best accomplished with seasoned field staff. www.strategicuav.ca

The TimberKraken, designed by TimberDrone’s lead engineer, is a heavy-lift drone capable of hauling a 50-pound payload. Potential uses include herbicide spraying, tree bag shuttling, hose and fire equipment delivery, and tower rigging layout for cable logging jobs. The Mavic Pro 2 has an upgraded high-performance 1-inch CMOS and an active sensing area four times more effective than Mavic Pro, which means higher image quality with superior light and color performance. www.timberdrone.com TW

TimberDrone offers a variety of services to the forest industry, with a diverse fleet of equipment. The Mavic 2 Enterprise Edition, which carries an FLIR Lepton micro thermal imaging camera, is ideal for capturing hot spots. The Phantom 4 Pro’s uprated camera is equipped with a 1-inch 20-megapixel sensor capable of shooting 4K/60fps video and burst mode stills at 14 fps. The Inspire 1 is a powerful drone that carries the high-end Zenmuse X5 16-megapixel camera. The Inspire 2, with exceptionally long battery life, is great for carrying a load or flying in high winds and carries the Zenmuse X4S 20-megapixel camera for top-notch imagery.

is now a member of BIG NEWS!

Wallingford's and pewag have joined together to bring North America a global powerhouse of forestry and traction supplies!

Wallingford's is committed to the forestry industry and will continue to offer the same excellent service and quality products as we have done since 1975. Joining pewag group allows us the opportunity to widen our portfolio with high-quality European products and integrate their hundreds of years experience in to our future.

800.323.3708

info@wallingfords.com | www.wallingfords.com Proud sponsor of the American Loggers Council

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TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

MACHINERY ROW Joe Tyler Appointed Director of CAL FIRE

Governor Gavin Newsom announced the appointment of Joseph ( Joe) Tyler of Rancho Cordova as the new Director (Chief ) of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE).

Tyler has been the CAL FIRE Deputy Director of Fire Protection Programs since 2017 and has served in several positions since 1991, including Assistant Deputy Director of Fire Protection Programs, Staff Chief, Assistant Chief, Battalion Chief, Fire Captain, Paramedic, Fire Apparatus Engineer, Fire Fighter II and Fire Fighter I. He was a paramedic at North Valley Ambulance/ American Medical Response from 1994 to 1997.

Chief Tyler is replacing former CAL FIRE Chief Thom Porter, who retired in December 2021.

Werk-Brau Celebrates 75 Years

Werk-Brau Co. Inc., an industry-leading manufacturer of buckets and attachments for excavators and loaders, will celebrate its 75th anniversary with activities and events throughout the year for customers, dealers, and employees.

Respected for innovative specialty products designed and produced for the heavy equipment industry, the company has been family-owned and operated since its inception. Since 1947, the company grew from a single blacksmith shop to numerous North American locations with 500,000 square feet of manufacturing space and more than 500 employees, maintaining dealer direct partnerships with over 1000 North American heavy equipment dealers from the company headquarters in Findlay, Ohio.

Werk-Brau manufactures a complete line of OEM and replacement attachments for excavators, mini-excavators, backhoes, mini- and fullsize loaders, and crawler loaders. Made in the USA, Werk-Brau products are sold through equipment dealers and distributors worldwide. www.Werk-Brau.com

Pewag Completes Acquisition of Wallingford’s, BABAC

Pewag group, a leading global company in traction chain devices and industrial chain solutions (founded in 1479), has acquired Wallingford’s Inc. and BABAC Inc., a leading U.S.-based provider of forestry traction devices, forestry supplies, and snow chains.

The acquisition of Wallingford’s and BABAC is a strong fit with pewag’s North American forestry business and in particular its forestry traction devices business. It is part of pewag’s strategy to be a global leader in this segment. Moreover, the high-quality forestry traction devices developed and manufactured by pewag in Austria and Czech Republic will be integrated with the portfolio of Wallingford’s.

