WASHINGTON, DC –The Forest Landowners Association (FLA) commends the introduction of H.R. 655: The Disaster Reforestation Act, bipartisan legislation designed to allow private forest landowners to recover from the loss of timber destroyed by natural disasters. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA) and Rep. Terri Sewell (D-AL), would provide economic certainty that is…
On December 30, the Environmental Protection Agency and U.S Department of the Armyreleased a notice of their final rule defining Waters of the United States (WOTUS). The final rule relies largely on pre-2015 guidance: starting with the 1986 regulations as a baseline and updated to include limitations by the Supreme Court on federal jurisdiction since…
Update: Effective Date Delayed Until March 31, 2023The effective date of the final rule to reclassify the northern long-eared bat as endangered has been delayed until March 31, 2023. The Service notes that the delay is necessary to finalize conservation tools and guidance documents to avoid confusion and disruption with members of the public and…
In October 2022, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed to designate 209,520 acres of forestland in Louisiana and Texas as critical habitat for the Louisiana Pinesnake. 72,925 acres of this proposed designation are privately owned, including 2,716 acres of unoccupied private land designated for reintroduction efforts on adjacent National Forest land. FLA prepared comments…
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is seeking data and input on the eastern diamondback rattlesnake to determine whether the species is warranted for listing as threatened or endangered. As part of the Species Status Assessment Committee for the snake, FLA is requesting data from our members. Layering private land data with the existing public…
Collaborative conservation was the cornerstone of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s finding earlier this month that listing the gopher tortoise population as a threatened or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act was not warranted throughout its entire range. The populations in the eastern segment, which includes Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and most of…
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Friday, October 14, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. issued a Proclamation on National Forest Products Week, 2022, stating: “During National Forest Products Week, we give thanks for the beauty of our forest and the bounty they provide: from the lumber in our homes and the paper we print to the medicines…
In response to President Biden’s Executive Order 14072: Strengthening the Nation’s Forests, Communities, and Local Economies, the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management on July 15, 2022, released a Request for Information to inform their approach to defining and conserving old growth and mature forests. While landowners can appreciate the cultural significance…
By Bob Williams Most forest landowners understand the critical role logging plays in the long-term ownership and conservation of their forest resources, both from an ecologicaland economic perspective. The Britannica definition of logging is “the process of harvesting trees, sawing them into appropriate lengths and transporting them to a sawmill.” Of course, there is some…
UPDATE: On July 3, 2023, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released the finalized rule on experimental populations. The final rule revises the regulations concerning experimental populations of endangered and threatened species under the Endangered Species Act by allowing for the introduction of populations into habitats outside of their historical range. The Service did little…