6
area news
september13
2011
Vernonia Forest Project Tests
Groundbreaking Laser Technology
The world’s first ground-
based laser scanning forest carbon
valuation system is being tested
in the Vernonia area as part of
the project thatis exploring the
possibility of linking carbon credits
with healthcare.
Piloted in Columbia County,
the Forest Health-Human Health
Initiative is engaging local forest
owners in the nation’s first program to
exchange carbon stored in forests for
health care services. In collaboration
with the Pinchot Institute for
Conservation, forest scientists from
Oregon State University are testing a
new
ground-based light detection and
ranging (LIDAR) technology in
and around the City of Vernonia’s
municipal forest lands.
Similar to the radar guns
used by law enforcement to catch
speeders, LIDAR bounces a narrow
beam of light off of objects at
thousands of pulses per-second to
map the physical features of forests
with extremely high resolution.
Typically mounted on low-altitude
aircraft, aerial LIDAR is already used
by large industrial forest landowners,
but this option remains too costly
for family forest landowners.
“Similar to how personal computers
have evolved, a new generation of
ground-based LIDAR technologies
has emerged with potential to be
a smaller, nimbler, and less costly
option than their predecessors,” said
Oregon State University forestry
professor Dr. Michael Wing.
“This ground-based LIDAR
approach is being tested as a way
to measure biomass and carbon
volumes in a single read, which
may have implications for all sorts
of forest management objectives
including forest carbon projects,”
said Dr. Wing. Supported by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture and the
Pinchot Institute for Conservation,
a Washington, D.C. based forest
conservation non-profit, Dr. Wing’s
research team is determining the
applicability of this new technology
in markets for carbon storage and
biomass energy.
Carbon value is created in
such markets when landowners agree
to increase the carbon stocks in their
forest above the amount they would
have stored without initiating the
project. This is typically achieved by
managing in a way that will promote
robust growth, shifting the timing of
harvests, or extending the length of
rotations. While such activities can
be modeled to project changes in
forest growth, landowners ultimately
benefit from having a more accurate
inventory of their forest’s total
carbon, and a lower cost protocol for
monitoring that carbon from year to
year.
If the early trials are
successful,
this
ground-based
LIDAR technology could be applied
in the forests around Vernonia,
where landowners are eager to
explore opportunities in biomass
energy and carbon storage. Local
natural resource professionals may
eventually operate such LIDAR
scanning units throughout Columbia
County to quickly and accurately
attain a measure of timber and carbon
stocks, encouraging more landowners
to benefit from carbon markets.
Private forest landowners
are clamoring for new markets to
help them maintain their forest.
Pinchot Institute research reveals
that landowners are often forced
to sacrifice long-term visions of
a sustainable multi-generational
forest to pay unexpected health care
expenses with short-term revenue
from timber harvests or the outright
sale of their land. “We’ve seen this
trend nationwide,” said Pinchot
Institute Senior Fellow, Catherine
Mater. “Forest carbon projects
have been around for a while, but
landowners with large parcels have
really been the only ones able to
take advantage to date. The LIDAR
technology can help change this, but
technology will only get us part of
the way. We believe investors will
be willing to pay more for carbon
credits that
are linked to quantifiable social
benefits coming in the form of direct
payments to health care accounts for
landowners and rural communities.”
For more information on
the Forest Health-Human Health
Initiative go to www.pinchot.org/gp/
FHHI
County Starts
Construction on
Canaan Road
Columbia County Road Department
will begin the construction phase for the Canaan
Road Guardrail project on Thursday, September
8, 2011. According to Glen Crinklaw, Assistant
Public Works Director, the purpose of this
project is to install guardrail as a sharp curve
on Canaan Road where vehicle accidents have
occurred. This curve is approximately 1.3
miles up Canaan Road off of US Highway 30.
The construction period will start on
September 8th with the project being finished
on October 31, 2011. Crinklaw says that while
there will be no complete road closure due to
this work, the public should be aware that the
construction activity will cause some traffic
delays for vehicles needing to travel through
the construction area.
The projected cost for this project is
$614,000, with funding provided by the Federal
Highway Administration and the Columbia
County Road Fund.
For any questions or if additional
information is needed, residents can contact
the Columbia County Road Department at 503-
397-5090.
Vernonia’s Voice is
published twice each
month on the 2nd and
4th Tuesday. Look
for our next issue
September 27th.
VERNONIA SATURDAY PUBLIC AUCTION
First and Third Saturday of each month
First auctions will be Saturday,
September 24 and October 8.
CONDUCTED BY
HUNTINGTON MFG.
Sale starts at 11:00 am
998 Bridge Street
We will auction everything from household to farm equipment & everything in between
If consigned to the auction. This is an auction for anyone having something to sell and for anyone wish-
ing to bid on and buy. Buyer’s Premium – There is 10% Buyers Fee that will be added to your final bill.
There will be a concession stand with snacks and refreshment , and during the hourly 10 min. breaks we
will have a local talent contest for children 14 years and younger.
Consignments Wanted
If You Have Something To Sell We Are Interested
Please No Junk - Call Jack and We ’ll Talk About It 503-475-5104
Consignment Fees are 10% for Items That Sell for $5000.00+
Consignment Fees are 20% for Items That Sell for Less Than $5000.00
We Will Accept Consinments on Friday, Sept. 23
from 9am to 5pm and Sat. from 7am to 9am
Phone: 503-475-5104
Fax: 503-429-2520
Talent contest
So kids if you have a talent and want to show it off call Jack
@503-475-5104 you must be age 14 and under to enter. The
audiences will vote for their favorite and winner will be
announced at the end of Auction.
A $25.00 GIFT CARD WILL BE GIVEN TO WINNER
Email: jack@huntingtonmfg.com
