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The greatest pressure on private timber companies is a high price for logs, which will motivate the company to log every last stick, if there is any way to justify it. The greatest pressure on investment companies with forestland is to deliver steady high returns because they are competing with other investment opportunities.

Yes, public land managers can have a huge impact on local economies because they can make decisions based on outputs other than high dollar returns. But I don't foresee them getting back in the game any time soon, given the current political realities.

posted 3 years, 9 months ago
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I don't agree that industrial forestry is death. However, I do believe that the further away from the land the managers are, the less respectful and wise the decisions will be.

posted 3 years, 9 months ago
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I believe the changes have been in every aspect of forest management. The former owners spent a great deal on weed control, controlled burning, fertilizing, thinning, and planting genetically superior seedlings with extreme care and high front-end investment. Because they had done such a good job of creating quality forests, the purchase price was the largest per acre price obtained in any forestland sale up to that point.

posted 3 years, 9 months ago
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I used to work for a small private timber company based in North Bend, Oregon that was family-owned. It was managed by foresters and it was managed with a long-term view to creating productive forests. Shareholder value for the family was important, but did not pre-empt substantial current investment that would deliver long term returns.

Since being purchased by Campbell Group, the focus has changed to delivering short-term value for the shareholders. It has been a dramatic change with, I expect,  lamentable long-term consequences. Once again, short term profits have won over wise long-term decision-making.

posted 3 years, 9 months ago
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