THE FAMILY FOREST

Jim and Jean

Ballenthin

& Jasmin

Family Forest Action Team

ROLE OF THE FAMILY FOREST

IMPORTANT COMPLEX AT RISK

– Rising Property Taxes– Increasing Property Values– Development Pressure– Medical Costs– Uninvolved Children

Actions Determine Values

Action – Preserve Family Forests

Action – Protect Family Forests

Action – Enhance Family Forests

Decisive, Powerful Action – Now!

FAMILY FORESTS

ARE VALUED

Family Forest Action Team

Build Capacity of Professionals to Provide Technical Assistance

Enhance Incentives that are Meaningful

Identify and Implement Strategies that will Retain Family Forests

Family Forest Action Team

Panel Members Kathryn (Katie) Fernholz – Executive Director of Dovetail Partners, a non-profit

organization based in Minneapolis that fosters sustainability and responsible behaviors. Katie has extensive background in development and forest management issues. She serves as Chair of the Minnesota Society of American Foresters and is a member of the Advisory Board for the Blandin Foundation¹s Vital Forests/Vital Communities Initiative.

Bruce ZumBahlen – President of the Minnesota Forestry Association (MFA), Minnesota’s oldest conservation organization founded in 1876 to promote wise stewardship of Minnesota’s forests. Bruce also serves on the Minnesota Logger Education Program Board of Directors and the Minnesota State Tree Farm Committee.

Calder Hibbard – Policy Analyst with the Minnesota Forest Resources Council. He has conducted forest policy analysis in Minnesota for the past nine years. Calder has a Masters degree in Forestry and a PhD in Natural Resources Science and Management.

Family Forest Action Team

The Family Forest Action Team identified three Strategies. – Build forest stewardship capacity.

– Enhance the availability of incentives for family forests.

– Identify and implement strategies to retain family forests.

Family Forest Action Team

Strategy #1: Build capacity of professionals to deliver technical assistance to the non-industrial private forest landowners.

Background / rationale– “Boots on the ground”

assistance needed

– All organizations included

– Suite of topics

Build Forest Stewardship Capacity

Action steps– Evaluate existing costs and benefits.

– Implement tools for tracking and reporting accomplishments.

– Develop programs or tools to support and track family forestland certification and certified wood harvested from private lands.

Build Forest Stewardship Capacity

Proposed actions will– Address the MFRP objective of identifying key

information and technical assistance opportunities to improve management of family forestlands.

– Result in additional management planning and plan implementation.

Build Forest Stewardship Capacity

Alignment with Governor’s Task Force Report– Support private land assistance and information

programs.

– Increase forest management and productivity investments on private lands.

– Increase family forest’s contribution to Minnesota’s timber supply.

Family Forest Action Team

Strategy #2: Enhance the availability of incentives that encourage management of family forestlands.

Background / rationale– Dwindling cost share dollars

– New opportunities, like carbon

trading

Enhance Incentives for Family Forests

Action steps– Property tax and SFIA law changes.

– Increase cost-share funds for forest management practices.

– Study and recommend a means to trade carbon credits.

Enhance Incentives for Family Forests

Proposed actions will– Tax and SFIA changes would encourage

management and contribute to sustainable harvest levels.

– Increased cost-share funding would accelerate forest management rates on family forests.

– A carbon credit program would drive additional forest management on family forests.

Enhance Incentives for Family Forests

Alignment with Governor’s Task Force Report– Strengthen landowner assistance and incentives to

support forest industry’s efforts to improve utilization.

– Increase fiber contribution from well-managed family forestlands.

– Improve SFIA and Minnesota’s forestland property tax policy.

Family Forest Action Team

Strategy #3: Identify and implement strategies that result in the retention of family forestlands and continue the supply of timber products.

Background / rationale– New owners

– Impacts

– Challenges

Strategies to Retain Family Forests

Proposed actions will – Assess the trends, drivers, and effects of forest

parcelization and development.

– Assess the broad, integrated set of policy approaches.

– Outline a set of policy recommendations.

Strategies to Retain Family Forests

Action steps– Creation of ad hoc task force.

– Seek support to secure resources to complete assessment and recommendations.

– Conduct research and development recommendations for decision-makers.

Strategies to Retain Family Forests

Alignment with Governor’s Task Force Report– 2006 report

– 2007 report

– Other broad support