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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 15, 1999)
JANUARY 15, 1999 3 tlmh fa The "Tribe's Natural Resource foresters and biologist work together to manage forest while selling timber. By Oscar Johnson Staff Reporter On the northwest corner of Grand Ronde's more than 9,000 acre forest reservation a designated timber site, commonly referred to as a "stand" by foresters, has been mapped, sur veyed and is ready to be approved for sale. . , , In about two months the Tribe's Natural Resources Division hopes the 67.1 acre Te-ah-wit stand will be approved by two committees and Trjbal Council, advertised then sold to the highest bidder at a sealed bid auction. - ";' . .' , But tribal foresters say, like other proposed timber sales, a lot of prepa ration took place to ensure the rela tive safety of the natural habitat. They say the work begins long before roads that may be needed are built, timber yields are estimated and bidding on the harvest starts. A biological evaluation of the pro posed site must be submitted to the U. S. Department of Fish and Wild life to ensure the federal Endan gered Species Act is met. Then an environmental protection plan is drawn up. The plan outlines parts of the site that will remain uncut. These buff ers are left standing around streams and between stands to maintain wild-. life habitat, water and soil quality. "We do things in a way that most doing forest management don't con sider," says Mike Miller, Natural Re source forester. "That's why I like this job so much, we get to do a lot of different things." - The difference Miller and his co workers often refer to is their division's tradition of having timber and environmental specialists work close together; and the freedom tribal foresters have to manage the reser vation in a habitat friendly way. Miller says when Natural Re sources lays out a timber sale they do more than set aside the required buffer zones. They also try to pre serve a variety of trees to ensure a . healthy wildlife habitat. Since the reservation consists mainly of Douglas Fir trees, tribal foresters do more than just meet buffer requirements, Miller says. With the help of the division's Fish and Wildlife Biologist, Kelly Doerksen, he tries to ensure buffers J j 0 4 -V If ' i- J 'V !! -iri rrt mm lijf 'Itiltitiit' (fa ! 'iimlto' V qjPMpto ratal w' w ilfffr' itnn 'Ifa fktittGl iiiil& 'iffitte trtintimw have diverse trees such as Alders, Hemlocks and the area's rare Cedars. Trees left standing also include dead or dying trees that will provide hollows for birds and other animals as well as a select amount of older multi-limbed trees which are still liv ing. The larger trees would add to the bounty of a good timber harvest but are saved because they are ideal homes for threatened species of birds such as the Marble Murrelet. "By increasing the diversity of trees in the area we're also increasing habitat for a number of species," ex plains Doerksen. 'That's one way we differ from the typical private tim ber company." Doerksen's job may include stun ning stream fish with a mild electri cal jolt to measure and count them or camping in the woods to rise be fore dawn and search for rare birds. His job could be much easier. "I'd go home and watch TV if I worked for a private timber com pany," he says. Another way things are done dif ferently for the division's timber sales is the provisions that are made to safeguard the reservation's deer and elk population. Natural Resources is more than three years into a five year study to determine if deer and elk are using parts of the reservation as a natural habitat, Doerksen says. Recently a road was closed to ve hicle traffic to preserve about 1,000 acres the animals are using. Two meadows have also been cordoned off for exclusive use by local elk herds. . There is still a year-and-a-half left to continue the series of monthly studies but Doerksen says "it's pretty obvious they're using this area. "The question is whether the Tribe wants to continue using the area (for elk and deer habitat) after five years," he adds. "That's where the controversy is." . The Te-ah-wit stand calls for roughly one-half of the site to be harvested by regeneration or clearcutting and replanting; and the other half will use commercial thin ning to cut only a portion of stand ing trees. Although thinning leaves less en vironmental impact than clear cut ting, it too has its drawbacks. Miller says commercial thinning usually leaves an unnatural uni form space between trees creating a uniform canopy or forest tree height. This tends to cut off growth for younger seedlings beneath the canopy. But the selective methods Tribal biologist Kelly Doerksen, left, and forester Mike Miller use paint to mark the reservation trees that are to remain standing for wildlife habitat and adding to the diversity of the forest. used by Grand Ronde foresters aim to prevent this.. "Even the forest management plan we're working with now would have us cut anything 70 years-old and over," says Doerksen highlight ing the discretion used by division foresters. "If they were working purely for profit they could just zip through here and go home and watch TV." Miller says that in the controver sial realm of forest management the Tribe is able to use the best of both worlds. "If they are commercial they've got an investment to think about. They're looking to produce timber. And federal management is so re stricted you can't get anything done," says Miller. "I see the Tribe as being in the middle, bringing these two together. "We still make good money in the timber aspect," he says. "But we can plan for other uses like wildlife habi tat and water quality." Perhaps what has made this com bination so successful is the oppor tunity specialists like Miller and Doerksen have to work together. "I feel like I've become a lot better forester," Doerksen says. "And they've become better biologists in what they do."
