As we close out the year, I would like to wish you a Happy New Year. I hope as you look back that there were many positives in your 2010, and I hope your 2011 is even better.

I also wanted to take the opportunity to share with you a few updates on some late 2010 efforts at Plum Creek, including our local and national food bank support and our new deer wintering area agreement. We also successfully completed our second annual Vermont Moose Haul Rebate program that one young hunter especially enjoyed.

We hope that you find the following articles interesting and worthwhile. Of course, please let us know if you prefer not to receive this email or if you know of others who would like to receive this email. I look forward to being back in touch next year.

Regards,
Mark Doty, Community Affairs Manager

As you know, Plum Creek owns and manages land throughout the New England region including in Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire. During the 2010 moose season in our neighboring state of Vermont, Plum Creek offered a unique program for hunters who registered to hunt on Plum Creek land.

The program offered a rebate of up to $150 to the first three successful hunters each day to help haul their moose from the woods by horse. The program is important to Plum Creek as we observe high moose browse damage on our property due to the animal’s eating and antler rubbing habits that damage young tree growth. In Maine and other states, the moose do not cause as much damage to hardwood regeneration as they do in Vermont.

With that in mind, we wanted to encourage hunters to visit our Vermont land. Additionally, because horses do the least damage to our land when removing the moose, we also wanted to encourage the use of horse haulers if one has a successful hunt.

Plum Creek, in conjunction with the State of Vermont, launched its Moose Haul Rebate program in 2009 and this year did even more to spread the word to hunters. That 2010 effort resulted in more than 100 hunters pre-registering for the moose haul rebate if they were successful hunting on Plum Creek land and $2,700 was provided in hauling rebates to successful hunters during the six-day season.

One hunter named Lindsey Brownfield, an 11-year-old, went hunting with her father on Plum Creek land. She and her father spent four days at camp searching for moose from daybreak until dusk. By the end of the fifth day, Lindsey could proudly write in her diary that she had shot a bull on her very first moose hunt. And not only did she haul in the moose, but she was also able to haul in the $150 reimbursement.

‘Tis the season of giving! The Plum Creek offices in Bingham, Fairfield, Marshall Yard and Greenville set out to spread some holiday cheer by donating $16,000 to 12 different food pantries across the state of Maine.

“Community engagement is an essential part of our company values,” said Mark Doty, community affairs manager for Plum Creek. “These donations will help us make a positive impact in the places we live and work.”

The following food pantries received donations during the holiday season:

• Bingham Area Food Pantry
• Fairfield Interfaith Food Pantry Inc.
• Jackman Food Bank
• Skowhegan Community Food Cupboard
• Solon Food Closet
• Living Word Community Food Cupboard
• Guilford Economic Partnership
• Stratton/ Eustis Food Pantry
• Greater Waterville Area Food Bank
• Dexter Community Food Closet
• Mid-Coast Hunger Prevention Program Inc.
• Oakland Council of Churches Oakland Food Pantry

This holiday season, Plum Creek and its Foundation donated $130,000 to food banks and other organizations across the 19 states where the company operates.

As winter approaches, it’s a good time to provide an update on the collaborative agreement Plum Creek has with Maine Inland Fisheries & Wildlife (IF&W) for management of deer wintering areas in the state.

In 2007, the two parties agreed that more than 30,000 acres of Plum Creek land in Somerset, Piscataquis and Franklin Counties would be managed for both sustainable timber resources and critical deer winter habitat. The goal of this effort is to balance a sustainable flow of wood products with a long-term supply of winter shelter for deer to seek relief during Maine’s winter conditions. Since 2008, Plum Creek and IF&W have worked together to incorporate additional biological information and refine the boundaries.

“Efforts like these are critical to bring predictability to the landowner and IF&W as we blend two goals of long-term management of timber resources and deer wintering habitat. In fact, the forest management process under the agreement, relies on forester experience and judgment to manage tree species composition, canopy cover and stand structure,” said John Pratte, wildlife management section supervisor with IF&W. “Efforts like these go a long way toward ensuring deer can survive our tough Maine winters.”

Plum Creek's current voluntary agreement covers 16 different deer wintering areas across the state. The next steps for both Plum Creek and IF&W include developing more detailed management plans for the wintering areas and monitoring winter use by the deer.

“Good forest management can and does go hand in hand with looking out for those species that call the woods home,” said Henning Stabins, a wildlife biologist at Plum Creek.

In Maine, several other landowners also have voluntary agreements in place to provide deer shelter in the state. Plum Creek is involved in similar voluntary efforts to protect deer wintering areas in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Michigan.

After nine years in Oregon and four years in Wisconsin, Mike Rundell transferred to Maine for a significant company project – he currently oversees the Moosehead Region Conservation Easement. With ten foresters under him, he and his team are responsible for ensuring that the land – some of Maine’s most scenic – is not only managed successfully as a working forest, but that it is carefully managed for unique attributes such as rare plant life and wildlife.

“It was hard to leave Wisconsin, but I really enjoy the opportunity to manage the complexities of a conservation easement with an outstanding team of foresters in the Moosehead District of Maine,” said Rundell. “To be a member of the preeminent timber company in New England leading the way in environmental stewardship is an incredible opportunity.”

Mike and his family live in Dover-Foxcroft. He has worked for Plum Creek for total of 14 years, and he enjoys hunting and fishing.