One of the state’s biggest downfalls in the economic recession might prove to be its biggest savior — timber.
The logging business has always been one of Oregon’s top industries, especially in Lane County, which has been historically reliant on timber funds. But these days, state forests are miniscule from so many years of cutting trees, making the economic recession all the more devastating for Oregon. Already, employment in logging and forestry has dropped 15 percent from 2004 to 2008, although the figure has slightly leveled off thanks to stimulus funding.
Foresters are looking for another solution in providing reliable revenue.
Plum Creek, a timber company with a local supplier in Cottage Grove, just south of Eugene, will plant at least 20,000 Coastal Redwood trees each year. The trees will be planted in Douglas and Lane counties along the Oregon Coast Range, which is the mountain range running from the Columbia River south to the middle fork of the Coquille River.
Redwood tree logs are selling for up to $1,300 per thousand board feet in the current market, compared to the more common Douglas fir at fewer than $250 per thousand board feet.
The practice of planting trees for profit started 16 years ago in Elkton, Ore. After planting, the trees are predicted to be ready to harvest within 30 or 40 years. George Fenn, an Oregon Redwood-tree planting instigator, passed on the practice to Plum Creek.
Dave Lorenz, the district forester at Veneta’s Department of Forestry office, trusts that Plum Creek knows what it is doing.
“Plum Creek has a history in planting forests in Oregon,” Lorenz said. “I trust that they have evaluated the site and it is appropriate for these large trees.”
Cottage Grove’s Plum Creek nursery is one of the top two suppliers of Coastal Redwood seedlings for the Northern California range. Out of the 7,329,000 acres the nursery owns all over the country, the timber company manages 430,000 acres in Oregon.
Jim Geisinger, the vice president of the Associated Oregon Loggers, also trusts Plum
Creek’s initiatives.
“Normally, we don’t see any Redwoods above Gold Beach,” Geisinger said, “but I appreciate their attempt to diversify species.”
According to the Sempervirens Fund, the Coastal Redwood is primarily found on the Pacific coast of the U.S. and requires a high level of year-round moisture, a feature not usually associated with the local Coast Range.
Whitey Lueck, who teaches a University class called Trees Across Oregon, said there are two specific environmental conditions that could threaten the Coastal Redwood: cold, dry winters and summer droughts. He added that the Coastal Redwood range is most commonly found on the coast of Northern California.
Even so, Lueck hopes that Plum Creek’s project is successful.
“We all take chances, whether it be in farming produce or trees,” Lueck said. “I admire the loggers for their progressive efforts.”
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