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The Florida Forest Service is now accepting applications for the 2024 Southern Pine Beetle Assistance and Prevention Program for non-industrial, private forest landowners. The program runs through July 26 and includes 44 northern Florida counties – the southern pine beetle’s known range.
Previous outbreaks have destroyed thousands of acres of timber. Florida’s last major southern pine beetle outbreak caused an estimated $59 million in timber losses on over 24,000 acres between 1999 and 2002. The assistance program provides incentive payments for landowners who have overstocked pine stands and need to conduct a first thinning. In addition, it offers partial cost reimbursement for activities that can mitigate southern pine beetle activity, such as prescribed burning, mechanical underbrush treatments, and the planting of longleaf or slash pine rather than loblolly pine, the beetle’s preferred species.
All qualifying applications received during the submission period will be evaluated and ranked for approval. Since it was first offered in 2005, the program has been implemented on more than 210,000 acres and helped thousands of Florida landowners.
For an application or to learn more about the Southern Pine Beetle Assistance and Prevention Program, visit:Â FDACS.gov/SPBPrevention.
Sabrina Halvorson
National Correspondent / AgNet Media, Inc.
Sabrina Halvorson is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster, and public speaker who specializes in agriculture. She primarily reports on legislative issues and hosts The AgNet Weekly podcast. Sabrina is a native of California’s agriculture-rich Central Valley.