An update from Rep. Schwaderer

I grew up on Diamond Match road, originally built by the company that used to operate the mill at the end of the road that is now home to several local woods products employers. I learned to drive a four-wheeler with family on Plum Creek private timber land. In Kindergarten (I was the last year to attend the Old School in Superior), we learned how to tell the difference between a Douglas Fir and Ponderosa Pine based on foliage (roughly half the class already knew the difference). My dad, brother, extended family and I have conducted our summerly firewood gathering for the last 22 years of my life like most folks in this neck of the woods.

The danger of a widowmaker, estimated lean of a tree, angle of a wedge cut in a tree, bellowing crack of felled timber, smell of fresh sawdust are commonplace in many of our lives. Timber is the lifeblood that runs through the veins of all of us in Mineral County. It is not only our chief and historic economic renewable asset, it is who we are.

This is the sentiment that was echoed during the meeting between the Mineral County Commissioners, new Lolo Forest leadership, community leaders and a frustrated public in a standing-room-only meeting this last week.

Mineral County continues to sit at near double the state’s unemployment level, and those who are employed often struggle to make ends meet, pay bills and feed their families. For most of my life this trend has only worsened and local wood products employers are often to scramble for timber from private holders from afar while our dense forests continue to be a public health and safety risk. Cedar Thom remains stagnated despite work to start the 22 million board feet project commenced in 2009. Although state and private acres in the West Mullan Fire have already began management long ago, we have word that there are no current plans to salvage dead and burned timber on federal lands. At this meeting there were strong sentiments to find the shortest path towards solutions and projects on the shortest timeline.

The heads of the Lolo Forest articulated that they are currently “at capacity” with their three NEPA teams (needed to provide assessments and analysis before projects may commence) are stretched to the max and they do not have the budget to bring on more NEPA teams.

If this is truly the main constraint, then there are new, creative and quick solutions which can be employed. Elsewhere in the country private industry has forked over the dollars for extra NEPA teams to be hired; also funding may be able to be raised from the State of Montana if we can get a firm grip on the numbers. Heck, I would even chip in if that would help.

The various parties involved from the county to the federal level have agreed to meet again on this issue - and quickly! April 17. Hopefully a quick turnaround on meetings and motivated new leadership will lead to fruitful endeavors to line up new projects for our community.

Rep. Nick Schwaderer