April 2013
Cotton takes forestry tour Max Braswell AFA Executive Vice President
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rkansas Fourth District U.S. Rep. Tom Cotton spent Good Friday afternoon with representatives of the timber and forest products community touring timberland near Royal in Garland County. AFA was pleased to participate in the tour, coordinated by the Forest Landowners Association (FLA), and conducted by FLA board member Pete Prutzman, of Kingwood Forestry Services, Inc., who also serves as AFA’s secretary. Participants were able to discuss a variety of issues of importance with the Congressman, including EPA’s Tailoring Rule, Boiler MACT, tax policy, forest health and other regulatory issues. Other participants included Rep. Ken Bragg, Resource Management Service; Mary Clapp, Stevens Forestry Service; Tom Crowder, U.S. Trust, Bank of America; Ray Dillon, Deltic Timber; Greg Hay, Crop Production Services; John Hearnsberger, Weyerhaeuser Co.; and Allen Morgan, Hunter-Wasson, Inc.
U.S. Rep. Tom Cotton (far right) visits with forestry community representatives during a recent tour.
Log A Load For Kids celebrates 20 years and $6.35 million raised for ACH
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n 1993, a group of Arkansas loggers and forest product industry representatives came together to start the Log A Load For Kids program to benefit Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH). That year, the campaign raised $42,000. In 2012, the group raised a record $483,341, bringing the program’s total to more than $6.35 million. On March 28, Log A Load For Kids committee members from around the state met at ACH for a 20th anniversary campaign kickoff meeting that included a tour of the Log A Load For Kids of Arkansas Emergency Department and Trauma Unit and a trip to the State Capitol as the House of Representatives passed House Resolution 1028, honoring the program. “Congratulations on 20 years and thank you for your support of Arkansas Children’s Hospital,” Dr. Jonathan Bates, ACH president
and CEO, told the group. In June, Dr. Bates is retiring after 20 years of service at the state’s only pediatric medial center. Arkansas Log A Load For Kids has funded two $1.5 million endowments at ACH— one in pediatric cardiovascular surgery and another supporting the Angel One helicopter transport program—and one $1 million endowment for the radiology and imaging department. The program pledged to contribute all funds raised from 2008 to 2013 to help create a new Trauma Unit, a state-of-the art facility that treats the state’s most seriously injured children and is the state’s only level one pediatric trauma unit. In 2011, Log A Load extended its commitment through 2017 for a total of $4 million. To honor this, ACH named the Emergency Department for Log A Load For Kids of Arkansas.
Arkansas Log A Load For Kids committee members met at Arkansas Children’s Hospital on March 28 to celebrate the program’s 20th anniversary. Tri-W Logging, in Rison, created this special Log A Load For Kids 20th anniversary log truck.
CALENDAR April 17 Tree Farm Committee 10 a.m. - AFA Office Little Rock
April 18 Women Woodland Owners Southwest Research & Extension Center, Hope Contact: (501) 671-2329
April 19 Forestry Workshop and Field Day Southwest Research & Extension Center, Hope Contact: (870) 777-9702
April 24-27 Four-State Forestry Conference Texarkana, Texas 4stateforestryonthegrow.org
May 1-2 Spring Board of Directors Meeting River Market District Little Rock
May 7 Registered Foresters Meeting Arkansas 4-H Center Ferndale
June 1 South Central Log A Load For Kids Feaster Park, Arkadelphia
August 3 Drew County Log A Load For Kids First Assembly of God, Monticello
June 17-21 Teacher Conservation Tour Monticello
October 1-3 68th AFA Annual Meeting Embassy Suites Little Rock
Reward program provides incentive for information on forest crimes
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rson, timber theft, illegal dumping, and logging equipment theft and vandalism are serious threats to the state’s economic and environmental health. Together, these crimes generate annual losses of hundreds of thousands of dollars to landowners and the timber industry. AFA is committed to reducing the number of cases through its Witness Reward Program, which provides rewards up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of persons willfully involved in these crimes. “Our goal is twofold,” said AFA Executive Vice President Max Braswell. “We want to protect our members’ property as well as provide law enforcement officials with an effective tool for getting information that will help them solve cases.”
combined: 169 timber theft cases; 11 equipment theft cases; 121 illegal dumping cases; and 306 arson and debris burning cases. In the same time period, landowners received $700,000 in restitution related to timber theft. If you have information regarding activities of this kind, call the AFC 24-hour reporting line at (501) 332-2000. An online complaint form is available at forestry.arkansas. gov/contactUs/Pages/ComplaintForm. aspx. For more information about AFC law enforcement, look online at arkansasforestry.org under “Services.” AFA members interested in ordering reward stickers and/or signs to post on their property should contact the AFA office at (501) 374-2441.
