KNF officials hold out hopes of hitting goal of 80 million board feet of lumber

With a series of forestry projects headed down the pike, officials with the Kootenai National Forest are still hoping to hit their goal of 80 million board feet of lumber by the end of September.

Chad Benson, forest supervisor, said reaching the goalpost would likely hinge on the Black Ram Project, a timber harvest that has repeatedly drawn fire from environmental groups for how it may affect grizzly bear populations in the Yaak.

While the Black Ram Project is under analysis by the U.S. Fish Wildlife Service, Benson told Lincoln County commissioners on July 7 that he expected the federal agency to hand the project back to Forest Service officials in the first week of August.

Securing this timber harvest, which represents around 25 million board feet, would put the Forest Service within 90 percent of its goal.

Even if the Black Ram project is delayed beyond the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30, Benson said he was optimistic that officials could roll it out by the end of the calendar year. Beyond accounting changes, Benson said that pushing the project off to next fiscal year would not significantly affect local timber operations.

Officials expect to treat 40,000 acres of local forestlands between 2021 and 2022. This work would include timber harvests, fuel reduction and vegetative treatment. Maintaining and building strong bonds with state, local and other federal officials through shared stewardship agreements will be critical for the Forest Service to accomplish the work, according to Benson.

“When you’re knocking 20,000 acres a year between fuels and vegetative treatments, we’re operating close to the capacity we’re set up for, maybe even slightly above,” he said.

A recent surge in building material prices has continued to hamper Forest Service plans for an elevated boardwalk in the Ross Creek Cedars Scenic Area. Officials received funding for the project as part of the Great American Outdoors Act, but designed the boardwalk last fall before the cost of lumber soared. To secure the funds, Benson planned to wait until the end of the year when officials reshuffle monies left over from other projects.

Two weeks prior to Benson’s meeting with commissioners, officials finalized a deal to purchase the supervisor’s office on U.S. Highway 2. While the Forest Service would have to cover maintenance on the building, Benson said this was preferable to the alternative of purchasing a new building.