April 17, 2000
Contact: Jack Phelps, Executive Director,
907-225-6114
INDUSTRY WELCOMES NEW MARKET STUDY
The Alaska Forest Association today applauded the work of Juneau-based
McDowell Group reflected in a study of timber markets prepared for
the Ketchikan Gateway Borough. "The Global Market for Timber
from the Tongass National Forest," a 133 page study, was commissioned
by the Borough last year and was unveiled in a presentation at the
borough Assembly meeting Monday night. "This is the first objective
and comprehensive look at demand for Tongass-type timber that has
been published in nearly a decade," said Jack Phelps, executive
director of the industry trade association.
"The conclusions of this report are reminiscent of a
government-sponsored study completed in 1992, before Clinton-era politics displaced truth
in reporting demand for Tongass timber," Phelps said. "This study should prove
to be very useful as the industry and the timber-dependent communities of Southeast Alaska
consider their options for future production and employment."
"The McDowell study shows that global demand for the types
of wood products we are capable of producing in Southeast Alaska is virtually
unlimited." said Phelps. "The only real restraints on our ability to produce are
timely supply and higher operating costs. The cost issues can and are being addressed
through industry efficiencies and by developing niche markets with a higher return per
board foot. But the supply problem can only be addressed by those who own the timber
– that means the federal government can make or break our economy by selling or not
selling timber in a timely manner and on a cost-effective basis."
The report includes extensive discussions of global production and
consumption of forest products and of the international trade in Tongass-type products. It
is illustrated with many tables and graphs demonstrating the interplay between producing
and consuming regions, as well as the relative market importance of various products,
including engineered products, which could be produced in Alaska if timber supplies were
sufficient to sustain mills at levels of peak efficiency.
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