WVFA Mountain State Forestry Spring 2021

www.wvfa.org Spring 2021 | West Virginia Forestry Association Mountain State Forestry 5 M E S S A G E F R OM T H E E X E C U T I V E D I R E C T O R W e look to 2021 with great optimism. Our membership is growing for the first time in several years. We have found a way to incorporate technology to meet in our Area Meetings. We know it lacks the important social interaction with colleagues, friends, and family but we can get our message to those who need to hear it, legislators, members, and the public agencies that we need and support. We have already implemented many changes in our priorities based on the 2020 Membership Survey. We are strengthening our youth education outreach through Project Learning Tree with a revived steering committee. We have established several issue related work groups that provide us the insights and temperament required to be effective in government relations. Members want advocacy and we are making the fundamental changes required to be more effective. We are studying how best to build a strong trade association while keeping our educational and informational work ongoing. This will require establishing a new entity so we can take a more active role in elections, and government relations. Change is inevitable and we must adapt to the needs of the future. Our work in the West Virginia Legislature and with Governor Justice and his Cabinet is the focus of the first quarter. We have several key issues that we hope to see improved and we will be asking you, as members, to reach out to your local legislators. It is easy and we will provide you all you need to know. Call us before you call them, so we speak with one voice. I never tire reminding people that West Virginia forests annually provides over $3.4 billion in economic activity. We know the pandemic has impacted this activity as it has all businesses in the state. We are thankful for the funding Congress provided to discover the new vaccines and distribute it to our most vulnerable. The support provided to our businesses is much appreciated. We all have family and friends who succumbed to the pandemic and we must remind ourselves we are fortunate to continue to provide for our families. However, we have much work to do to sustain this resource. Read this month’s article on the woodland owners’ survey. There are some revealing facts in the survey that might trigger some business opportunities. WVFA must keep our advocacy relevant to these facts, if we hope to have access to this resource to produce forest products. We are looking ahead and recently WVFA joined the Hardwood Federation, to strengthen our ability to impact proposed actions at the federal level. This brings to four the number of major trade associations; National Alliance of Forest Owners, Forest Resources Association, and American Loggers Council that WVFA is working through to bring relevance for federal actions that impact West Virginia. Eric Carlson Executive Director “Our work in the West Virginia Legislature and with Governor Justice and his Cabinet is the focus of our work in the first quarter. We have several key issues that we hope to see improved and we will be asking you, as members, to reach out to your local legislators.”