Based on well-engineered state-of-the-art quality products, pewag’s business areas are mainly snow chains, forestry traction, hoist, and conveyor chains, do-it-yourself products, engineering, lifting and lashing chains and accessories, and tire protection chains.

Modern chain production facilities in Europe and Pueblo, Colorado, allow for this variety of high-quality products.

MSU Accepting Applications for Hybrid Master’s Degree in Forestry

Michigan State University (MSU) is now taking applications for a new hybrid online master’s degree program in Forestry. The program is uniquely tailored to learners who need flexibility, with the majority of the courses delivered in an online format coupled with field-based learning in students’ local forests.

Available starting late summer 2022, the degree is intended for individuals with baccalaureate degrees in other fields who are interested in making a career change to forestry.

The program is also appropriate for students who just completed a BS in another discipline. The hybrid structure is designed to be

flexible, keeping in mind the students’ existing personal and professional commitments.

MSU is the first forestry program to offer a master’s degree in forestry using this uniquely blended online and in-the-field approach; online instruction will guide learning in forests close to the learners’ homes, wherever they reside. The hybrid online degree was designed with a view toward accreditation by the Society of American Foresters (SAF).

Weiler Forestry Names Senior Management

Weiler Forestry has appointed three key employees to senior management. Bill Radeline, Ian Enger, and Noah Zehr are team members who have been integral to Weiler Forestry’s success.

Bill Radeline has been with the Weiler Forestry team since September 2019 when Caterpillar Forest Products transitioned to Weiler Forestry. As the Director of Engineering, Bill will direct the company’s product engineering activities through new product de-

Bill Radeline

Ian Enger

Noah Zehr

velopment and improvement of existing product lines.

Also in September 2019, Ian Enger joined the Weiler Forestry Team as Manufacturing Engineering Manager. In his new position as Director of Manufacturing, he will lead the Manufacturing Engineering, Facilities, Maintenance, Indirect Material, Production Control, Information Technology, and Purchasing functional areas.

Noah Zehr has been appointed Director of Operations and will lead the Operations, Quality, and Warehousing functional areas.

Weiler Forestry, based in LaGrange, Georgia, designs and manufacturers purpose-built forestry products including wheel skidders, wheel feller bunchers, track feller bunchers, track harvesters, knuckleboom loaders, and a mulcher.

Lucidyne Completes Brand Integration with MiCROTEC

Lucidyne Technologies Inc., a North American leader in automated lumber scanning and optimization, announced the completion of its brand integration with MiCROTEC, a global technology partner in the sawmilling and wood processing industry. Lucidyne will work under the common corporate brand of MiCROTEC to build world-leading wood scanning solutions for customers in North America, Australia, and New Zealand.

Since 1985, Lucidyne has been known for industry innovation, customer relationships, and unparalleled support. Lucidyne’s patented software platform, which uses deep learning artificial intelligence techniques to grade lumber, will be merged into MiCROTEC’s family of scanning solutions. The integration brings the best of the companies’ technologies together to create new, co-developed products, strengthening MiCROTEC’s offerings as well as its focus on delivering exceptional service.

The new MiCROTEC Corvallis office (the former Lucidyne location) will join forces with the existing MiCROTEC Vancouver office to become one team serving the entire North American market, as well as Australia and New Zealand.

TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

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NEW PRODUCTS intermittent ground contact; and Twin Maul Carbide Teeth for heavy ground contact and use on rocky terrain. diamondmowers.com/products/skid-steerattachments/skid-steer-drum-mulcher

John Deere Unveils Intelligent Boom Control for the 900 MHSeries Tracked Harvester.

Diamond Mowers SK Drum Mulcher DC Pro X

The SK Drum Mulcher DC Pro X by Diamond Mowers is ideal for large-scale brush clearing, undergrowth removal, and vegetation management. Compatible with standard-flow and high-flow hydraulic machines, this powerful attachment is offered in 60” and 72” cutting widths and can shred trees and brush up to 9” in diameter, producing a fine mulch.

