Forest collaborative groups

In central and eastern Oregon, forest collaborative groups are bringing together a diverse group of stakeholders, including representatives from the conservation community and the timber industry, to find consensus on improving the fire resiliency of public forests.

Group members are developing “zones of agreement” on ways to make federal forests less prone to larger, more destructive wildfires while achieving economic and environmental benefits. The goal is to give the U.S. Forest Service candid feedback on restoration projects and avoid gridlock caused by lawsuits that stop timber harvests.

Federal forest restoration projects support jobs with local logging companies and lumber mills. Revenue from harvested timber also helps pay for related efforts such as wildlife habitat enhancement and stream restoration.

Oregon has more than two dozen collaborative groups, involving hundreds of Oregonians working together to find common ground on forest restoration and other important federal forest management issues across the state.