Forest Management

Issue

How should the Legislature support the sustainable management of Minnesota’s forest resources and the economic activity of the forest products sector?

Policy

Minnesota’s forests support the fourth largest manufacturing industry in the state, providing 36,000 jobs with a payroll in excess of $1.7 billion, and habitat for wildlife and recreational opportunities for our citizens and visitors. The Minnesota Chamber supports:

• Sustainable forest management policies on county, state and federal lands that provide forest products and recreational opportunities to meet society’s needs.

• Voluntary approaches to improve forest management (Forest Resources Council Voluntary Site-Level Forest Management Guidelines adopted in 1999) and oppose regulating these practices by statute.

• Existing tax policies that recognize and support the long-term nature of owning and managing private forest lands – industrial and nonindustrial – and promote retaining those lands as forests.

• Adequate resources (timber sales revenue) for the Department of Natural Resources Division of Forestry to actively manage state-owned forest lands.

• Adequate funding for the implementation of the Sustainable Forest Resources Act, including the policy, planning, coordination and monitoring programs of the Forest Resources Council.

• Appropriate financial assistance for students seeking careers as natural resource and wood and paper products professionals, and appropriate funding for research at the University of Minnesota, College of Natural Resources on sustainable forest management, product/process development and utilization efforts and Extension programs.

Business Impact

The forest products sector, ranking as one of the top manufacturing industries in the state, is a vital component of Minnesota’s economy. The industry consists of five pulp and paper mills, three recycled pulp and paper mills, four hardboard and specialty product mills, two oriented strand board mills, more than 500 sawmills and more than 800 secondary manufacturers and associated industries. The forest products industry employs 36,000 people and has an annual payroll in excess of $1.7 billion. The value of shipped products is more than $8.6 billion. The industry is the fourth largest manufacturing industry in the state, generates 11 percent of the value of all manufacturing shipments in the state and has invested $4 billion in manufacturing facilities in recent years. More than 7.1 million forestland acres are independently certified to assure sustainable forest management.