Published: Thursday, February 12, 2009
Housing slump hurts state's timber industry
SEATTLE -- The nation's housing slump has slashed Washington state's timber sales projections, drastically reducing payments to counties for schools, hospitals, parks and other local agencies.
Revenue anticipated by the state Department of Natural Resources from all sources in fiscal 2009, with timber providing the bulk, has declined from a forecast of $280 million in June 2007 to a prediction of $184 million in an interim report that will be issued next week, said Robert Van Schoorl, a budget official with the agency.
That represents a drop of more than 8 percent from the $201.8 million anticipated in the agency's last quarterly economic and revenue forecast in November. The first 50 percent of responses to a survey of timber buyers indicates a further decline is likely in the next quarterly report in March, Van Schoorl said.
"The numbers are continuing to go down," he said.
The outlook is especially not good for school, hospital, park and other local districts that rely heavily on state timber sales revenue at a time when homebuilding in the U.S. is at a 50-year low and lumber prices are the lowest in more than 20 years.
With much of the current revenue coming from the sale of state-owned trees for telephone poles rather than other wood products, little improvement in state timber revenue is likely before 2011, Van Schoorl said.
The state agency receives revenue from timber sales on about 2.6 million acres of forested land, including 2 million acres that were granted in trust at statehood and 600,000 acres the state has managed since a wave of defaults during the Great Depression in the 1930s.
Timber sales statewide on the state-managed 600,000 acres have declined from $67.5 million in 2006 to $64.7 million in 2007 and $53.7 million in 2008.
Both categories are managed jointly but revenue is allocated differently. Money generated from state-managed lands goes to 19 counties, mostly in Western Washington. Revenue from trust lands is earmarked chiefly for school districts and public colleges and universities.
Revenue anticipated by the state Department of Natural Resources from all sources in fiscal 2009, with timber providing the bulk, has declined from a forecast of $280 million in June 2007 to a prediction of $184 million in an interim report that will be issued next week, said Robert Van Schoorl, a budget official with the agency.
That represents a drop of more than 8 percent from the $201.8 million anticipated in the agency's last quarterly economic and revenue forecast in November. The first 50 percent of responses to a survey of timber buyers indicates a further decline is likely in the next quarterly report in March, Van Schoorl said.
"The numbers are continuing to go down," he said.
The outlook is especially not good for school, hospital, park and other local districts that rely heavily on state timber sales revenue at a time when homebuilding in the U.S. is at a 50-year low and lumber prices are the lowest in more than 20 years.
With much of the current revenue coming from the sale of state-owned trees for telephone poles rather than other wood products, little improvement in state timber revenue is likely before 2011, Van Schoorl said.
The state agency receives revenue from timber sales on about 2.6 million acres of forested land, including 2 million acres that were granted in trust at statehood and 600,000 acres the state has managed since a wave of defaults during the Great Depression in the 1930s.
Timber sales statewide on the state-managed 600,000 acres have declined from $67.5 million in 2006 to $64.7 million in 2007 and $53.7 million in 2008.
Both categories are managed jointly but revenue is allocated differently. Money generated from state-managed lands goes to 19 counties, mostly in Western Washington. Revenue from trust lands is earmarked chiefly for school districts and public colleges and universities.
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