PLC

AUGUSTA – The Professional Logging Contractors (PLC) of Maine responded to the toughest six months most in the logging industry could recall with a hard-fought campaign this spring to secure legislative victories for biomass industry support, an off-road fuel tax exemption, and a comprehensive study of the potential for biomass in the state.

Those victories did not come easily.

“Many of our members put in a great deal of time and effort to secure these wins for our industry at a time when it was critical to do so,” PLC Executive Director Dana Doran said. “Members testified before the Legislature, they made phone calls, they sent emails and letters, they spoke to reporters – in short, they made a difference and while challenges remain we are in a much better position to face them had none of that happened.”

The PLC applauds the Maine Legislature and Maine Governor Paul LePage for pulling together after a great deal of debate to pass bills that will aid the state’s logging industry by providing short term contract opportunities to producers of biomass electricity, exempting commercial loggers and farmers from paying sales tax on fuel, and doing the first in-depth study on the potential for biomass in Maine.

The biomass bill, LD 1676, “An Act To Establish a Process for Procurement of Biomass Resources”, was passed by both the Maine Senate and House with strong bipartisan support April 15 following debate in each chamber.

The sales tax exemption bill, LD 1481, An Act To Protect Maine’s Natural Resources Jobs by Exempting from Sales Tax Petroleum Products Used in Commercial Farming, Fishing and Forestry, also drew strong bipartisan support. It was included in an omnibus spending bill, LD 1606, which passed in the Legislature early on April 16. The tax exemption will go into effect permanently on January 1, 2017. Both bills were signed into law by Governor LePage on April 16. “In a legislative session where disagreement drew most of the headlines, Maine’s lawmakers and the Governor pulled together in support of Maine’s loggers and the entire forest products value chain,” Doran said. “Logging is a legacy industry and is the root of Maine’s forest products industry and we applaud our elected officials for coming together at a critical time to support it. Both bills provide relief to an industry that is struggling due to factors beyond its control.”

State of Our Union

Scott Madden, President

Executive Board

Scott Madden President

Jim Nichols

1st Vice President

Tony Madden

2nd Vice President

Chuck Ames Secretary

Andy Irish Treasurer

Brian Souers

Past President

Board of Directors

Greg Adams

Kurt Babineau

Donald Cole

William Cole

Tom Cushman

Brent Day

Wes Dube

Steve Hanington

Duane Jordan

Robert Linkletter

Andrew Madden

Ron Ridley

Wayne Tripp

Gary Voisine

Dana Doran

Executive Director

As we start

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In closing, we have some bad times coming but I believe standing strong together through the PLC will get us through. We will still be logging, but it just may look different tomorrow than it did today. Log on!

Scott

Speaking With One Voice

Dana Doran, Executive Director

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large part because of Maine’s professional loggers. Stay safe out there,

Dana

PLC MEMBER SHOWCASE:

MADDEN SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY INC: No two jobs are the same

MILFORD - Derek Madden started his business, Madden Sustainable Forestry, Inc. in 2010, but he was a logger long before that.

Derek grew up in a logging family – the Madden name is well known in the forest products industry in Maine and the Maddens are arguably the largest extended logging family in the state – and he began working in the woods as soon as he was able to.

“I got started in the logging business back when I was little kid working some with my dad Tony Madden and a lot with my grandfather Fernald Madden,” Derek recalls. “I would run skidder, loader, whatever they needed throughout school.”

In 2001 Derek went to work for his father full-time running a 1996 Timbco 815 forwarder, and he did that for a few years until his father bought a new Timberjack forwarder 1410 and a lightly used 1996 Timbco 425 with an Ultimate 5300 processing head.

“He then gave me the choice to either run the new machine or run both 96 Timbcos and work by myself on the Bureau of Public Lands. I decided to run both machines and that is what I did until 2010 when I decided to go on my own,” Derek said.

Six years later Madden Sustainable Forestry has eight employees, not counting Derek and his wife, Nicole. The company provides both cut-to-length and tree-length logging services, mat hauling for transmission projects, grinding for fields and nature trails, and “pretty much anything else a landowner requests we will try to make it happen,” Derek said.

One of the big strengths of Madden Sustainable Forestry is the quality and flexibility of the employees. All operators are trained to operate every piece of equipment the company has. This keeps everyone working and operating efficiently even when conditions for some parts of a harvest job are poor.

