Johnson to Black Hills National Forest: Hit Your Targets or Risk Mill Shutdowns
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) with the House Agriculture Committee and Reps. Austin Scott (R-GA) and Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) hosted a roundtable in Spearfish, South Dakota to discuss dire needs in the Black Hills forestry industry. Members of the U.S. Forest Service and local forestry industry addressed the failure of the Forest Service to hit their harvest goals and how that failure is risking timber jobs in the area. When the Forest Service doesn’t hit their targets, mills like Neiman Enterprises are at risk of closure, causing the loss of jobs and the infrastructure needed to manage the forest.
“The forestry industry has a significant impact on the economy of the Black Hills and many families in the area,” said Johnson. “When timber targets aren’t met, timber mills are at risk of closure. When mills close, we lose the jobs and infrastructure necessary to manage the forest. I truly appreciate my colleagues who sacrificed a weekend with their family to see our state and learn how our residents will be impacted. It shows how important the issue is on a national level. I’m grateful for the members of the forestry industry who participated in the conversation and the community leaders who came out to listen.”
Johnson’s roundtable in Spearfish
Roundtable Participants:
- Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.), House Agriculture Committee member
- Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), Chairman of the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Forestry
- Rep. Austin Scott(R-GA), Vice Chair of the House Agriculture Committee
- Mr. Frank Beum, Regional Forester, U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Region
- Mr. Paul Pierson, Operations Manager, Neiman Enterprises
- Mr. Robert Christian, Former President, Black Hills Log Haulers Association
- Mr. Ben Wudtke, Executive Director, Black Hills Forest Resource Association
- Mr. Marcus Warnke, State Forester, South Dakota Department of Agriculture & Natural Resources
- Mr. Shawn Cochran, Supervisor, Black Hills National Forest
Background:
The Black Hills National Forest (BHNF), located in western South Dakota and eastern Wyoming, is a unit of the National Forest System covering over 1.25 million acres. The BHNF produced the U.S. Forest Service’s first federal timber sale in 1899 and remains one of the agency’s highest timber producing forests in the country, but BHNF has been missing their targets the last few years, causing concern for the industry.
The forestry industry contributes nearly $250 million to South Dakota’s economy and supports 1,000 jobs. Black Hills communities would be drastically different without the industry. When timber harvest is decreased, forests are more prone to bug outbreaks and catastrophic fires and industry participants like mills are forced to close. In 2021, the mill in Hill City, South Dakota, a town with a population of under 1,000, was shuttered. More than 100 jobs were lost due to the closure.