GA Accepting Applications in March for Hurricane Michael Recovery Block Funds

The Georgia Department of Agriculture recently announced that they would be accepting online applications from forest landowners and farmers affected by Hurricane Michael for Farm Recovery Block Grants. Georgia farmers and forest landowners in 95 eligible counties who suffered losses to timber, forestland, or uninsured infrastructure are eligible to enroll in the program. The federal block grants seek to help recover losses not covered under existing USDA Farm Service Agency programs. In 2018, Georgia agriculture suffered a $2.5 billion economic loss from Hurricane Michael, and since then the GDA has worked closely with the USDA to reach an agreement on a disaster relief package. Last November, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) earmarked $800 million in block grant funds to aid states impacted by the storm, allocating $347 million for Georgia farmers and landowners. A total of $347 million in block grant funds are available and applications will be accepted starting on March 18, 2020, with an application deadline of April 8, 2020. The enrollment process can only be completed online  here .

SFE Webinar Presents Legal Constraints For Prescribed fire

The Southern Fire Exchange (SFE), in conjunction with the University of Florida (UF) and the University of Nebraska (UNL), will be hosting a free, one-hour webinar titled “Statutory, Regulatory & Legal Constraints on Prescribed Fire in the US” on March 12, 2020 from 1:00-2:00 p.m. ET. Presented by Dr. Carissa Wonkka, a postdoctoral research associate at UNL’s Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, the webinar will cover various laws and regulations surrounding the practice of prescribed burning. Dr. Wonkka will present an overview of the legislative and legal landscape facing prescribed burners, including data showing how different statutory configurations can alter the amount prescribed fire applied on private land. To register for this webinar, click  here . For more information, contact the SFE at  contactus@southernfireexchange.org .

USFS and NCSU to host National Firewood Workshop in Tennessee

NC State University is teaming up with the US Forest Service (USFS), the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, and the Independent Sawmill & Woodlot Management Magazine to host the National Firewood Workshop on June 10-11, 2020 at the Wilson County Fairgrounds in Lebanon, Tennessee. The workshop, which will primarily focus on how to successfully make money in the firewood business, will be a two-day educational and networking event that provides the firewood processing industry the latest knowledge on processing, kiln drying, and marketing of firewood. Opportunities for educational credit hours for foresters and arborists will be provided. Attendees will include firewood producers, buyers, and equipment makers, as well as foresters, arborists, landowners, loggers, Extension agents, and wood-burning stove manufacturers. The workshop cost is $55/person. To register online, please visit here. To find out more, please contact Harry Watt (NCSU Wood Products Specialist) at hayy_watt@ncsu.edu. 

Forests and Climate Change Mitigation: Role of Markets Panel Discussion Featured Auburn Forestry Dean and USFS-SRS Scientist

On February 11, 2020, Resources for the Future (RFF) hosted an in-depth forestry panel, titled “Forests and Climate Change Mitigation: The Role of Markets", at the Resources and Conservation Center in Washington, D.C. The panel was live streamed on the RFF website and the recording can be accessed here. The primary focus of the panel was on the critical role forests and the forest products sector can play in climate-change mitigation due to their encouragement of the retention and management of forests. Speakers included Dr. Janaki Alavalapati, dean of Auburn University’s School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, Robert Bonnie of RFF and Duke University, Kate Gatto of National Alliance of Forest Owners (NAFO), and Dr. David Wear (retired) from the USDA Forest Service (USFS). It began with a short background presentation on forest management and the wide range of forest products followed by a moderated panel discussion with representatives from the forest industry and experts in forest science and policy. RFF is an independent, nonprofit research institution that strives to improve environmental, energy, and natural resource decisions through impartial economic research and policy engagement.

LSU & MSU Professors Present Webinar on Mixed-Species Management

A one-hour webinar titled “Managing Mixed-Species Stands: Reassessing a Forgotten Stand Type in the southeastern United States” will be presented via t he Forestry Webinar Portal, on March 18, 2020, at 12:00 p.m. ET. Drs. Michael Blazier, of Louisiana State University’s AgCenter, and Shaun Tanger, Mississippi State University will discuss preliminary results from a research study in Louisiana that combined Pine-Hardwood mixes in plantation. This webinar is third in a series that covers Mixed-Species Management (MSM), an alternative management strategy that entails managing stands containing pine and hardwood components through natural regeneration, which has the potential to help small landowners in the southeastern United States. The previous webinars can be accessed on the Forestry Webinar Portal too. This webinar series will introduce participants to MSM by describing silvicultural, economic, and landowner considerations as well as potential tradeoffs between MSM and pine plantation management. For more information on how to join the webinar and CEU credits/certificates offered by it, visit  here. 

LSU Prescribed Burning Workshop

The LSU AgCenter is partnering with the Louisiana Ecological Forestry Center, the Southwest Louisiana Forestry Association and the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) to host a workshop designed to enable forest landowners to burn their lands safely and legally. The three-day workshop will be held at the Louisiana Ecological Forestry Center (1000 Hodges Loop, Florien, LA 71429) on June 2 and 3, 2020, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on June 4, 2020, from 8 a.m. to noon. This training will begin the process of becoming a Louisiana Certified Burn Manager, that can be completed after conducting five prescribed fires. Questions about the workshop can be directed to Keith Hawkins, who can be reached via phone at (337) 463-7006 or via email at khawkins@agcenter.lsu.edu.

