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July
14, 2001
Six Colorado projects initiated to demonstrate forest
restoration, community economic development and wildfire reduction have
received $211,300 in grants for 2001 from the Four Corners Sustainable
Forests Partnership. One of the six is in Dolores and two are in Durango.
The partnership, formed by the state foresters for New
Mexico, Arizona, Colorado and Utah with the support of the U.S. Forest
Service and many other organizations, is in its third year of awarding
grants funded by the federal government to entrepreneurial enterprises in
each of the states.
A total of nearly $1.2 million in grants has been awarded
for 2001, while project sponsors are providing matching funds of more than
$340,000 for a total program of more than $1.5 million for this year.
The program was generated by recognition that the economy
of many small communities in the Four Corners was severely affected when
the logging industry pulled out of the region. In concert with local
governments, businesses, state and federal agencies, tribal organizations,
non-profit groups and others, the partnership has made significant
progress toward its goals.
"Many people lost their jobs, and once-thriving
communities struggled to stay alive," said Carla Harper, who heads
the Ponderosa Pine Partnership in Cortez and is the Colorado coordinator
for the partnership. "At the same time, aggressive fire suppression
has allowed our forests to deteriorate in health and present hazards for
wildfires and reduced wildfire habitat.
"The partnership recognizes an opportunity to attack
both problems through demonstration that the economies of many communities
can be rejuvenated, while at the same time improving forest health. The
goal is for these demonstration projects to motive many other communities
in the Four Corners region to develop their own projects and move toward a
health economy and healthier forests."
The projects revolve around funding economic applications
for small-diameter trees — 17 inches and less — and harvesting these
trees to convert them into useful products that can be marketed. All have
local funds dedicated to the projects as well, which in some cases exceed
the Four Corners grants.
The Colorado demonstration projects funded by the
partnership for 2001 are:
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$21,300 to Rustic Style Furniture in Dolores. Rustic
Style Furniture uses aspen deadwood as a value-added resource for its
furniture products and has a working partnership with the Forest
Service and BLM. This demonstration project will provide additional
resources to help develop and sustain the business. Rustic wants to
involve additional workers in its business, including high-school
students and participants in Community Connections, a non-profit
organization dedicated to improving opportunities for the mentally
challenged.
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$57,000 to a project in Durango sponsored by Fort
Lewis College’s Office of Community Services. The project involves
assessment and evaluation of demonstration projects supported by the
partnership to determine their effectiveness and identify knowledge
gained in each project that can be shared with other initiatives in
the Four Corners.
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$25,000 to a project in Durango sponsored by the
Colorado Timber Industry Association that emphasizes education in
sustainable forestry and management practices for elected officials
and their staffs. Partners in the effort have included educational
institutions, government agencies and private companies throughout the
West.
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$40,000 to the Department of Forest Sciences at
Colorado State University for a project to find a harvesting system
that will reduce costs of forest-restoration thinning to acceptable
levels while recognizing ecological considerations.
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$50,000 to McNeil Technologies in Lakewood for a
project to develop biomass energy technologies that can produce heat
and power to provide diversity in energy supplies. Bio-based product
technologies have the potential to create new manufacturing
opportunities in the Four Corners. Partners include the Colorado
Governor’s Office of Energy Management and Conservation, Colorado
State Forest Service, and Lob Lolly Logging of Arboles.
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$18,000 to a demonstration projection in Delta to
support forest health, reduce wildfire risk, and improve wildlife
habitat in the Grand Mesa Uncompahgre National Forest. The forest is
considered extremely susceptible to catastrophic fire, insects and
disease. Wildlife habitat also is deteriorating, as shown by a
50-percent decline in the mule-deer population in the last 20 years.
The project is designed to develop harvesting techniques to improve
forest health and increase small-business opportunities. Partners in
the project range from the national to the local level. Communities
expected to benefit are Nucla, Naturita, Norwood, Ridgway, Olathe,
Hotchkiss, Paonia and Cedarege.
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