His wife, Nicole, is critical to the business and the heart of the office, caring for their two young children during the day and then working nights keeping the company operating smoothly, Derek said.

“We are a lean company with very little overhead with the exception of equipment,” Derek said. “We have excellent employees and great equipment. One thing that my company has that many people don't is a great logging family in the background that all work together and help each other out when they need a hand. In total there are eight separate Madden family logging operations.”

The company owns and operates a number of Madden

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Madden Continued from Page 4 machines, but, “my favorite piece of equipment is still the 96 Timbco 815,” Derek said. “A very well rounded machine for doing all types of work. The original machine from when I started in the woods and she is still like new.”

Madden Sustainable Forestry generally operates within an hour and a half of its shop in Milford, covering a large portion of the state. No two jobs are ever the same.

On a mid-May morning Derek toured a recently completed logging site in Castine with visitors to look at harvest management techniques used on the property, which abuts Penobscot Bay near the outlet of the Penobscot River. With seabirds flying overhead and the landowners these days. tour running at one point along a large sweep of sand beach, he noted how logging can take you places you’d never expect.

Dealing with many types of landowners with varying expectations requires a high degree of professionalism from loggers today, and Madden Sustainable Forestry is a highly professional operation. The company is Northeast Master Logger certified as well as being a member of the Professional Logging Contractors (PLC) of Maine.

Derek became involved with PLC through his family and then as a business owner himself, and said the free spring training offered by PLC is a great benefit of membership and the organization’s hard work on behalf of Maine loggers in the state capital is also very important.

The Castine site included rolling terrain overlooking the bay and woods surrounding a large open tract of lawns where a summer home watched the ocean and tennis courts were hidden nearby in the trees. The site was a great example of a property being managed more for aesthetics and forest health than profitpriorities shared by many small private

Forming a relationship with other PLC members has been a great experience, and recent efforts to promote the Master Logger program – the PLC and the program are distinct but share a board of directors – is also helping his company, Derek said.

Though the weather and markets are constant challenges, the future of Madden Sustainable Forestry looks good, and logging is still a very rewarding profession, Derek said. “

In the logging business you get to be outside and see some amazing and beautiful places and work with some very unique and hardworking people,” Derek said.

Welcome New Members

PLC Members

AS & CB Gould & Sons - AS & CB Gould & Sons of Cornville, ME joined the PLC as a new Member in June of 2016. The company is mechanized and has a staff of 22 certified logging professionals. The company does whole tree and cut-to-length harvesting.

Big Timber, LLC - Big Timber, LLC of Wallagrass, ME joined the PLC as a new Member in June of 2016. Big Timber is mechanized and has a staff of one certified logging professional. The company does cut-to-length harvesting.

Buckco, Inc. - Buckco, Inc. of Milton Township, ME joined the PLC as a new Member in June of 2016. Buckco Inc. is mechanized and has a staff of two certified logging professionals. The company is Master Logger certified. The company does whole tree harvesting and biomass chipping.

Eastman C-T-L Logging, Inc. - Eastman C-T-L Logging, Inc. of Exeter, ME joined the PLC as a new Member in June of 2016. Eastman C-T-L Logging is mechanized and has a staff of two certified logging professionals. The company does cut-to-length harvesting.

G.R. Logging LLC - G.R. Logging LLC of Van Buren, ME joined the PLC as a new Member in June of 2016. G.R. Logging is mechanized and has a staff of eight certified logging professionals. The company is Master Logger certified. The company does whole tree harvesting.

Qualey Logging - Qualey Logging of Benedicta, ME joined the PLC as a new Member in June of 2016. Qualey Logging is mechanized and has a staff of five certified logging professionals. The company does whole tree harvesting.

Milo Chip, LLC - Milo Chip, LLC of Skowhegan, ME has joined the PLC as a new Affiliated Contractor in June of 2016. Milo Chip has a professional staff of five.

Richard Carrier Trucking Inc. - Richard Carrier Trucking Inc. of Skowhegan, ME has joined the PLC as a new Affiliated Contractor in June of 2016. The trucking company got its start 40 years ago by Richard Alain Carrier, who began his career in the Northern Maine Woods, cutting timber while working with his father and brother. Richard Carrier Trucking’s fleet is currently comprised of 72 Western Star Tractors in the Skowhegan Office and 75 in Canada. The company has a professional staff of 88.

