King wants to boost workforce for Maine's forest products industry

FILE PHOTO / COURTESY PROFESSIONAL LOGGING CONTRACTORS NORTHEAST Maine’s logging and forest trucking workforce is aging, and targeted workforce education and training programs are needed.

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By Laurie Schreiber

A leading forestry industry association in Maine is hailing proposed federal legislation to improve forest industry employment and participation.

Dana Doran, executive director of the Professional Logging Contractors Northeast, said the Jobs in the Woods Act comes at a critical time for the logging industry.

“Our existing logging and forest trucking workforce is aging, and targeted workforce education and training programs are needed to provide pathways to good paying careers in the woods to ensure the industry's future,” said Doran. “Opportunities are strong for the next generation, particularly in the rural areas where this legislation would have the greatest impact."

U.S. Sens. Angus King, I-Maine, and Jim Risch, R-Idaho, co-chairs of the Senate Working Forests Caucus, introduced the legislation to improve forest industry employment and participation through a grant program aimed at rural and underserved communities, according to a news release.

The act would support developmental programs designed to better equip and train the forest products workforce for careers with the U.S. Forest Service and timber industries.

In Maine, the forest products industry supports nearly 14,000 jobs. Nationally, the industry employs roughly 925,000 people and indirectly supports another 2 million jobs.

“As the industry continues to evolve, we must ensure our forestry workforce has the proper training and skills to help responsibly manage our forests while strengthening our local economies,” said King.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, was among the co-sponsors of the bill.

Within the next 10 years, an estimated 20% to 40% of forest product workers will reach retirement age.

Maine’s 16.3 million acres of contiguous, privately-owned working forest is the largest such in the U.S. Its forest products industry includes logging and downstream manufacturing such as pulp and paper production.