RD419 - Annual Report on the Actions, Conclusions and Recommendations for Conserving the Commonwealth’s Forest Supply - 2008


Executive Summary:
This is my fourth annual report to you since becoming State Forester of Virginia in late 2004. Much has changed in Virginia’s forests since my last report one year ago. Some of the changes have been positive, but many are not. This report is intended to provide a candid assessment of the challenges and opportunities facing the Virginia Department of Forestry (VDOF), the forest lands of Virginia, and, ultimately the quality of life in our Commonwealth.

The latest forest inventory assessment puts the loss of forest land in the Commonwealth at 27,000 acres annually. If this trend continues, Virginia could lose 1 million of its 15.7 million acres of forest land within 25 years. In addition to the threats posed by development, the forests are under siege by a host of invasive insects and plants. Gypsy moths defoliated more than 112,000 acres in Virginia’s western mountains – up from the 74,000 acres defoliated a year ago. The hemlock woolly adelgid continues in its quest to eliminate hemlock trees from the Commonwealth. The emerald ash borer – a major threat to millions of ash trees in the state – has been found in northern Virginia. Invasive plants, such as ailanthus, Chinese privet, kudzu and multiflora rose, are wreaking havoc in our forests and will likely change entire ecosystems where they are found.

Wildland fire activity was unusually high this year. Persistent drought conditions necessitated a statewide burning ban in the fall of 2007. In early February 2008, the Commonwealth experienced its busiest single day of fire activity ever as more than 350 wildland fires broke out February 10th. Two VDOF firefighters were seriously injured battling separate blazes during the year. And last, but certainly not least, are the continuing challenges we face with our workforce: nearly 40 percent of Agency employees have been with VDOF less than five years; the annual turnover rate is just under 27 percent, and the reason why more than 38 percent of those who left the Agency within the past five years was for better-paying positions.

On the positive side, we dedicated two new state forests (Channels and Dragon Run), thereby adding more than 6,000 acres to the self-funding state forest system. We created a Division of Forestland Conservation within the Agency and have already secured conservation easements on several thousand acres of privately held forest land. We grew and sold more than 33 million tree seedlings; oversaw the regeneration of nearly 81,000 acres of forest land, and partnered with several private entities (including Vaughan-Bassett Furniture Co., Glatfelter Pulpwood Co., Plow & Hearth Co., and Belfort Furniture) to provide more than 563,000 free tree seedlings to Virginia landowners. Our wildland firefighters protected more than 2,200 homes and other structures from the ravages of wildland fires. And we conducted more than 5,000 timber harvest inspections to ensure Virginia’s waters were protected.

Lastly, the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia completed a study in 2008 of the economic impact of forestry in Virginia. According to the study, the value of Virginia’s forests exceeds $27.5 Billion annually. There are more than 373,000 private forest landowners in the Commonwealth. Those who harvest trees together receive more than $350 million annually for their timber. And 144,000 Virginians (1 out of every 33 workers) are employed in forestry-related industry jobs. Forestry and the forest industry are big business in the Commonwealth.

I invite you to read through this document to fully understand: the state of Virginia’s forests; the Virginia Department of Forestry’s role in the protection and development of healthy, sustainable forest resources, and the impact Virginia’s forests have on your quality of life. Thank you for your continued interest in and support of the Virginia Department of Forestry.

Sincerely,
/s/ Carl E. Garrison, III
State Forester