Spring 2024 3 I n the wake of another successful Forestry Summit and Sporting Clays Tournament, VFA continues to move full speed ahead. In May, we reconvened our Segment Interest Councils for a check-in on industry conditions since last fall. Despite challenges across our community, Council members once again offered thoughtful feedback as we consider how to continue moving VFA forward in service to you. We are grateful to have so many active volunteers participating in our volunteer leadership. I was privileged to represent VFA at several industry events throughout Virginia over the past few weeks. One engagement provided me with an opportunity to assess where things stand for our community heading into an important second half of the year. Rather than focusing on the broad, global dialogue over which VFA has limited influence, I considered circumstances uniquely impacting Virginia. From where I sit, three questions of consequence emerged that will impact the short- and medium-term health of Virginia’s forestry community. When will new markets emerge/existing markets improve? Mill closures, including those in the Commonwealth and neighboring states, are increasingly common. Questions on the end results of mergers and bankruptcy filings for some Virginia-based companies weigh heavily on the minds of stakeholders. With global economic conditions seemingly unfavorable, there is not much that VFA can do to improve sentiment on a large scale. But we are neither helpless nor devoid of opportunity. Despite a decades-old organizational policy of non- intervention into promoting market expansion for our industry, every Segment Council made clear that they want to see VFA engage on improving local markets by supporting the growth of existing and new businesses. Hardwood mass timber, sustainable aviation fuel, and biochar are new opportunities upon which Virginia is uniquely positioned to capitalize. So long as we take all due care to ensure the sustainability of existing fiber markets, I am confident that a philosophical shift towards VFA engaging more robustly on these opportunities will be a core tenet of our next strategic plan. Where is the power going to come from? Virginia finds itself in quite the paradox as it relates to our energy needs. In 2020, Governor Northam signed the Virginia Clean Economy Act into law, requiring Dominion and APCO to achieve 100% of their energy generation capacity from zero carbon sources. The VCEA target baseload established for generation was 16,100 megawatts (MW), envisioned to come from broad expansion of solar and wind development. Today a rapid expansion of power- and water-hungry data centers and a forthcoming electric vehicle mandate have upended Virginia’s energy equation. To meet these needs PJM, a regional transmission organization, projects that demand on Dominion’s portion of the grid alone is expected to jump from around 22,000 MW today to around 42,000 MW by 2039, all while the VCEA requires the retirement of GHG-emitting energy generating units by 2030. The math just isn’t mathing. Policymakers must determine whether Virginia quadruples down on zero carbon sources (resulting in greater development pressure on forestland for solar development) or instead adopts a more comprehensive strategy that includes expanding generation from carbon neutral sources of energy like, say, woody biomass. Perhaps this challenge can result in greater opportunity for our community. Where will the people come from? Finally, our councils report that a lack of skilled workers is significantly impacting both forest products operations and forest management activities. I have previously shared workforce initiatives undertaken by forestry organizations in other states. For its part, the VFA Board of Directors has already initiated a framework that will allow the organization to soon engage in workforce issues more deeply. But we must understand that the challenges that our industry faces are systemic. Virginia’s existing workforce development programs do not recognize our community as an area of critical need. Our traditional secondary and postsecondary educational options are limited, while technical and trade training is non-existent. The solution lies not in one-off activities, but rather a sustained and coordinated approach that marshals our capacity to affect existing institutional systems to better address our community’s needs. The questions indeed loom large. It is our hope that VFA’s next strategic planning exercise in August will establish a roadmap to answer them. Consequential Questions Loom for Virginia’s Forestry Community FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR UPDATE Corey Connors
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