The proprietary helical tooth pattern is modeled after a vacuum brush to feed material efficiently toward the center of the drum, while the patented depth control rings control bite size for optimal infeed and material processing. Anti-wrap plates prevent material from wrapping around the drum cylinder.

For maximum versatility, this attachment can utilize three different mulching teeth options based on environment and operator preference: Four-Point Hardened Steel Teeth for applications with limited ground contact; Twin Chisel Planer Teeth for

John Deere announced its latest operator assistance control feature, Intelligent Boom Control (IBC), for the 900 MH-Series Tracked Harvester. The development of this model is a result of global collaboration between the John Deere Wheeled Cut-to-

Length and Full-Tree Forestry teams, aiming to implement IBC’s field-proven technology into the MH-Series tracked harvesters.

With IBC, operators no longer need to control each independent boom function separately. One joystick moves the boom tip horizontally, while a second guides it vertically, for faster cycle times and more precise control. IBC’s smooth and fluid motion actively dampens functional change of directions, protecting boom structures and increasing wear life. IBC also automatically controls swing speed based on the overall position of the attachment.

IBC is now available on the 953MH and 959MH. www.deere.com/en/tracked-harvesters

New DENIOS Lithium-Ion Battery Stations Provide Safe Storage and Transport

Correction

Please note that in the New Products section of the March/April issue, there was an error in the model number of the new Tigercat 180 Swing Yarder. We apologize for any confusion.

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Lithium-ion batteries are becoming increasingly popular for their ability to deliver power from a compact size. Although they are used in a vast range of equipment, from handheld devices to cars, they are not as harmless as they appear, requiring special handling and care.

DENIOS, a worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of storage containers for hazardous materials, introduces Lithium-Ion Stations. Designed specifically for storing lithium-ion batteries, they are ideal for storing new, questionable, damaged, defective, or End-of-life lithium-ion batteries typically found in small handheld TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

devices. Available in two standard sizes, the containers allow the storage and transportation of batteries from 1 KG to 10KG up to 100W, which are typically used in power tools, e-bikes, medical devices, laptops, tablets, mobile devices, forklifts, cars, and more.

Every DENIOS Lithium-Ion Battery Station features solidly welded construction for a long service life, with integrated vents for passive ventilation. Lockable, hinged lid and doors keep the contents safe from unauthorized personnel. Shelving and fire extinguishers are optional. www.denios-us.com

Komatsu 845-1 12 Ton Forwarder

The Komatsu 845 12-ton forwarder is a versatile machine that performs well in thinning, but also in lighter final felling.

The 2021 model has been updated with new components, including a new chassis, a new engine and a new control system, bringing it fully in line with the larger forwarders, albeit in a slightly smaller package.

The Komatsu 845 in the 2021 line-up boasts an upgraded design with the same popular cab as the larger forwarders. The work environment is spacious and comfortable with good visibility in all directions – over both the hood and the load area, which is especially important in thinning.

Designed to maximize performance with high power and torque with a Tier IV Final fuel-efficient engine, the sophisticated control system on the 845-1 automatically adapts to changes in engine load. Computerized HST system considers machine load, terrain conditions, power and torque output to give you exceptional tractive force. Hydraulic retarder overspeed protection ensures the driveline won’t run too fast. www.komatsuforest.com

Tigercat Industries Develops Purpose-built Forestry Dozer and Launches New Brand.

Tigercat Industries has developed a forestry dozer. The new TCi 920 will be making the rounds at several U.S. forestry industry tradeshows this spring.

The dozer will be branded under the new TCi badge, as Tigercat Industries continues to design machines for applications beyond

forest harvesting systems. All products falling under the TCi brand will continue to be designed, manufactured, and supported by Tigercat Industries.

