Clallam County forestry staff report $6.1 million in 2024 timber sales; pause and litigation put hundreds of thousands at risk

Clallam County forestry staff reported at a meeting with the Clallam County Board of Commissioners that calendar-year 2024 timber sales totaled about $6.1 million, and that roughly $16 million in sales were under contract going into 2025.

Drew, a forestry staff member, said, “So, yeah, this will be the end of calendar 24. Ended at 6,100,000.0 for timber sales. I was predicting just over 5, and then at the last minute, a big big payment came in…” He told commissioners a late payment at the end of December increased the year-end total by about $1 million.

County staff told the board their preliminary projection for calendar 2025 was about $13.5 million in timber sales and that about $6.2 million of sold volume rolls into 2026. Staff said the sales listed as “below” in their report were those scheduled to close by June 30, the end of the county’s fiscal half-year, leaving “just short of $16,000,000 under contract” when including remaining sales still in paperwork or audit.

Staff identified three sales that are involved in litigation or other holds and described those three as protecting approximately $726,000 in revenue that is “in most question” because of ongoing legal processes. Drew said purchasers typically notify the county and opposing counsel once they begin operations, which often triggers further court scheduling. He said, “I can’t predict exactly what will happen,” and listed litigation as the primary uncertainty affecting those receipts.

Commissioners and staff discussed a broader commissioner-issued pause on some sales and exemptions for certain harvest activities. Staff described the Olympic Experimental State Forest (OESF) as managed under the same trust mandate as other lands but with experimental rules and adaptive management; staff said certain OESF harvest units were exempted from the pause because they already met habitat thresholds in the Habitat Conservation Plan.

Because of the pause and litigation, staff said they were searching for smaller “region” sales with values under $250,000 that can move through the sale pipeline more quickly. Drew said the county will look for replacement volumes, possibly including younger wood than usual, and noted that shifting to smaller sales increases per-unit internal costs because the same administrative steps are required for each sale.

Staff also gave a quarter-by-quarter preview: they reported about $1.1 million in receipts in the first quarter of the year, expected additional payments in the second and third quarters from specific sales already underway, and said several contracts were in audit or awaiting final deposit. Staff listed multiple named sales and purchasers that are near or in audit, in some cases noting extended timelines because of roadwork or weather.

The county’s forest program manager told the board that some sales are stalled by litigation or by the commissioner’s pause, while other units—particularly those in OESF or those exempted under the pause—are expected to continue. Staff said they will continue to monitor operations and to communicate with purchasers and counsel as operations start.

Ending: Staff asked commissioners for continued patience while they seek near-term replacement sales and complete audits of contracts. No formal vote or directive was recorded at the meeting on this agenda item; staff described their actions as continued management and outreach to find replacement volume and to move non-paused sales forward.