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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>Private Forests News list members:<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Peter Daugherty, ODF Private Forests Division acting chief, made the announcement Monday that ODF has suspended the Forest Practices Operator of the Year and Merit Award program for 2010 due to diminished resources within the agency. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Kevin Weeks<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Oregon Department of Forestry<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>(503) 945-7427<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><a name="OLE_LINK4"></a><a name="OLE_LINK3"></a><a name="OLE_LINK2">This year has been a year of challenges and tremendous adaption by the staff at ODF, especially in the Private Forests Program. One of the principles we have discussed is how in a smaller organization, there will inevitably be services we can provide, and there will be things ODF can no longer provide.<o:p></o:p></a></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>One of the things that ODF will not be able to do is proceed with awarding the Forest Practices Operator of the Year Award and Forest Practices Merit Awards to operators for 2010. ODF will be suspending the award program until further notice.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>The chief driver behind the decision is the tremendous reduction in staff resources – and especially the 35-40 percent resource reduction within Private Forests – that ODF adapted to in 2010. The reductions and reassignments meant that stewardship foresters were working with landowners and operators on fewer projects, and that the awards program was also trying to compete with other agency objectives for resources to be successful.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Field staff also provided some valuable feedback that many operators were going with projects that required less technical engineering and less financial risk in the current season, deferring some more complex operations until markets improve in the next few years. Unfortunately, it is those more complex innovative forest operations that the awards seek to honor each year. For the handful of projects that were submitted by stewardship foresters for the 2010 awards, I am requesting that Districts honor those award nominees with Letters of Commendation for their projects.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I am very proud of the role the Operator of the Year award served; it was an opportunity to recognize those forest practices operators that made an above-and-beyond commitment to honoring the intent of the Oregon Forest Practices Act. The decision to suspend the award should not reflect on the forest practices operators of Oregon; it reflects a reality that ODF does not have sufficient resources to provide the staff support needed for the awards program.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>My thanks to the stewardship foresters who brought forest projects worthy of recognition to our attention for their work, and also a round of thanks to Dave Degenhardt’s work on the award until his retirement in 2009, and for the work performed last year by Brad Knotts and Kevin Weeks.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Peter Daugherty, Acting Chief, Private Forests Division<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>###<o:p></o:p></p></div></body></html>