Prescribed Fire for Wildlife Training Workshop

The “Prescribed Fire for Wildlife” workshop, provided by South Florida Water Management District, Florida Chapter of The Wildlife Society, Palm Beach County Environmental Resource Management, and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, will be held on March 23-26, 2020 at the Everglades Youth Conservation Camp located in West Palm Beach, Florida. This training workshop is designed to provide land managers and wildlife stewards with basic information on wildlife habitat management opportunities associated with prescribed fires in Florida. It includes sections addressing how ignition plans can be developed and implemented to meet specific wildlife objectives while minimizing risk. The training will combine classroom lectures, panel discussions, and field exercises covering a variety of wildlife and habitats. Basic registration $175. Register online  here ; deadline to apply is March 12, 2020. For additional information about this class, please contact Jim Schortemeyer via phone at (239) 455-5847 or via email at  Schortfire@aol.com .

USFS’s i-Tree Software Suite Provides Forestry Analysis and Benefits Assessments Tools 

Developed by the USDA Forest Service (USFS), i-Tree suite of tools can be used to analyze benefits from urban and rural areas. These tools include i-Tree, i-tree Landscape, i-Tree Design, i-Tree Canopy, i-Tree Eco and i-Tree Hydro. As an example, I-Tree Eco quantifies the climate, health and water benefits that trees and forests provide to cities. The tool is designed to use data collected in the field from single trees, complete inventories, or randomly located plots throughout a study area along with local hourly air pollution and meteorological data to quantify forest structure, environmental effects, and value to communities. The information gathered using the i-Tree Eco tool can be used to recommend steps to increase the value of the stock of urban trees within metropolitan areas. Tools like i-Tree Eco provide a unique opportunity for city leaders to ground their policies, plans and investment decisions in local scientific analysis. The i-Tree Suite, which includes i-Tree Eco and other forest analysis tools like i-Tree Hydro, has been used by more than 320,000 users around the world. While the United States is home to almost 90% of those users currently, cities in Latin America, Africa and Asia, places that often lack access to the funds or adequate data needed to run the tools regularly used in Europe and North America, are increasingly using free tools such i-Tree Eco. Find out more about the i-Tree Suite  here , or visit  here  to read an article on a study conducted in Mexico using i-Tree Eco.

USDA Research and Development to Host Webinar on Increasing Carbon Sequestration in U.S. Forests

USDA Forest Service Research & Development, in cooperation with the USDA Climate Hubs, is hosting a First Friday All Climate Change Talks (FFACCTs) webinar titled “The Economic Value of Carbon Sequestration by our Nation’s Forests” on March 6, 2020 at 1 p.m. ET. The primary focus of the webinar will be on the selection of policy alternatives for increasing carbon sequestration in U.S. forests, which often depends on the benefits of various sequestration strategies. Dr. Robert G. Haight, a Research Forester with the USDA Forest Service (USFS) will present. Haight is a leader in the economic analysis of public programs for wildlife conservation, invasive species management, and carbon management. The presentation will also include research developed by USDA Forest Service scientists using Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data that methods for evaluating those benefits. Alternative policies will later be covered, which will include a land-use policy to reduce deforestation, afforestation and reforestation policies targeting rural landowners and federal forest lands, and a policy reducing the area of stand-replacing wildfires. Gains in the present value of carbon benefits associated with each alternative policy and how changes in policy would affect the increase in carbon benefits will also be discussed. Analysis of policy costs, as well as costs and benefits of affected ecosystem services such as water quality, wildlife habitat, and biodiversity, will be included. 

To join the webinar: 

Step 1: For audio, dial: 1-888-844-9904 and use access code: 3847359 

Step 2: Web Login: https://usfs.adobeconnect.com/sfmr-500/

If you’d like to find out more, contact Anne Marsh (National Program Lead for Climate Change Research) at anne.marsh@usda.gov. 

China to Remove Tariffs on US Hardwoods

Based on reports from the Agricultural Specialist at the US Embassy in Beijing as well as the Chinese Ministry of Finance, the Chinese government will remove US hardwood lumber import tariffs starting on February 28th for one year. The Customs Tariff Commission of China's State Council on Feb 21 unveiled the first set of lists of US goods to be excluded from the second round of tariff countermeasures against the US Section 301 measure. The exemption will be effective from Feb 28 to Feb 27, 2021, the commission said in a statement. Work is still being done to clarify exactly what species will be included, however several US hardwood product HS codes are on the list, such as oak lumber and logs, cherry and ash lumber, and “other” hardwood lumber and logs. Oak lumber and logs are marked with “ex” for “excluded”. Additional work is underway to define exactly what that will mean for these products and what the definite tariff rate will be moving forward. Additionally, Chinese companies will be able to apply for refunds of collected duties within six months from Feb 21. Find out more here. To access the official statement in English from the Ministry of Finance, click here.

Note: There is still confusion about this program and the implementation and the situation should be considered fluid and subject to further change.

Southern Regional Extension Forestry | www.sref.info | lboby@sref.info