SPI Shutters More Sawmills

Sierra Pacific Industries, Anderson, Ca., will shut its mill in Camino, Ca., its mill and biomass-fueled electric power plant in Sonora, Ca., and its small-log mill in Quincy, Ca. A large-log mill and biomass electric generation plant at the Quincy site will remain open.

"It's a matter of poor lumber markets juxtaposed with other factors such as log availability and regulatory problems," said spokesperson Mark Pawlicki. "We have timberland in those areas, but not enough to sustain all of our mills. We had been relying on outside log purchases from the Forest Service and others, but that supply has diminished."

Pawlicki said that the mill in Quincy is scheduled to close May 4. The Camino mill is set to go down June 12, and the Sonora mill will stop production in mid-July.

The Quincy mill was built after a forest recovery act was passed in 1998 to promote tree thinning on national forest timberlands, reduce the threat of wildfires, and provide raw material for local manufacturing. However, appeals and lawsuits filed by environmental activists have drastically reduced the amount of federal timber available for harvest. Nearly two-thirds of the current year's timber sale program has been withheld from sale pending the outcome of litigation.

"The reduced availability of national forest timber resulting from litigation forced SPI to transport logs over long distances at greater cost to keep the mill running," said area manager Matt Taborski. "Today's lumber prices are not sufficient to cover these increased costs. To make things worse, environmental litigation has not only reduced the mill's raw material supply but also increased the risk of wildfires in the area."

Pawlicki said there are no plans to sell the mills in Sonora or Camino, which SPI has owned since the early 1990s. "They are considered 'permanent' closures, but the equipment will be left in them," he said. "However, we have no plans for reopening them at this time."

In January, SPI cut production at its mills in Anderson, Burney, Quincy, and Sonora. On March 17, the company reduced production at its

Arcata mill. Since the first of the year, SPI has announced plans to eliminate 484 jobs, which is ll%o of its workforce.

Meek's Refocuses On D-i-yers

After laying off four more workers in February, Meek's Lumber, Grass Valley, Ca.. is now focusing more on do-it-yourselfers rather than general conractors.

"In the past, it was upgrade to a new home," said store manager Dean Kruschkle. "Now, it's upgrade what you have."

He estimated that, before the market soured, about lj%o of the store's business came from professional builders and contractors involved in new construction. These days, he said, the customer walking in the door is more likely a do-it-yourselfer than a licensed professional. To survive, he and the remaining 20 or so employees now focus on home upgrades and remodeling.

"We're just trying to stay competitive. If it's a customer with a specific request, we do what we can," said Kruschke, who has worked at the store for nine years. "We're definitely a relationship-driven business."

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