ESFPA E-News

ESFPA Briefs Congressional Offices in D.C.

Last week ESFPA Executive Director John Bartow was invited to participate in several advocacy efforts in Washington D.C. Certainly interesting times to be in the nation's Capital and timing was perfect on a number of issues we discussed. We advocated for the Farm Bill, Forest Legacy funding, Land & Water Conservation Funds (LWCF) and a number of issues including trade & tariffs, Fix Our Forest Act, changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard and changes at EPA regarding water quality, endangered species, climate policy and workforce development. We advocated with the Farm Bill Coalition, American Loggers Council and the LWCF Coalition.

We also had the opportunity to meet with the recently appointed Assistant Secretary of Agriculture Kristen Sleeper who previously had worked for the National Alliance of Forest Owners (NAFO). Congressional members were sent home early last week so most of our meetings were with staff, but we did have a few minutes with both Congressional Members Josh Riley and Nick Langworthy. In all, nine Congressional offices were visited and lots of follow-ups to happen. We also had requests for many summer tours so hopefully we will get a few in.

ESFPA Joins Coalition on UI Relief in the State Budget

ESFPA and two dozen allied business associations sent a letter to legislative leaders asking them to consider committing general funds to the state's lingering Unemployment Insurance (UI) debt.

Part of the letter reads, "We, the undersigned organizations representing tens of thousands of businesses of all sectors and sizes across New York, write to support the Assembly’s proposal to devote $7 billion to pay off the state’s outstanding federal unemployment insurance program loan and help restore the financial stability of the state’s UI fund."

Click the link below to read the full sign on letter:

If Not Wood, What? If Not Here, Where?

Rob Riley, President of the Northern Forest Center, recently released a piece on forest management and the future of the forest-based economy in New England.  Rob raises some extremely worthwhile points to ponder.  While much of his piece focuses on the debate in New England on the management and use of public forestland in New England, he also raises the specter of the future of forest management and sustainable use of wood from private forest lands. 

In New York, much of the discussion about managing and harvesting on public lands was put to rest long ago with the establishment of New York’s Constitutionally protected Forest Preserve (Adirondacks and Catskills). The Forest Preserve is a valuable resource to New Yorkers and one we should be proud of.  It has its purposes and benefits, but forest management and timber harvesting are not part of that. New York also has about 1 million acres of other state-owned forest which is set aside for parks, wildlife management areas and unique areas which too have extremely limited active forest management.

However, New York is also blessed with 15 million other acres of forest much of which does support a forest-based economy and a host of environmental benefits. There is about 1 million acres in State Reforestation Areas and county and local government forest-lands that is and can be managed for multiple benefits including supporting our forest-based economy.  Yes, 14% of this forest is what some may call industrial owned by larger timber companies, but these can only yield so much fiber and timber. A significant number of our forest landowners are the 200,000 plus family forest owners who own 10 acres or more and a majority who own less than a few hundred acres.

The availability and quality of New York’s forest rests largely upon the hundreds of thousands of family forest landowners who own these 14 million acres, 75% of the State’s total forest land.  These forest landowners account for over three-quarters of our freshwater wetlands, 60% of our stream corridors, nearly two thirds of the habitats for our species of greatest conservation concern, they are the linkages for our biological corridors of connectivity, and they are stewards of our surface water watersheds and groundwater recharge areas. These forest landowners are also the source of 90+% of the timber and fiber that we source for our mills and export logs. They are the largest landscape feature that supports our rural forest-based economy.

The future of forest management in New York has more recently become weaponized depending on one’s agenda. There is a movement afoot for “Proforestation”, a philosophical exercise with the goal to ban active forest management. It has real policy implications for the future management (or non-management) of forests and how we deal with air quality, biological connectivity, climate change and water quality, while also sustainably managing our forests to provide products that society needs.

What New York needs is to have a forest policy that balances the imperatives of having forest reserves of protected and maturing forests that can store carbon, while providing the unique ecological benefits of mature forests, while also having sustainably managed forests that can yield renewable natural forest products that displace otherwise fossil fuel intensive products. Managed forests that yield financial benefits to private forest landowners to help them keep their forests as forest and build adaptive capacity and resilience to threats to forest health from invasive pests and pathogens and climate impacts.

ESFPA recently addressed a group of loggers and forest landowners at the New York Lumbermen’s Trust annual meeting and put forth a proposal for directing the Wood Products Development Council to develop a Future Forest Road Map for our working forests and wood product manufacturers. Could we get behind a concerted effort to lay out specifics on the future of our wood products industry and our forests? We would like to hear from our members on the willingness to get beyond arguing about the future of our forests and adapt to a new forest future that has both reserved forests and working forests for the future of New York. We will be talking about this in the coming months and would welcome your input.

Register Now! 29th Annual Conference on the Adirondacks – Resilience in Action

May 15^th & 16^th, 2025 - High Peaks Resort, Lake Placid, NY

Join the Adirondack Research Consortium for the 29th Annual Conference on the Adirondacks! This year’s theme, “Resilience in Action: Addressing Climate Challenges in the North Country,” brings together leading experts, policymakers, and environmental advocates to explore pressing climate impacts, socio-ecological issues, and innovative solutions.

Don’t miss this opportunity to engage, collaborate, and take action toward a more resilient region. Register today and be part of the conversation shaping the future of the North Country!

Click the link below to register: