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| 11/28/2008 8:00:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article | Trout Lake Forestry awards two-year timber contracts
Contracts net $2,101,098 for DNR’s forestry account
Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest superintendent Steve Petersen has announced the results of Trout Lake Forestry's recent Nov. 7 bid opening at the Boulder Junction Community Center.
A total of 24 two-year 2009-10 timber harvesting projects were bid across the Lakeland area, netting $2,101,098 in logging contracts encompassing 2,673 acres of the Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest and a 35-acre state-owned "scattered land" parcel in Minocqua.
Petersen said contracts are bid twice-yearly in the spring and fall for NH-AL timber harvesting rights. Approximately 5,000 to 5,500 acres are bid for logging annually, raising $3-4 million depending on lumber prices and the competitive bidding climate among loggers.
All project sites, Petersen said, undergo a stringent "assessment" against the twin backdrop of the "ecological, economic and social" forestry focus of the DNR's State Statute 28.04 "charter" and the NH-AL's "publicly-developed, discussed and implemented" long-range "NH-AL Master Plan," approved in 2005 by the Natural Resources Board after fifteen years of planning. The Master Plan, he noted, calls for a forestry emphasis on developing "more white pine, plus aspen," as well as the potential development of additional campground facilities.
"It's a very long process," Petersen said of the DNR's procedure for selecting tracts for logging, which includes on-site data compiled by generations of DNR foresters and modern spatial computer modeling provided by Geo-based Information System (GIS) maps. "I think some people think that we pick them (harvesting areas) out by throwing darts at the board and the bulls-eye's over Presque Isle at the moment. That's not the case ... We reconcile the ecological potential of a stand with our public goals, our social goals for it, and then we make some decisions on what should we do ... What could this look like some time in the future..."
Impacts of DNR forest management efforts, Peterson said, have long-term implications that will affect current and future generations, something he noted he and other DNR staffers take very seriously.
"We are implementing the Master Plan when we do this (timber sales)," he said. "There are benefits to doing this. It benefits the ecology, as we move the forest toward what's described in the Master Plan. It also provides revenue to the state - I cannot deny that - which is a great thing, especially in times like this...
"It's exciting to have some influence over the future of the forest. The things we do are very slow in happening ... When we do something, it might be a generation before the impacts of what we did come to fruition ... This ecological work that we're doing - if we had to pay somebody to do this, we'd be heroes. We'd be the greatest guys on Earth if we would be paying loggers to go and cut these trees so that we could advance the forest successionally to get us closer to this dream of big old white pines, big old red pines, monstrous sugar maples. We'd be heroes. When they pay us for the privilege of going out there and doing our work for us, it taints that in a lot of people's minds, it corrupts it in some people's minds - they think we're only doing it for the money. That's not the case."
Beyond development of the forest ecology and revenue generation for the DNR's forestry program, Petersen said the timber sales also bring a variety of "social benefits" to Wisconsin residents.
"There are social benefits to it (timber harvesting)," he noted. "It creates habitats for animals, which benefits hunters. It provides an opportunity for people to go out and easily gather firewood to heat their homes. We also create places where there are young forests of balsam where people go out and cut Christmas trees. There are even people making some money harvesting and selling balsam boughs to the wreath companies. There are places where we do timber sales and it encourages birch to grow back, so people will see birch - your kids will see birch like we did when we were kids. Those are some of the benefits, that social benefit..."
Bidders on state forest logging projects are required by the DNR to meet certain eligibility criteria to be considered as a "Qualified Logging or Resource Professional" for its timber harvest program.
Requirements include eight hours in annual continuing education, training in Best Management Practices, first aid/CPR training and professional training, once every two years, in one of a variety of areas - chain saw safety, mechanized logging, log truck driver training, business management, invasive species, threatened and endangered species and cross training for loggers and foresters.
Petersen said NH-AL logging revenues are sent to Madison for deposit into the DNR's Forestry Account.
