ForestsAndFish.com

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Road Improvements

Forest practices include a road maintenance and abandonment program to protect fish habitat. Nearly 5,000 barriers to fish passage have been removed, opening more than 3,200 miles of historic fish habitat on state and private working forestland.

Steep Slope Protection

Private landowners are retaining mature forest on potentially unstable slopes, vulnerable to landslides. Using advanced technology, these sites are identified and avoided during timber harvest activities to minimize the impact of forestry operations on steep terrain.

Harvest and Replanting

Private forest landowners harvest trees to produce wood products, which sustains 125,000 jobs in Washington State. Landowners replant three trees for every one harvested, which begins a new cycle of forest growth.

Wildlife Habitat

Working forests provide homes for many fish and wildlife species. On a 50 year rotation, landowners harvest 2% of their forest each year while the remaining 98% of the forest is in the growth phase—providing habitat for fish and wildlife.

Fish Habitat Protection

Nearly 1.7 million acres of working forests have been permanently set aside for riparian buffers and to protect wetlands and steep slopes which protects water quality for healthy fish habitat.

Bringing science and sustainability to our state’s working forests

Washington State’s 8 million acres of private forests are vital to the health of rural economies and the pacific salmon and bull trout. How so? Guided by the Forests & Fish Law, private foresters use the most advanced forestry techniques to ensure cool, clean water in 60,000 miles of streams—creating healthy fish runs and spawning. It’s one more example of how well-managed, private forests protect our natural environment. Just ask a salmon.

Private working forests are working for all of us.

Environmental protection or a healthy state economy? Washington’s private forest landowners are successfully protecting our natural environment and contributing to the state’s economy at the same time. Environment and economy, jobs and sustainability. Who says we have to choose one over the other?

Private Forestry: An Economic Engine

Every 1,000 acres of working forest supports 11 jobs which pay nearly $500,000 in wages each year. For that same 1,000 acres, another $30,000 in taxes and fees are paid to governments, supporting the local economy.

Guided by Science

Adaptive Management is “learning by doing” – using the best available science to monitor and verify that forest practices are meeting the standards set by the Forest & Fish Law.

Since 2001, 32 studies dealing with everything from stream typing to road stability have been completed, 24 more are in progress, and an additional 44 are planned. Learn more »