Seeking to overcome shortcomings that harvesting professionals have experienced when applying standard-build, mass production dozers to forestry operations, the TCi 920 is designed specifically for use in logging applications.

Powered by the Tigercat FTP N45 Tier 4f engine rated at 101 kw (135 hp), the TCi 920 is equipped with a 190 mm (7.5 in) pitch heavy duty undercarriage, a responsive and efficient closed loop track drive system, strong, impact-resistant belly pans, and durable structural components throughout. The TCi 920 provides the power, durability, and versatility for deck clearing, road building, and clean-up activities on logging sites.

The carefully designed forestry cab offers the operator clear sightlines augmented by the sloped front hood and rear-mounted exhaust. The cab is quiet and comfortable with a heated and cooled air ride seat, ergonomic armrest mounted joysticks, and a large touchscreen machine control system interface. www.tigercat.com

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AD INDEX COMPANY PG# ACME MANUFACTURING.................................10 AGRI-COVER, INC........................................... 33 BRAKE SYSTEMS, INC.....................................25 CASCADE TRADER / DOOSAN.........................18 DC EQUIPMENT / MODERN MACHINERY.......26 DROP MANUFACTURING................................22 GALARDY TECHNICAL SERVICES LTD............... 9 HYDRAULEX GLOBAL......................................21 JOHN DEERE.................................................... 7 JORAL / LOGGINGENCODERS.COM................13 KOMATSU AMERICA......................................... 5 LBX / TRIAD MACHINERY / BEJAC...................15 LOFTNESS......................................................... 6 MORBARK....................................................... 39 OREGON LOGGING CONFERENCE.................30 PACIFIC LOGGING CONGRESS....................... 34 PAPÉ MACHINERY.......................................... 27 PETERSON CAT...............................................29 PIERCE PACIFIC.............................................. 23 PONSSE ...........................................................11 TIGERCAT / TRIAD MACHINERY / BEJAC........ 40 TRACTIONLINE / FEENAUGHTY........................ 2 WALLINGFORD'S............................................ 34 WCLA CREDIT UNION...................................... 17 YOKOHAMA OFF ROAD TIRES/ ALLIANCE.......19

CALENDAR July 4 Estacada Timber Festival, Estacada, OR 800-630-7858, estacadatimberfestival.com July 15-17 South Fork Loggers Day Festival, South Fork, CO 719-873-5512, www.southfork.org August 5-7 Vernonia Friendship Jamboree and Logging Show, Vernonia, OR www.vernoniafriendshipjamboree.com August 11-14 Morton Loggers Annual Jubilee, Morton WA 360-523-4049, www.loggersjubilee.com August 14-17 Association of Equipment Distributors (AED), Leadership Confernece, Denver, CO 630-574-0650, www.aednet.org August 19-21 Woodsmen's Annual Field Days, Boonville, NY 315-942-4593 www.woodsmensfielddays.com August 23-26 IWF 2022, International Woodworking Fair, Atlanta, GA 404-693-8333, www.iwfatlanta.com

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GuestColumnist

Why Anti-forestry’s Fight over Old Growth Won’t Work this Time

By Nick Smith

A

s if the old Timber Wars never ended, anti-forestry groups are waging a new well-funded and organized campaign to ban logging of “old-growth” forests. What’s different this time? For one, they are no longer rallying to save the Northern Spotted Owl, a vulnerable species that is now losing more habitat to catastrophic wildfire.

This is 2022, not 1990. The science and politics are increasingly trending toward more active forest management and more wood products as solutions to today’s environmental challenges, including climate change.

As before, anti-forestry groups want the public to believe the timber industry is logging the last of the old-growth trees on public lands. They also claim we can reverse climate change by simply locking up our public lands, “letting trees grow,” and walking away.

While their messages are simple and potent, their claims deserve closer scrutiny.

