December 10, 2020 3:40 a.m.
On Tuesday, the Oregon State Land Board affirmed the Elliot State Forest’s future as a research forest, directing continued collaboration as details are finalized over the next two years.
A release from the Department of State Lands said the Elliot proposal presented by Oregon State University would support research on many topics – such as forestry’s role in mitigating climate change, protecting and restoring endangered species, and supporting economic growth and rural communities – while also creating the Oregon coast’s largest forest reserve, protecting critical habitat, providing recreational access, and creating learning opportunities for school children. The full proposal is linked with this story: https://www.oregon.gov/dsl/Land/Elliott%20Forest%20Library/FINAL_120120_ESRF_OSU_Proposal.pdf
OSU College of Forestry Dean Tom DeLuca presented the proposal and said “The only way to generate the knowledge needed for a sustainable Oregon, and for Oregon to thrive, is through research”.
The release said the Land Board in December of 2018 asked the ODSL and OSU to begin exploring the Elliot’s potential to become a publicly owned research forest. The proposal took shape over the next two years with input and insight from advisory committees, Tribes, state and local governments, stakeholders and the public.
Work was guided by the Land Board’s vision for the Elliot: keeping the forest publicly owned with public access; decoupling the forest from the Common School Fund and compensating the fund for the forest; continuing habitat conservation planning to protect species and allow for harvest; and providing for multiple forest benefits, including recreation, education and working forest research.
Keith Tymchuk from the Elliot State Forest Advisory Committee said the group unanimously supported the creation of an Elliot State Research Forest. He said, “The Land Board did not charge us with developing a one-dimensional solution; it asked us to do something far more complex – to try and reconcile and significantly advance multiple objectives that for decades have been juxtaposed in conflict”. He said after two-years of work the group believes the proposal has the potential to achieve that mandate. The full committee statement is linked with the story: https://www.oregon.gov/dsl/Land/Elliott%20Forest%20Library/ESRFCommitteeStatementDecember2020.pdf
DSL Director Vicki Walker said the hard work and collaboration will continue as details are finalized. The Elliot State Forest is in Douglas and Coos counties.