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Experts tell legislature Douglas-fir dieback has left hundreds of thousands of acres at elevated fire risk
Summary
Scientists, foresters and local officials told a House committee that Douglas-fir mortality has affected roughly 600,000 acres since 2015, killed an estimated 1.74 billion board feet, and created hazardous fuel conditions that raise wildfire risk and impose large removal costs on private landowners and communities.
A multi‑agency panel on Sept. 30 told the legislature that an ongoing Douglas‑fir dieback episode in southern Oregon has already affected large swaths of federal and private forestland and is raising wildfire and infrastructure risks.
Max Bennett, a retired OSU extension forester, said the dieback began around 2015 and accelerated after the 2021 heat dome. He cited a US Forest Service and EcoNorthwest analysis indicating about 600,000 acres affected since 2015 and roughly 1,740,000,000 board feet of timber killed, with about 60% of mortality on federal lands and 40% on private nonindustrial woodland.
"The dieback seems to be occurring primarily on hot and dry sites," Bennett said, and called attention to large, older trees dying on interior valley sites once dominated by oak and pine. The resulting "snag patches" and downed wood…
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