"People look at [our] $4 million bucks [in annual revenue] and say, 'Steve's gonna be driving an Escalade next year,'" Petersen said. "There is a very clear disconnect between the revenue we make and the budget we have to spend. Everything we make goes into the Forestry Account, where it has legislative oversight. Every bit of budget we get is appropriated by the Legislature ... If we have great big [timber] sales, that doesn't mean we're going to be building buildings or buying equipment."
The annual $80 million Forestry Account budgetary line item, approximately 90 percent supported by a statewide 0.17-mill forestry property tax, supports state forest operations and a variety of forestry management projects in the Northwoods and across the state, including fire control, nurseries, wildlife management, the managed forests law program, payment of Stewardship bonds and assistance for private forestry.
Petersen noted that the Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest, in its most recent fiscal year ended June 30, 2008, earned $3.9 million in combined recreational and timber sale revenue, as compared to $2.8 million in expenses.
Most of the NH-AL's income is logging revenue, with the NH-AL generating around $800,000 in annual recreation revenue from sticker fees, camping fees and trail fees paid by the park's more than two million annual visitors.
"It's nice to be able to say our state forest is paying its way," Petersen said, noting smaller Northwoods state forests including the 50,000-acre Brule River State Forest, near Brule, and the 90,000-acre Flambeau River State Forest, near Phillips, are also self-supporting.
But with the state, national and global economic downturn, Petersen said challenging times are ahead for the DNR and the NH-AL in the current and future two-year budget cycle as state income and property tax revenues shrink.
"My challenge is to keep us at least even," he said. "We'll be measuring success by keeping even. Every chance I get, I tell my superiors, 'No matter what's happening to business, don't unplug the cash register, don't start cutting the state forests. It's one of the few programs that provides money into that [Forestry Account], so please be good to us.'"
Largest state-owned property
The 232,000-acre Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest covers much of Vilas County and parts of Oneida and Iron counties as the DNR's largest state-owned property.
The NH-AL was created out of the 1968 merger of the Northern Highland State Forest, formed in 1925, and the American Legion State Forest, created in 1929. The parks were formed to protect the Northwoods headwaters of the Wisconsin, Flambeau and Manitowish rivers.
Under the Natural Resources Board's October 2005 long-term Master Plan, the DNR has set a goal of expanding the NH-AL to 291,000 acres - north of the existing property boundary to the Wisconsin-Michigan border and to the south of the forest's existing boundary in two small areas along the Wisconsin River and near the Rainbow Flowage.
Considered a "working forest," the NH-AL is operated under a multiple management concept that includes recreational, renewable resource timber production, wildlife, fisheries and watershed protection uses.
The NH-AL produces approximately 63,000 cords of pulpwood and more than two million board feet of lumber annually, supporting Wisconsin's 50,000-employee paper and lumber industry.
DNR foresters implement Forest Stewardship Council and Sustainable Forest Initiative management practices designed for North American forests, with the independent third party certification ensuring the NH-AL operates under strict national standards for ecological, social and economic forest sustainability through terrestrial diversity of multiple forest types and age classes.
Petersen said overall DNR oversight of the NH-AL is governed by State Statute 28.04.
Under Statute 28.04, the DNR manages the state forests for present and future generations of state residents, recognizing that the state forests "contribute to local and statewide economies and to a healthy natural environment."
"The department shall assure the practice of sustainable forestry and use it to assure that state forests can provide a full range of benefits...," the statute reads. "The department shall also assure that the management of state forests is consistent with the ecological capacity of the state forest land and with the long-term maintenance of sustainable forest communities and ecosystems. These benefits include soil protection, public hunting, protection of water quality, production of recurring forest products, outdoor recreation, native biological diversity, aquatic and terrestrial wildlife and aesthetics. The range of benefits provided by the department in each state forest shall reflect its unique character and position in the regional landscape."
The statute recognizes that "not all benefits ... can or should be provided in every area of a state forest." It also notes that the DNR, in managing state forests, may employ both active and passive techniques.
