Commissioner Nicole “Nikki” Fried sent a letter to President Donald Trump asking him to stop Chinese tariffs on Florida timber crops and end his growing trade war with China. The letter, also sent to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin, cited the need to not worsen difficulties faced by Florida timber farmers. Florida …
Farm Service Agency Accepting Emergency Forest Restoration Program Applications
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Acting State Executive Director Justin Teuton announced that 17 Florida counties are accepting applications for the Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) to address damages from Hurricane Michael. EFRP provides payments to eligible owners of nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) land to enable the owners to carry out emergency measures to restore land …
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Surveys Florida Timber Damage with Department Representatives
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and representatives from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Florida Forest Service, including State Forester Jim Karels, surveyed timber damage caused by Hurricane Michael and met with members of the timber industry. The Florida Forest Service, a division of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, had over 500 personnel involved …
Timber Damage from Hurricane Michael Estimated at $1.3 Billion
Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam and the Florida Forest Service, a division of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, announced the estimated value of timber damage in Florida due to Hurricane Michael is $1.3 billion, impacting nearly 3 million acres of forestland. “This is a catastrophic loss to the forest industry in the Florida Panhandle,” said …
UF/IFAS-Developed $50 Device May Help Multibillion Forest Industry
By developing a simple, $50 trap, University of Florida scientists can gather spores from a pathogen of pine trees and hopefully help prevent diseases from causing more harm to the multibillion-a-year forest industry. Millions of pine trees dot the southern landscape, and they’re susceptible to many diseases, including pitch canker, said Tania Quesada, an assistant research scientist with the UF …
Alachua County Team Wins 3rd in National 4-H Forestry Invitational
What is the principal softwood used for lumber in Massachusetts? On what continent are maples most abundant? What is a liquid product of wood that is used in mixing paints?* At the 39th National 4-H Forestry Invitational, a team of four local high school students went head to head with teams from across the country to answer these questions and …
Blackwater River State Forest Expands
Thanks to funding from the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Navy, Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam announced that the Blackwater River State Forest will expand by 800 acres due to the acquisition of the Florida Forever Project Area Wolfe Creek Forest. The Florida Forest Service partnered with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Santa Rosa County, the Naval …