The U.S. Forest Service manages about 193 million acres of National Forest System (NFS) lands. Less than half of these lands (45 percent) are unreserved and available for forest management and timber harvest.

The majority of the forests are either permanently set aside as congressionally designated wilderness areas or national monuments, or they are “inventoried roadless areas” where management is prohibitive.

For anti-forestry groups, that 45 percent is too much. Since President Biden took office, they have pressured his administration to effectively ban logging on NFS lands under the guise of protecting “old and mature forests” even though there are not any universally or scientifically accepted definitions of what “old” or “mature” trees are.

Those of us who work in the woods understand that forests are dynamic—not static—ecosystems. Such a policy means we would walk away from our national forests and hope insects, disease, mortality, and catastrophic wildfires don’t destroy the resources, wildlife, and communities we are trying to protect.

Forests on NFS lands tend to be older, and often lack the diversity of age classes that are found on other forests, which is problematic for wildlife species that depend on young and mixed-age forests. Forests on 38

these lands are also dying at much higher rates, and some are failing to regenerate on their own after a major disturbance such as severe fire. Between 1952 and 2016, a period when timber harvests decreased 80 percent, net growth decreased 46 percent, and tree mortality has increased more than 223 percent!

Perhaps the Biden Administration understood this situation when, on Earth Day 2022, the president signed an executive order recognizing the role that federal forests play “in combating climate change and the importance of maintaining their resilience.”

The national media coverage largely focused on provisions aimed at “protecting old growth forests,” and the executive order was likely intended to appease anti-forestry groups, yet the executive order does not ban timber harvesting, and it does not even identify logging as a threat to old and mature trees. Rather it identifies “climate impacts, catastrophic wildfires, insect infestation, and disease” as the primary threats to all forests, including older forests.

There are some troubling provisions in President Biden’s Executive Order, which could eventually add more bureaucracy and red tape to our broken system of federal land management. However, it recognizes the role of forestry in mitigating impacts to old and mature trees. It also comes at a time when the Administration is spending billions of dollars on a 10-year strategy to double the rate of forest treatments on federal lands.

When it comes to climate change, scientific researchers are also finding that simply walking away from the forest is not so clear cut.

TimberWest Magazine — May/June 2022 — www.forestnet.com

California has lost 1.1 million metric tons of stored carbon to drought, wildfires, and invasive pests between 2018 and 2019 alone. Researchers at UC Berkeley found that current climate projections will require a significant reduction in tree density for forests to be considered “resilient” to intense disturbances such as droughts and wildfires.

They say California may need to revise its forest carbon policy because forests in the future likely will not serve as major carbon sinks without human intervention.

Simply letting trees grow does not necessarily help wildlife either. Researchers at the University of Vermont recently found that managing only for mature stands of trees fails to provide critical habitat for sensitive wildlife species.

There is also science to suggest that although large trees sequester carbon at a faster rate than small trees on an individual basis, their contribution to carbon sequestration rates is smaller on an area basis. In other words, an acre of young, fast-growing trees is capable of sequestering more carbon than an acre of old, slow-growing trees in any given timeframe.

Given the science, if the solution to climate change is to maximize the carbon sequestration capacity of our nation’s forests, we should pursue policies that encourage the sustainable harvest of trees, the storage of their carbon in wood products, and the replanting of young trees in their place.

We don’t have to stand by as tree mortality, wildfires, and carbon emissions increase.

Rather than setting aside more public land from forest management, a better option is to maintain the cycle of forestry—the continuous planting, growing, and harvesting— that results in net zero carbon emissions and discourages the conversion of forests to non-forests.

While anti-forestry groups have found some political success in their latest push to save “old- growth” forests, they will find that most of the public and policymakers have moved on from the old Timber Wars and are looking for solutions that are effective. For this reason, forestry and wood products are essential for the future.

Nick Smith is Executive Director of Healthy Forests, Healthy Communities and provides public affairs services to the American Forest Resource Council in Portland, Oregon.

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