Under Statute 28.025, timber harvests are required to be managed to within at least 90 percent of the allowable cut.
Moving forward, Petersen said he hopes to build a climate of better DNR relations with the general public in the Lakeland area, in part through better communications and education.
"My dream ... would be the next time we do this [Master Plan], I will have a community that understands their issues, has some knowledge of why we do the things we do, has some empathy for all the different positions," he said. "I would hope that there would be a lot of people engaged in a quality way ... and that we could have a well-informed dialogue for what we want for this forest..."
Oneida County bids outlined
At its Nov. 7 bid opening in Boulder Junction, DNR Trout Lake Forestry awarded nine bids for logging in the Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest.
Awarded Oneida County timber harvests include:
• Project 2-08, "Oxbow Red Pine," town of Newbold. The 51-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of red pine, white pine, balsam fir, jack pine, soft maple, white birch and aspen. The logging site is along Oxbow Road, southeast of the Willow Flowage (Sections 10, 15 and 16; T39N; R8E). The minimum project bid value was $20,306. The winning bidder was Ambrosius Forest Products, which tendered a $41,610 bid.
• Project 10-08, "Stone Lake Birch Strips," town of Sugar Camp. The 43-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, balsam fir, white birch, soft maple and hard maple. The logging site lies to the east and west of Stone Lake Road near Stone Lake (Sections 5 and 6; T38N; R9E). The minimum project bid value was $13,335. The winning bidder was Fink Forest Products with a $41,780 bid.
• Project 19-08, "Big Carr," town of Lake Tomahawk. The 108-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, spruce, red pine, red oak, white pine, balsam fir, red maple, oak, hard maple, white birch and ironwood. The logging site lies south of Hwy. D and east of Big Carr Lake (Sections 9 and 16; T38N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $33,816. The winning bidder was Wiitala & Vozka Logging with an $80,770 bid.
• Project 21-08, "Sparrow Road," town of Lake Tomahawk. The 128-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, red pine, red oak, oak, hard maple, soft maple, white birch, basswood, yellow birch, balsam fir and white pine. The logging site lies south of Bird Lake Road and west of McGrath Lake (Sections 7, 8, 17 and 18; T38N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $44,404. The winning bidder was Fink Forest Products, which submitted an $87,920 bid.
• Project 26-08, "Woodland Acres," town of Woodruff. The 33-acre, one-year project calls for the logging of aspen, balsam fir, red maple, sugar maple, white birch and red oak. The logging site lies south of Hwy. 47 and Woodland Ct. and east of Walter Dr. and Bean Rd. (S29; T39N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $10,487. The winning bidder was Sappi Fine Paper, with an $18,628 bid.
• Project 28-08, "VI-ON Border Sale," town of Newbold and town of Sugar Camp. The 86-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, red pine, white pine, maple, white birch and balsam fir. The logging sites lie in two parcels - east of Hwy. O, just north of the Wisconsin River (Sections 1 and 12; T39N; R8E) and south of Hwy. 70, southwest of Old 70 Rd. and northwest of the Wisconsin River (S6; T39N; R9E). The minimum project bid value was $27,630. The winning bidder was Wiitala & Vozka Logging, which tendered a $59,893 bid.
• Project 30-08, "Powerline Pine," town of Newbold. The 163-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of red pine, jack pine, aspen, white pine and scotch pine. The logging site lies south of Hwy. 70 and southeast of Hwy. J (Sections 3, 4, 9 and 10; T39N; R8E). The minimum project bid value was $65,366. The winning bidder was Blewer Lumber, which submitted a $110,143 bid.
• Project 933-08, "South Willow Aspen," town of Little Rice. The 131-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, balsam fir, white birch and red maple. The logging site lies four miles west of Hwy. J on Iron Gate Road (Sections 20, 21, 28 and 29; T37N, R5E). The minimum project bid value was $27,882. The winning bidder was Timberline Logging, with a $62,388 bid.
