Forest Advisory Board Meeting - Nov. 19, 2025

Agenda

1. Call To Order - Introductions
2. Citizen Input
3. Business
   1. Review of Minutes from August 13th, 2025, meeting
   2. Wild Trout III Timber Sale Update – Andrew
      • Unofficial bid process results
   3. Progress on Forestry Issues – Andrew
   4. FAB Commissioner Assignment Update - Sarah
4. Good of the Order
5. Adjournment

Minutes

1. Call To Order – Introductions
   Meeting called to order at 6:09pm by Brent Keller.
   Members Present: Brent Keller, Molly McKnight, Dan Green, Mark Rasmussen, Bill Street. Staff Present: Sarah Eckman, Andrew Dobmeier, Lisa Harman.
2. Citizen Input
   A citizen joined and asked if it would be a benefit to the forestry industry to develop software to assist in calculation of harvest volumes when buffers change. AD responded that the County does not have many lands that will be affected by the new buffer rules, but that it would be helpful to use data to verify streams and fish presence. BK responded that the new rules are not too overwhelming, and DG responded that data is available, but the data is often insufficient or inaccurate.
3. Business
   1. Review of Minutes from August 13th, 2025, meeting
      • There was a motion to approve the minutes from the August 13th meeting, it was seconded by MR, and the motion passed.
   2. Wild Trout III Timber Sale Update – Andrew
      • Unofficial bid process results
        1. Stella-Jones won the bid for the sale, and they think there is an adequate number of poles. The County will receive 10% of the sale amount at signing, another 50% at the end of the fiscal year, and Stella-Jones must complete the sale by the end of 2027. They may come in and build the necessary road in the summer of 2026. The timber sale area is 24 acres and was cruised last year at approximately 37,000 board feet per acre.
   3. Progress on Forestry Issues – Andrew
      • Forestry and County Parks are working to get the parks cleaned up and remove dead and dying trees. Several cotton woods have been removed. Pac Fibre is taking some of the logs; O’Malley is doing the logging. We are trying to get the logs out of the parks but are waiting to see if log prices go up before removing them.
      • Andrew has been working on projects for other departments in the County as well.
      • Forestry has hired two temporary interns for the winter/spring season. One is working on a project to try to get Madrone trees growing in the park. 300-400 berries from Elk Island were collected to use to grow seedlings. We will be using “cow pots”-pots made from cow manure so that seedlings can be planted directly in the ground still in the pot.
      • The interns will be cruising all of Wildcat to provide data for the next 5-year plan. There were some questions regarding revenue flow targets and loss due to fire. Forestry has reserves so can handle some ebb and flow with income. If an area that has been bid on and is under contract is damaged by fire, then the County would take the financial hit.
   4. FAB Commissioner Assignment Update – Sarah
      • The Board will not be assigning Commissioners to advisory boards. If topics of special interest come up, Commissioners can be invited on a case-by-case basis. MM suggested that we resume Commissioner tours.
4. Good of the Order
   1. Parks System Planning Committee – Sarah
      • Parks invited a Forest Advisory Board member to participate on a committee to provide input for Parks system planning. The committee will consist of up to 20 members and is a public advisory committee. There will be four 90-minute hybrid meetings in 2026, with the first meeting being held on Wednesday, January 21st, from 6-7:30pm. Parks will host open houses and focus groups to get an idea of what the public wants and is looking for input on various park-related topics. The Parks program is looking to get context on how people utilize the park areas and would like to bring a Forest Advisory Board perspective to the project. It was decided that Mark Rasmussen will be the Forest Advisory Board Representative for the Parks System Planning Committee.
   2. Inquiry on Forest Health and Climate Change - Sarah
      • A citizen expressed concern that experts have stated that Doug Firs and Evergreens are not thriving here in the Pacific Northwest and wants to know if the County plans to pivot their reforestation/planting strategies. OSU is doing research on the impacts of climate change in our area. MR mentioned that we are more insulated from climate change in this area. AD responded that higher elevations will not be affected as much by climate change. The County is planting Jeffrey Pine, Ponderosa Pine, and Valley Pine. The seed is local, with the Jeffrey Pine coming from a little farther south. BS stated that more research is being gathered, and that fire risk due to moisture change might be the most significant risk for climate zones.
      • The FAB committed to developing a white paper/position statement on climate impacts to forestry, with recommendations for County Forestry practices going forward. This will be developed in 2026.
5. Adjournment
   Next meetings will be February 11th and May 13th, 2026, at 6pm. Meeting was adjourned at 7:42pm.