OFRI eNews : February 2018
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New ads tout wood innovation
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Traditionally, OFRI’s educational advertising has focused on informing Oregonians about the laws that help sustain Oregon’s forests. But with our state rapidly becoming the epicenter of tall wood building and mass timber innovation in the U.S., we decided to go in a different direction this year.
About two dozen mass timber buildings, including offices, condos and schools, have been completed, are under construction or in the planning stages in Oregon. OFRI’s two newest video ads highlight how these innovative wood structures are creating new connections between Oregonians and our forests.
The ads debuted this month in television markets statewide and online, and will continue running through mid-May. You can
watch the ads here
.
While continuing to emphasize the importance of responsible forest management, these new ads will help spread the message that wood from Oregon’s sustainably managed forests isn’t just our legacy, it’s our future.
For the forest,
Paul Barnum
Executive Director
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Forest health conference planned
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The Oregon State University College of Forestry is hosting a conference later this month delving into Oregon’s forest health challenges, and ways to manage for a healthy forest.
Geared to foresters, forest managers, woodland owners, students and others with an interest in forest health, the
Forest Health in Oregon: State of the State 2018
conference is scheduled for Feb. 28 to March 1 at the
LaSells Stewart Center
in Corvallis. It will update participants on the current conditions of Oregon’s forests, forest health trends, challenges, current research and silvicultural solutions.
OFRI is a co-sponsor of this year’s conference, which will offer the latest information about how wildfire, insects, tree diseases, invasive species, climate change and other factors are affecting Oregon’s forests. Presentations by 29 speakers will cover topics such as current fire research, tree mortality and drought impacts on forest health.
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Oregon tree going to U.S. Capitol
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For only the second time in 50 years, an Oregon-grown conifer will travel to Washington, D.C. to serve as the U.S. Capitol Christmas tree.
The U.S. Forest Service
announced
this month that the Sweet Home District of the
Willamette National Forest
has been selected to provide the tree that will appear on the West Lawn of the Capitol Building during the 2018 holiday season. Once a tree from the forest is chosen – with the help of the public – it will be cut in November and taken on a road trip across the country, with stops for a series of events before reaching the Capitol.
For the past 50 years, the Forest Service has selected a “People’s Tree” from one of its 154 National Forests for display during Christmas in the nation’s Capitol. The last time Oregon provided the Capitol tree, a Douglas-fir from the Umpqua National Forest, was in 2002.
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Stream buffers vs. geology
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Although leaving trees along streams during logging helps shade and keep the water cold, researchers from Oregon State University have found that geology can have more of an impact on downstream temperatures than the presence or width of a tree buffer strip.
They analyzed the impact of these forested buffers on downstream temperatures in three Oregon watersheds in the Coast Range and western Cascades, using data recorded in experiments carried out in 27 locations over 14 years.
Because Oregon law doesn’t require tree and vegetation buffers along small, non-fish-bearing streams, the researchers observed some warming of the stream water.
“However, if the geology is permeable – where we have a lot of groundwater inputs into the system – that warm water didn’t persist downstream,” says study lead Kevin Bladon, an assistant professor in the OSU College of Forestry. “As soon as it flowed back into a forested stream reach, the temperature stabilized.”
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Students to explore forest careers
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More than 1,200 elementary and high school students are expected to participate in educational programs focused on forest career paths, as part of the
Oregon Logging Conference
later this month in Eugene.
Both programs will highlight job opportunities in Oregon’s forest industry. Students will have the chance to tour the conference and see the high-tech logging and forestry equipment on display, as well as meet and learn from forest professionals who will talk about their careers.
OFRI is providing bus
transportation reimbursement
to help students attend the two events. During the Future Forestry Workers Career Day, OFRI education staff will offer students forest-career-oriented information and distribute copies of the Institute’s
Find Your Path
publication.
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Blog: Pollinators and Forestry
OFRI Director of Forestry Mike Cloughesy and OFRI’s contract wildlife biologist, Fran Cafferata Coe of Cafferata Consulting, highlight how managed forests provide important habitat for pollinators such as bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.
Read the blog
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Fire report summarized
A new OFRI report detailing the far-reaching effects of last year’s wildfire season is now available as a four-page summary. The “Impacts of Oregon’s 2017 Wildfire Season” pamphlet summarizes how wildfires negatively affected Oregonians, including impacts to public health, school athletics, transportation, tourism-reliant businesses and outdoor recreation.
Read the summary
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Operators of the Year announced
The Oregon Department of Forestry’s 2017 Operators of the Year are Lane Parry Forestry Consulting of Baker City, Denali Logging of Coos Bay and Morisse Logging of Astoria. The annual awards recognize companies conducting forestry work that goes above and beyond Oregon’s laws to protect natural resources.
Learn more
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ATFS certification re-endorsed
The American Tree Farm System (ATFS) forest sustainability certification program has been re-endorsed by the Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certification. The re-endorsement, which offers global recognition for ATFS certification, comes after an extensive review of all facets of the program, which is designed specifically for certifying smaller, family-owned woodlands.
Learn more
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Wood building initiative rebrands
With the proliferation of wood buildings across the U.S., architects, engineers and contractors no longer need encouragement to rethink wood – they now think wood. To reflect this shift, reThink Wood, the wood-industry initiative that assists design and construction professionals with using wood in their projects, has changed its name to Think Wood.
Learn more
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Cawood is Eugene First Citizen
Liz Cawood, owner of the Eugene-based marketing company CAWOOD and an OFRI contractor, has been selected as the 2017 Eugene First Citizen by the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce. CAWOOD provides various marketing services to OFRI, including graphic design for the Institute’s publications.
Learn more
.
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Oregon Forest Resources Institute
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The Oregon Legislature created the Oregon Forest Resources Institute in 1991 to advance public understanding of forests, forest management and forest products and to encourage sound forestry through landowner education.
A 13-member board of directors governs OFRI. It is funded by a portion of the forest products harvest tax.
Copyright © 2018, Oregon Forest Resources Institute. All Rights Reserved.
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