• Project 934-08, "Peaceful Pine," town of Nokomis. The 122-acre, one-year project calls for the logging of jack pine, red pine, aspen, birch and oak. The logging site lies north of Prairie Rapids Road and east of Peaceful Lane (S21; T36N, R6E). The minimum project bid value was $21,830. The winning bidder was Stephen Dassow, with his $44,513 bid.
No bids were received for Project 944-08, "Mercer Spring-A-Lake," in the town of Minocqua, a 35-acre, two-year logging project on scattered state-owned land. The harvest was slated to have included red pine, white pine, aspen, white birch, oak and red maple. The minimum bid value was $4,601.
As no bid was received, Petersen said DNR Trout Lake Forestry will either "direct sale" the project or combine it with another logging project during the Spring 2009 bidding process.
Vilas County timber bids.
Fourteen of the DNR's 24 awarded 2009-10 logging projects are planned for Vilas County, with timber harvests slated in the towns of Arbor Vitae, Boulder Junction, Manitowish Waters, Presque Isle and Winchester.
Vilas County timber harvest bids awarded include:
• Project 4-08, "Bittersweet Oak," town of Arbor Vitae. The 233-acre, two-year project calls the the logging of aspen, red oak, balsam fir, maple, white birch, red maple and sugar maple. The logging site lies north and south of Hwy. 70 and east of Blue Island Rd., near Little Arbor Vitae and Bittersweet lakes (Sections 21,22, 27 and 28; T40N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $119,492. The winning bidder was Central Timber, Inc., with a $259,803 bid.
• Project 12-08, "Hwy. P Popple," town of Presque Isle. The 31-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen and mixed hardwood, largely white birch. The logging site is located along Hwy. P near Carlin Lake Rd. and Pinecone Rd., near Papoose and Carlin lakes (S19; T43N; R6E). The minimum project bid value was $17,784. The winning bidder was Wiitala & Vozka Logging, which submitted a $44,274 bid.
• Project 25-08, "Maximum DEET," town of Arbor Vitae. The 196-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, white birch, balsam fir, oak, red pine, red maple, sugar maple, ironwood, black spruce, white spruce, white pine and scotch pine. The logging site lies west of Hwy. 51 around Max Lake (Sections 22 and 23; T41N; R6E). The minimum project bid value was $63,493. The winning bidder was Sappi Fine Paper, which tendered a $133,075 bid.
• Project 27-08, "South Turtle Lake Road II," town of Winchester. The 30-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, spruce, red maple, sugar maple, white birch, black spruce, balsam fir and tamarack. The logging site lies north of Hwy. J, west of Hwy. W, and to the east of South Turtle Lake Rd. (Sections 18, 19 and 20; T43N; R5E). The minimum project bid value was $12,676. The winning bidder was Sappi Fine Paper, with an $24,750 bid.
• Project 29-08, "Almost Home," town of Manitowish Waters. The 228-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of white pine, red pine, aspen, oak, maple and white birch. The logging area lies along portions of Hwy. 51, Benson Lake Rd. and Marathon Rd. near Chub, Gem, Benson and Sturgeon lakes and the Manitowish River. (Sections 7, 8, 17 and 18; T42N; R5E). The minimum bid value for the project was $130,956. The winning bidder was New Page, which submitted a $189,075 bid.
Boulder Junction harvest projects
Nearly two-thirds of the DNR's 14 awarded Vilas County NH-AL logging projects will take place in 1,019-resident Boulder Junction, which is blanketed by the 232,000-acre state forest.
Scheduled Boulder Junction timber harvests over the next two years include:
• Project 5-08, "Wildcat Land." The 34-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, balsam fir, red oak, white pine, white birch, red maple, sugar maple and red pine. The logging site is west of Hwy. M and south of Hwy. B near Wildcat and Big Kitten lakes (Sections 33 and 34; T43N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $12,754. The winning bidder was Weyerhaeuser, with a $21,540 bid.
