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Council presses timber solutions after logging capacity fell; timber sales, stewardship contracts discussed
Summary
Members and agency staff debated why limited logging capacity and past restrictions mean fewer contractors can remove dead wood; staff said stewardship contracts and discounted sales aim to prioritize fuel removal over revenue.
Council members blamed historic regulatory restrictions and market changes for reducing local sawmills and logging capacity, arguing that those constraints have made it harder to remove dead fuels before they fuel big fires.
"We all know that... it was red tape," one member said, criticizing past restrictions that led local loggers to leave the business. Darren and other staff described efforts to address the gap: stewardship contracts designed to sell wood at low value in exchange for required road or reforestation work, and outreach to rebuild wood-products infrastructure. Darren said some timber contracts include staged payments and penalties to encourage performance but acknowledged that market demand and available sawmills limit how quickly sales can be completed.
Members urged staff to return with specific, actionable examples of regulatory or contractual changes the public-lands council and Plitco could pursue to reduce delays in fuel removal. Staff also discussed the limits of enforcement in 10-year contracts and how burned timber may complicate existing sale terms.