In addition to traditional local and state law enforcement personnel, state law gives the Arkansas Forestry Commission the authority to appoint employees as certified state law enforcement officers to investigate dumping, wildfires, timber theft, and logging equipment theft and vandalism. Each AFC district office has rangers and foresters who handle misdemeanor dumping and fire cases, and there are three full-time criminal investigators who investigate a variety of cases statewide. According to AFC, investigators and law enforcement officials closed the following number of cases in 2011 and 2012,
Illegal dumping is one of the forest-related crimes covered by the AFA Witness Reward Program.
REWARD $5,000 up to
For information leading to the
ARREST AND CONVICTION of anyone for the following forest-related crimes:
TIMBER THEFT, FOREST ARSON, FORESTRY EQUIPMENT THEFT OR VANDALISM, AND ILLEGAL DUMPING
Call 501-332-2000
Rewards are provided by the Arkansas Forestry Association and are subject to conditions set by AFA.
AFA members interested in ordering reward stickers and/or signs to post on their property should contact the AFA office at (501) 374-2441.
SWREC offers women woodland owners workshop, forestry field day
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he UA Division of Agriculture Southwest Research and Extension Center (SWREC), 362 Highway 174N in Hope, is hosting two events for forest landowners in April. Women Woodland Owners Thursday, April 18 The percentage of women who own and manage farms, ranches and forest land is increasing in Arkansas. “Planning for the future transfer of these lands from one generation to the next often happens haphazardly,” said Tamara Walkingstick, associate director of the Arkansas Forest Resources Center. “Either the parents don’t want to talk about it, or the kids don’t want to listen.” To help women landowners, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, Arkansas Forest Resources Center and Arkansas Forestry Association are hosting the Women Woodland Owners Conference on Thursday, April 18, at the SWREC in Hope. The workshop will focus on forest planning, mapping your own woodlands, assessing storm damage, how to thin your woodlands, Federal tax update and the chance to talk to other women woodland owners.
Division of Agriculture Arkansas Forest Resources Center extension professionals Caroll Guffey and Tamara Walkingstick will cover topics including how to develop a forest management plan and how to create your own maps for your woodland. The fee is $20 and includes lunch, breaks, materials and registration for the Forestry Field Day the next day, Friday, April 19, at the SWREC. For more information or to register contact Caroll Guffey at guffey@uamont.edu or by phone at (501) 671-2147, or Tamara Walkingstick at twalkingstick@uaex.edu or by phone at (501) 671-2346. Forestry Workshop and Field Day Friday, April 19 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. This workshop and field day is designed to teach private forest landowners some of the basics of working with forests and managing forests for wildlife. The registration fee is $10 in advance or $15 at the door. Participation is limited to 50 people. Those who preregister will have priority. Topics and speakers include: Arkansas Forestry Commission Services to Landowners John Beasley, Hempstead County Forester, Arkansas Forestry Commission
Appeals court ruling a victory for tree planters Deb Hawkinson, President Forest Resources Association
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n April 1, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the decision of the United States District Court of the Northern District of Florida that the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) lacks the authority to issue regulations governing the H-2B guestworker program. This decision upholds the lower court’s preliminary injunction (in Bayou Lawn and Landscape Services v. Solis). The decision affects DOL’s 2011 “Program Rule,” which would impose unworkable stipulations on employees using temporary guestworkers under the H-2B Visa program. The ruling is important to the contractors that forestland owners depend on for reforestation. While DOL has not exhausted its legal options in this case, this recent ruling bodes well for our continued efforts to return the H-2B guestworker program to a reasonable structure.
Tree Identification Dr. Jon Barry, Arkansas Forest Resources Center Tree ID Field Tour Dr. Jon Barry, Arkansas Forest Resources Center Quail Habitat Restoration Jeff Taverner, Private Lands Biologist, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Managing Forests for Wildlife Dr. Rebecca McPeake, Arkansas Forest Resources Center Dr. Tamara Walkingstick (foreground), UA Division of Agriculture, demonstrates how to use an increment borer at the 2011 women woodland owners workshop in Russellville.
For more information or to register, contact Dr. Jon Barry by phone at (870) 777-9702 or email at jbarry@uaex.edu. Registration forms are available online at swrec.uark. edu.
CORRECTED CAPTION FROM MARCH TREETALK
(Left) Rep. Robert Dale (R-Dover) asks AFAEF Director of Forestry Education Rob Beadel (right) about Project Learning Tree during a legislative reception at the AFA office on March 4.
AFA launches new mobile website, full site redesign
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o meet the needs of an increasingly mobile membership and public, AFA has launched a mobile version of its website at www.arkforests.org/mobile, as well as a complete redesign of its full site at www.arkforests.org. New features include an interactive Google calendar of events for both AFA and the AFA Education Foundation; social media links for LinkedIn, Pinterest, flickr, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter; a “Features� box highlighting events or other noteworthy information; and featured links for the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Tree Farm program, Outdoor Underwriters, Project Learning Tree, and Log A Load For Kids.
arkforests.org/mobile arkforests.org