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Press Release |
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Wild Forest Goods
Expanding Small Woodland Income Opportunities
www.ifcae.org/wildforestgoods/ Increasing Revenue from Nontimber Forest Product Ecosystem Services Researchers team-up with family forestland owners in the Pacific Northwest to expand green jobs in commercial nontimber forest product industries PORTLAND, OR - April 9, 2009 The Institute for Culture and Ecology (IFCAE) and Oregon State University have received a ½ million dollar grant from the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service to work with small landowners in Oregon and neighboring states to expand economic opportunities from managing their forestlands for commercially valuable industrial timber. In systems that emphasize management for a diversity of nontimber forest products (NTFPs), longer tree rotations, and selective logging, small forestlands can be species rich systems providing a multitude of commercial and noncommercial values. The project will provide small forest landowners with market information and networking opportunities to develop business plans and attract investment for forest management and production.  Nontimber
forest products include a wide range of different products including
floral greens, landscaping transplants, native seeds, medicinal
plants, wild foods, such as mushrooms, berries, roots, and bulbs, and
much, much more. Oregon has
been a major supplier of NTFPs for over a century, having hundreds of
commercial species growing in great abundance in our rich
temperate forests. However, these industries have been severely
restricted from reaching their true potential by a lack of investment
in infrastructure to support small NTFP businesses. Universities and
colleges offer almost no courses on NTFP management, economics, or
ecology, and state and federal agencies provide little funding
staff to properly manage them. Hundreds of
small businesses and tens of thousands of people make some or all of
their income from NTFP industries in the  The majority of NTFPs are extracted from national forests where access is often difficult and the agencies are ill-equipped to manage them. Few of the state’s 166,000 small forest landowners manage for or harvest NTFPs, leaving a great untapped income opportunity for small landowners. Eric Jones, an ecological anthropologist at IFCAE and multi-generational native Oregonian believes that there is an enormous opportunity to increase sales and expand the number of green jobs around NTFP industries. Dr. Jones notes that, “in British Columbia the government, private sector, First Nations and universities have made big commitments to NTFP development because they realize the unrealized potential. In Oregon we already have thousands of people trying to carve out a living around NTFPs, we as a state just need to get behind them so it isn't such an uphill battle. We have done it for timber, wind energy, and other industries, now is the time for NTFPs. This project will make a significant contribution in that direction and we invite the collaboration of others to help us achieve our project goals.” Researchers at IFCAE are working to identify solutions to common challenges around marketing NTFPs. One of the biggest challenges is overcoming the lack of basic trade data such as price trends and market outlets. The IFCAE team will develop a variety of resources to help landowners move past these hurdles. For example, an online NTFP business directory and examples of pricing structures will connect the hundreds of the existing NTFP businesses in the region as well as be an invaluable tool for emerging businesses. To make the study nationally relevant, Oregon State University will be working with IFCAE to conduct a survey of thousands of small forest landowners across the country. The survey will explore what financial benefits small forest landowners are currently receiving from NTFPs and other ecosystem services on their lands.  Viewing
nontimber forest products as an ecosystem service is a novel
approach. Improving biodiversity and longer tree rotations may create
opportunities for landowners to benefit financially from emerging
markets for ecosystem services such as carbon
offsets. Tom Nygren, President of the Oregon Woodland Cooperative,
had this to say about the potential of sale of carbon credits for
small woodland owners. “While the (carbon) markets aren't fully
developed yet, working together as a group of landowners offers great
advantages. It helps us leverage our resources and creates diversity
in our sources of income.” |