Chaffee Transport - Chaffee Transport of Clinton, ME joined the PLC as a new Forest Contractor in June of 2016. Chaffee Transport is a new trucking company formed from the assets and land of A.W. Chaffee and has a professional staff of 15.

MG Transport – MG Transport of Cornville, ME joined the PLC as a new Forest Contractor in June of 2016. MG Transport is a freight shipping and trucking company with a professional staff of 10.

M.L. Pelletier Trucking Inc. - M.L. Pelletier Trucking Inc. of St, John Plantation, ME joined the PLC as a new Forest Contractor in June of 2016. M.L. Pelletier Trucking has a professional staff of 5.

Supporting Members

Carl's Auto Parts Inc. - Carl's Auto Parts Inc. of Lincoln, ME joined the PLC as a new Supporting Member in March of 2016. Carl's is an independentlyowned and operated CARQUEST Auto Parts store, one of many nationwide. Carl's Auto Parts specializesin automotive and heavy duty parts and supplies.

Heavy Machines Inc. - Heavy Machines Inc. of Skowhegan, ME joined the PLC as a new Supporting Member in June of 2016. The company is a heavy equipment dealer based in Memphis, TN with branches in four states. The Skowhegan branch has a history of physical and product expansion to meet the demands of forest products, scrap handling, general construction, industrial and logging customers.

New England Kenworth - New England Kenworth joined the PLC as a new Supporting Member in Aprilof 2016. New England Kenworth is based in Concord, NH and operates six medium and heavy duty truck dealership operations in New England and Upstate New York, including locations in Bangor and Portland, Maine. The company has a professional staff of more than 200.

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers - Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers of Hooksett, NH joined the PLC as a new Supporting Member in June of 2016. Ritchie Bros. is the world’s largest auctioneer of heavy equipment and trucks and has been helping people around the world buy and sell with confidence since 1958. The company offers a wide range of used and unused equipment and trucks.

Stairs Welding RL Inc. - Stairs Welding RL Inc. of Hodgdon, ME joined the PLC as a new Supporting Member in June of 2016. Stairs Welding serves the woods industry with all types of logging trailers, log bodies,

New members

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OLD TOWN – Katahdin Fire Co. Inc. has ONE PAGE WAS ABOUT 670 WORDS.

KATAHDIN REGION – A story that began more than 20 years ago with a wealthy entrepreneur’s push to create a national park in the midst of this region’s working forest is likely to end later this year with the designation –or not of a national monument by the President of the United States.

Roxanne Quimby’s vision for the land east of Baxter State Park has remained largely unchanged since the days when RESTORE the North Woods envisioned a 3.2 million acre national park in the region, and although the 87,500 acres she wants to donate to the federal government through her nonprofit Elliotsville Planation Inc. (EPI) may be a fraction of the size of the original proposal, the goal is still a national park and the monument merely the most convenient step toward making it a reality because only one individual needs to approve it – President Barack Obama.

The PLC opposes the national monument based on multiple concerns including issues of land access for loggers, opposition to the park in communities neighboring the park zone, a chilling effect on forest products industry investment the establishment a monument would have, and safety worries surrounding the sharing of logging roads with tourists.

2016 has emerged as the year when the park/ monument issue is likely to finally be decided: A steady ramp-up in promotion of the monument in the latter half of 2015 provoked opposition from Maine’s congressional delegation and organizations and communities with interests in the region. Supporters fought back, and the first half of this year has seen editorial boards of major

Maine newspapers pile on with their support, a visit from the director of the National Park Service to hear the debate, and a congressional field hearing on the matter. It now seems likely a decision will be made as early as August – the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service – or in the final days before President Obama’s term ends in January 2017.

The PLC began actively opposing the monument last year and has worked aggressively to protect the interests of loggers in the region. Those efforts have included a strong push to educate the media and lawmakers about the problems a national monument would create for the working forests and forest products industry of the region.

The PLC joined a delegation led by Maine Second District Congressman Bruce Poliquin at the White House in March to argue against the prospect of the national monument. PLC was represented at the park hearing held in mid-May in Orono as part of National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis’ visit, and again at the June 1 congressional field hearing organized by Rep Poliquin in East Millinocket, where PLC led a tour of the affected area and testified about the issues a national monument or park would create for Maine loggers.

Many who attended the hearing with Jarvis left with the impression that the decision to create a monument in the region may already have been made. Whether that is true remains to be seen, but the PLC will continue to work to oppose the monument and to preserve the working forests, logging infrastructure, and opportunities of the region.