BRATTLEBORO — Did you realize that approximately 86 percent of southeastern Vermont is forested? It has been estimated that annual tree growth in Windham County exceeds 20 million cubic feet.
These forests provide a livelihood for many people through wood harvesting, wood products, hunting, tourism, and maple products. Forests are one of the region's most valuable renewable resources and contribute greatly to the region's economy and authentic sense of place, not to mention their fundamental role in water quality.
The commercially important forest species in the region are sugar maple, white pine, white ash, red oak, and birch. More than 100 million board feet of hardwood lumber is reportedly produced in Vermont each year.
In 2010, Windham County ranked first in the state for total sawlog and veneer log harvest with 22.996 million board feet. The county is typically ranked in the top four counties for overall saw-timber harvest, leading the state in 2010 in the harvest of red oak (2.807 million board feet) and second in the state in white pine (8.310 million board feet), two important species for the state in terms of value and yield.
The Windham Region performs around a third of Vermont's milling (34 percent in 2008), most of which can be attributed to two very large sawmills: Allard Lumber (producing 5 to 10 million board feet) and Cersosimo Lumber (the only mill producing more than 10 million board feet in the state).
A number of secondary wood-related industries - including construction materials, furniture and toy manufacture, cabinetry, boat building, woodenware, carvings, boxes, and musical instruments - are located in the region.
Some manufacturers use locally grown wood, while others tap wood supplies from outside the region and overseas.
One example is the Cooperman Fife and Drum Company, a family-owned business that makes handcrafted musical instruments, but which also operates its own mill to process logs harvested from the region and beyond. The company epitomizes manufacturing “from tree to market.”
Other examples include the local artisans and craftspeople who create and sell their wares locally.
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Threats to the region's forests and timber industry include a rise in property values and the conversion of forested lands into housing development; invasive species, such as the emerald ash borer and the hemlock woolly adelgid; diseases that threaten the survival of many native species; and over-browsing by deer and moose.
Changing climatic conditions may make it more difficult for some native species to survive. Increasingly, hardwood is exported as a raw material, causing a loss of jobs in value-added manufacturing.
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The Windham Regional Commission has formed a Forest Economy Working Group to explore ways to promote the forest economy and the region's understanding of it. WRC's website has a page devoted to the forestry related information (www.windhamregional.org/forestry).
As part of the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center exhibit “Shedding Light on the Working Forest,” the working group has organized a panel to discuss how to promote local wood.
The panel, “Local Wood Local Good,” is scheduled for Oct. 22 at 7 p.m., and will bring together representatives of forestry-related businesses to discuss how to develop markets for local wood products.