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…
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…
In 2021, the Biden administration proposed a hefty goal of conserving 30% of America’s land and water by 2030 (called the “30 by 30” initiative, and later the America the Beautiful Initiative). With over half of forestland in the U.S. being privately owned, landowners worried what this goal might mean for their working forests. Earlier…
On November 24, 2021, the United States Department of Commerce announced anti-dumping and countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber producers, by doubling tariffs to 17.9% on their imports, more than twice the previously imposed rate of 8.9%. The actions were the final determination in the second administrative review of softwood lumber imports from Canada. The…
Family-owned and operated businesses face several challenges when transitioning to the next generation of ownership, including navigating the tax code. As recent jobs reports indicate, the economy remains on delicate footing, and at a time when many families and private forestry businesses are still struggling with disaster recovery and flat stumpage prices, several proposals put…
Due to nationwide labor shortages in all workforces, the cap on H-2B temporary labor visas was reached on September 30, marking it the earliest point in time that the first half H-2B cap has ever been reached in program history. In response, FLA joined other forestry stakeholders in sending a letter to the Department of…
In conjunction with President Biden’s first 100 days in office, FLA hosted a “First 100 Days” webinar series to keep our members informed on the executive, congressional, and regulatory actions that impact private forest ownership and management. Each monthly installment in the series served to update our members on the topics they care about most:…
In a meeting last month with USDA’s Robert Bonnie, Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and Senior Adviser for Climate, FLA laid out its position that working lands and working forests can play a critical role in reaching the Biden administration’s goal – detailed in an Executive Order signed in late January – of conserving…