Timber Sale Success
Bill Cook, MSU Extension published a great article that we felt expresses our thoughts perfectly. We shared it below:
Timber Sale Success, by Bill Cook, MSU Extension
A timber harvest has gone awry. Things are not going the way that you had thought. What do you do?
A lot will
depend on how well you did your preparation. If you don’t have a clearly written
contract and aren’t working with a forester, then you have few options,
unfortunately. If there’s still wood to cut, probably the best you can
hope for is to stop the logging and take your lumps. If you can prove
wood has been taken without payment (timber trespass), then you might find some
legal recourse. But this is not always a possible case to prove or
prosecute.
The best
defense is to have a good offense, and that means working with an independent
consulting forester, signing a well understood contract, and talking with the
logger. Timber sales are often worth many thousands of dollars, if not
tens of thousands. As the owner, you have a responsibility to do as much
as possible to ensure that your wishes are carried out and to protect your
assets. A clear contract understood by both you and the logger goes a
long way to avoiding problems after the cutting begins.
Too many
times, landowners let themselves be taken advantage of by one of the few
loggers who are up to mischief. The large majority of loggers do not
engage in unscrupulous behavior. They are competent businessmen and
community members who depend upon their reputation for acquisition of future
timber sales. They often have nearly a million dollars, or more, invested
in their business and simply cannot afford to lose future business due to
misunderstandings or poor performance.
Most cases of
forest owner dissatisfaction are the result of poor communication with the
logger. The logger needs to know what you have in mind and needs you to
share that with him. A clear contract helps a lot. Beyond that,
having conversations with the logger both before and during the harvesting
operation is important.
Logging is more than simply cutting trees and manufacturing forest products. Consideration should be given to different pricing for various products, payment schedules, down payments, location of skid roads and landings, equipment to be used, treatment of slash, seeding open areas, and many other things.
For federal
income tax purposes, you’ll want to know the forest volumes both before and
after a timber sale. Trees to be cut, and left, should be clearly
understood. You need to know the property boundaries. Most of the
time, when loggers cut over the line it’s because owners gave them incorrect
information.
Logger
credentials should be requested. Referrals are a good idea. Is the
logger a member of the Michigan Association of Timbermen? A Master
Logger? Up to date on Sustainable Forestry Education credits? Does
he have appropriate insurance and Workmen’s Compensation? Does he have
markets for the products likely to be manufactured from your trees?
Because of the
many considerations in a timber sale, the usual high dollar value, and a
concern about post-harvest forest conditions, it’s usually a good idea to hire
a consulting forester. If you can’t regularly visit the forest during the
timber sale, the consulting forester can. These foresters know the ins
and outs of both forest management and timber sales. They can help guide
a forest owner and a logger through the process needed to achieve forest owner
objectives. The expertise will cost money, but in the end most forest
owners end up with more cash and a better forest.
Forest management and timber harvests are sustainable only if they’re done properly. Few forest owners have sufficient background to pull all the pieces together on their own. It makes sense, financially and ecologically, to hire the expertise of a consulting forester.
