Oregon has to prepare for a possible second spike of COVID-19 in the fall, fight wildfires while not spreading the infection to crews, and do it with budgets slashed by the state’s dire finances, lawmakers were told Wednesday.
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Without low-intensity fires periodically consuming the brush and small trees of the dry inland forests, they’re now more densely packed with vegetation that can fuel large wildfires
The U.S. Forest Service is considering whether to amend a 25-year-old rule that prohibits logging older, larger trees across six national forests in Central and Eastern Oregon.
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SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California's unemployment rate nearly tripled to 15.5% in April as the nation's most populous state lost more jobs in one month than it did during the Great Recession…
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BOISE, Idaho (AP) — An 18-square-mile forest project approved by the U.S. Forest Service in northern Idaho harms wildlife, two environmental groups say, and they have filed a lawsuit to stop it.
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has fined Roseburg Forest Products $22,800 for multiple air quality violations stemming from incidents last year at the company's plywood manufac…
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Gov. Kate Brown announced Thursday morning that most Oregon counties will be allowed to take the first step toward lifting emergency limits on activity put in place since March by the COVID-19…
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WOODWAY, Wash. (AP) — An aerial drop of insecticide to stop an invasive moth and to prevent forest foliage damage is scheduled Friday in parts of Washington state, officials said.
Environmental groups are suing the Trump administration to protect a rare, weasel-like carnivore found along a narrow strip of coastal forests in Southern Oregon and Northern California.
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The Oregon Department of Forestry declared fire season May 1 in the agency's Southwest Oregon District, covering 1.8 million acres of state-protected lands in Jackson and Josephine counties.
A 15,700-acre thinning and vegetation management project in Oregon’s Ochoco National Forest has come under legal fire from allegedly failing to protect elk and riparian habitats.
Oregon's timber industry is urging state lawmakers and Gov. Kate Brown to delay the new Corporate Activity Tax for six months to help businesses weather the coronavirus pandemic.
Boise National Forest seasonal workers arriving over the next six weeks will follow self-isolation, social distancing and other protocols to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
The Boise National Forest’s Emmett Ranger District will take comment through May 14 on the Sage Hen Integrated Restoration Project.
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A nationwide legal precedent concerning a rare Southern frog has helped convince federal wildlife managers to re-evaluate the “critical habitat” for the threatened Northern spotted owl.
Three environmental groups announced Tuesday they intend to sue the Trump administration seeking endangered species protections for increasingly fragmented populations of red tree voles living…
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A federal appeals court has determined an 11,700-acre thinning project near Oregon’s Mt. Hood requires more extensive environmental review, effectively halting timber harvest.
Irrigation districts' essential burning next to canals, laterals, ditches is wrapping up ahead of delivery season start.
Nursery a key resource for Intermountain West.
Going from a manufacturer of “commodity plywood” to “mass plywood panels” has forced the Freres Lumber Co. to alter its mindset.
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A judge will not order a new trial or overrule a jury’s verdict awarding $1 billion to local governments that sued Oregon over logging restrictions on state forestlands.
Harvesting trees from the steep slopes of western Oregon is rarely a logistically simple feat, but this job was a particular doozy.
Dry conditions are forecast to persist this spring and have Western wildfire forecasters worried.
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Washington log truck operators spoke against a renewable-fuels bill Monday by talking about their families and employees, and stressing that they don't see much of a future, financially or tec…
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Timber Unity debuted in Washington's capital Monday morning, as dozens of log trucks parked on the Capitol Campus before sunrise, their drivers and passengers ramped up to testify against a cl…
Though not as immediately devastating as wildfires, slowed growth rates nonetheless pose a grave threat to Western Oregon’s commercial timber operations, experts say.
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OLYMPIA — Washington Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz said Feb. 20 that 100,000 acres of fire-prone forests should be thinned annually in Central and Eastern Washington, a project she said will…
Red-tape reduction: Idaho administrative-rules overhaul impacts ag, timber sectors.
Complements 2019 law requiring written consent before annexing agricultural land
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The landmark deal between timber industry and environmental community hinges on legislation around aerial spraying, but cap-and-trade woes could blow up the deal if Republicans walk .
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The two sides have been at odds over policy and practices for decades, and this agreement aims to create a mediation process for updating the Oregon Forest Practices Act, passed in 1971.
Ponderosa is a fire-tolerant species and in the absence of regular intervals of wildfire, stands grow too dense for ample sunlight to reach fruiting shrubs.
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Thousands gather at Oregon Capitol to protest climate bill that they say would hurt rural economy.
Formation occurs ahead of population counts, redistricting that could increase urban representation.
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Beginning at 7 a.m., Thursday, Feb. 6, Timber Unity will organize a procession of logging trucks that will converge on Salem during the legislative session.
Started as smokejumper at National Interagency Fire Center 30 years ago. Brings in-house, international experience.
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VANCOUVER, Wash. — Log markets probably won’t fluctuate as wildly in 2020 as during the past few years, but the Northwest timber industry can expect political volatility, experts say.
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Angelita Sanchez’s message was loud and clear when she spoke about the renewed effort in the Oregon Legislature to pass a cap-and-trade bill. “We’re fed up,” she said.
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The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld an earlier ruling that determined the U.S. Forest Service complied with environmental laws in authorizing a forest thinning project along the L…
Cross-jurisdiction partnerships show impact
With the current concern land managers have for the health of their land and the desire to promote carbon sequestration, silvopasture offers a means to regenerate degraded, less healthy land.
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After more than a decade in business, Garrett Huggins doesn’t aspire to become a mistletoe magnate.
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The U.S. Forest Service has formed the Blues Intergovernmental Council to address land management planning on the Umatilla, Wallowa-Whitman and Malheur national forests.
Oregon fish and wildlife commissioners are reconsidering whether to grant endangered species protections for the marbled murrelet, a small seabird that nests in coastal old growth forests.
Thomas DeLuca, who currently serves as dean of the University of Montana's College of Forestry and Conservation, has been named dean of the Oregon State University College of Forestry.
Washington Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz proposed Monday taxing insurance policies to raise $63 million a year to prevent and fight wildfires.
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A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has determined the 2017 expansion of Oregon’s Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument was largely invalid, contradicting an earlier ruling by a federal judge in…
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SALEM — The $1 billion award against the State of Oregon in a class action lawsuit over its forestry practices will likely be subject to lengthy appeals, but it may also put pressure on the go…
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ALBANY, Ore. — Jurors in Oregon on Wednesday found in favor of 14 counties in their $1 billion lawsuit against the state over revenue from logging on state lands.
Environmentalists want to stop a 9,000-acre timber project in Southern Oregon that will allegedly allow logging in threatened spotted owl habitat contrary to federal laws.
SALEM — Gov. Kate Brown’s Council on Wildfire Response on Tuesday released recommendations on how to spend $4 billion it says is need to improve the state’s response to catastrophic wildfires.
SALEM — A political fight over how Oregon manages its forests and timber activity could resolved by voters next fall.
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Sea-surface temperatures could bring warmer air through February
New jobs are on the horizon with the completion of the torrefaction plant expected at the end of the year.
LOSTINE, Ore. — The Lostine Canyon neighborhood has become northeast Oregon’s first nationally recognized “Firewise” community, an event that could lead to more efforts to prevent or combat wi…