• Project 13-08, "Bye-Bye Jack Pine." The 77-acre, two year project calls for the logging of jack pine, aspen, red pine, white pine, white birch, soft maple and red oak. The logging site lies south of Bear Lake Road and west of Little Crooked Lake (S2; T42N; R6E). The minimum project bid value was $46,130. The winning bidder was Fink Forest Products, which tendered an $81,175 bid.
• Project 14-08, "Lakeshore Oak." The 91-acre, 2-1/2 year project calls for the logging of red oak, hard maple, white birch, soft maple, red pine and white pine. The logging site lies between Hwy. M and Ben Bendrick Drive on the eastern shore of South Trout Lake, north of the South Trout Campground (Sections 8, 17 and 20; T41N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $34,115. The winning bidder was Sappi Fine Paper, which submitted a $71,158 bid.
• Project 15-08, "Ratatat Aspen." The 47-acre, 1-1/2 year project calls for the logging of aspen, red oak, white birch, soft maple, red pine and white pine. The logging site is located south of the DNR's South Trout Lake campground between Trout Lake and Hwy. M, from Big Muskellunge Lake Rd. south to Hwy. N and east of Rocky Reef Lane. The minimum project bid value was $25,960. The winning bidder was Central Timber, Inc., with a $63,755 bid.
• Project 18-08, "Old Shack Sale." The 44-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of aspen, red pine, white pine, white birch, maple, red oak, balsam fir, jack pine and spruce. The logging site is located north of Hwy. 51, just east of Charlotte Pl. near Upper Gresham and Day lakes (S3; T41N; R6E). The minimum project bid value was $13,064. The winning bidder was Wiitala & Vozka Logging, which submitted a $23,642 bid.
• Project 20-08, "Wool Lake Red Pine." The 39-acre, two year project calls for the logging of red pine, jack pine, aspen, white pine, balsam fir, spruce, red maple and white birch. The logging site lies east of Hwy. K and south of Evergreen Lane near Wool Lake (S14; T42N;R6E). The minimum project bid value was $13,245. The winning bidder was New Page, with a $17,765 bid.
• Project 22-08, "White Sand Shifting Sands." This 96-acre, two year project calls for the logging of aspen, oak, black spruce, red pine, red maple, white birch, dead standing oak, tamarack, balsam fir, jack pine and white pine. The logging site lies east of Old Hwy. K and south of Corcora Road (Sections 27 and 28; T42N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $34,229. The winning bidder was Wiitala & Vozka Logging, which tendered a $73,820 bid.
• Project 23-08, "Lil' John's Big Musky." This 421-acre, two year project calls for the logging of oak, aspen, red pine, white pine, balsam fir, spruce, sugar maple, red maple, white birch, Norway spruce, scotch pine and jack pine. The logging site lies north of Hwy. N, east of Hwy. M and along Big Muskellunge Lake Rd. (Sections 16, 17, 20, 21, 28 and 29; T41N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $165,863. The winning bidder was Weyerhaeuser, with a $369,633 bid.
• Project 24-08, "C-130 Tree Transport." This 133-acre, two-year project calls for the logging of red pine, black spruce, white birch, aspen, white pine, balsam fir, red oak, tamarack, red maple, oak, sugar maple and jack pine. The logging site lies east of Hwy. M and north of Nebish Lake Road (Sections 4 and 5; T41N; R7E). The minimum project bid value was $39,279. The winning bidder was Eric Tatro, who submitted a $77,490 bid.
One Iron County project bid
DNR Trout Lake Forestry received a winning $102,500 bid from New Page for its sole 2009-10 Iron County project.
The DNR's minimum bid value for the project was $57,673.
Project 8-08, "Hwy. 182 Sale," is a 143-acre, two-year project calling for the harvest of aspen, white spruce, red pine, white pine, white birch, red maple, sugar maple, black ash, basswood, balsam fir, tamarack, black spruce and Norway spruce.
The logging site lies along Hwy. 182, southwest of Hwy. 47 (Sections 27,32,33 and 34; T42N; R4E).
Eric Johnson can be reached at ejohnson@lakelandtimes.com.
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