Project Overview
The long-term goal
of Empowering New Forest Owners in the Northwest is to promote forest
stewardship and market strategies that improve the health of forest ecosystems
while increasing economic prosperity for new forest owners. Forest ownership is
changing in Oregon and Washington as companies and larger ownerships divest
their timber holdings closest to metropolitan regions; thereby fragmenting
large tracts into smaller ownerships. Often these former industrial timber
plantations consist of single species, even-aged stands, with dense stocking
intended for short rotations (25-40 years).
Many new forest owners are not aware that these heavily altered
forests need active management to improve ecosystem functions and reduce
vulnerability to pests, diseases, and wildfire. New owners indicate purchasing
forestland for privacy, aesthetics, wildlife, and as an investment.
Ecologically-based forest management involves practices that align with new
forest owners’ objectives, such as uneven-aged, multi-species silviculture,
that increases biodiversity, and optimizes timber production for niche markets.
Northwest Natural Resource Group (NNRG) along with our partners, West Multnomah
Soil and Water Conservation District, Build Local Alliance, University of
Washington, state agencies, extension educators, natural resource
professionals, and other non-profits developed educational materials, hosted
workshops paired with forest tours, provided one-on-one site visits, coaching
and management planning, and timber harvest assistance targeted to beginning
producers.
We engaged >540 workshop participants, provided 144 site visits across 5,000
acres, developed stewardship and marketing plans for 36 producers owning 1,770
acres, assisted 39 producers in conducting conservation practices including
invasives species control and young stand thinning, helped 4 producers prepare
to complete harvests, and assisted 6 producers in completing commercial
thinning harvests that contributed >$220,000 to the regional economy.
The ultimate outcome of this project is a growing network of
forest owners who are empowered to actively steward their land for optimized
forest products, resilience, ecosystem services, and other values.
Number of Participants: 540
Promotional Materials
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Educational Materials
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Reports & Evaluations
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Individual Stories / Examples of Success