The timber harvest in western Washington’s forests is set to grow by 38% under a new long-term management plan drawn up by the state.
The department of natural resources’ proposal aims to increase the harvest from the 2003 level of 460 million board feet to 636 million board feet by 2013, while also creating more than 2,000 jobs and millions of dollars in non-tax revenue.
An environmental impact statement has been completed and the plan could be adopted in September. The statement calls for an increase in the old growth proportion of state forests from the current 1% level to 5% by 2067.
It also says the level of forests in an unhealthy condition would remain at 63% from now until 2013, but would improve slightly by 2067.
The department says state forest timber harvests have provided US$3bn in revenue during the past 15 years.
