National Forest Products Week

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. President, I wish to recognize the important role of the forest products industry as we celebrate National Forest Products Week.

Montana's forests are a treasured part of our State's heritage which many of us hold so dear--not only are Montana's forests where we hunt, fish, explore, and live, but our forest products industry provides thousands of jobs for Montana families and a boost to our State's economy.

Sadly, many forest products jobs in Montana have been lost this year in large part due to an insufficient supply of logs from Federal lands. I'm fighting for commonsense reforms to restore active management across Montana so we can get more Montanans back to work, improve forest health, increase access to public lands, and provide much-needed sustainable revenues to our forested counties. These reforms must give the Forest Service the tools and resources it needs to increase responsible timber harvests and protect their work from obstructionist tactics that continue to encumber a substantial portion of the timber volume from Montana's national forests. Congress should enact these reforms swiftly.

Further, as we seek to improve the performance of our buildings, we should encourage the use of wood in the construction of Federal and other commercial buildings. Montana is home to approximately 5 engineered and panel products facilities and 12 sawmills, millwork, and treatment facilities that employ several thousand people across the State. These facilities are working to advance innovative new technologies, for example, cross laminated timber. I am proud to have SmartLam, Inc., the very first and only manufacturer of cross laminated timber, CLT, products in the U.S. located in the great State of Montana.

CLT products are creating opportunities in the U.S. to build taller wood buildings. Advancements in new technology utilizing engineered ``mass timber'' panels are creating new possibilities for wood. This concept is gaining momentum in the U.S. as many successful demonstration projects have been built and proven to be a safe and cost-effective solution in urban dense settings. With more than 17 tall wood buildings of seven stories or more having been built around the world serving as demonstration projects, building officials, designers, contractors, and consumers are increasingly confident in the safety of these buildings.

I want to thank the individuals in the forest products industry for their important contributions to my home State and for their efforts to expand tall wood building projects across the Nation.

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I wish to join my colleagues in support of the 55th National Forest Products Week and to recognize the more than 26,000 hard-working men and women that work in the forest products sector in Michigan.

Forests in Michigan and nationwide help keep our air and water clean, provide wildlife habitats, and places for recreation. These forests aren't just an environmental treasure; they are an economic powerhouse. Michigan is home to nearly 200 businesses that manufacture everything from office paper to wood pellets for home heating. Nationwide, our forests provide more than 900,000 jobs, creating almost $240 billion in economic output every year.

This economic activity leads to new opportunities in rural communities around the country. That's one reason why, as chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, I worked with a bipartisan group of lawmakers to ensure the 2014 farm bill strengthened forestry programs and helped bolster rural economic development.

Forest product companies are also leaders in the effort to increase recycling. Today, 96 percent of all communities across the country have access to curbside or drop-off paper recycling programs. On top of that, the millions of Americans who recycle at home, work, and school have helped recover more than 60 percent of the paper consumed in the U.S. in each of the last 3 years. Picture this: each day our paper companies around the country recycle enough paper to fill a 15-mile-long boxcar train.

That type of leadership is great news for our planet and has some serious economic savings as well. Already more than 110 mills around the country are making paper using only recovered materials. And efforts are on track to recover more than 70 percent of all paper used by 2020. At the same time, paper can only be recycled a limited number of times, so it's important that steps are taken to ensure sustainable production of paper and forest products from our renewable forest resources.

Forest products can also help us become more energy independent. Manufacturers across the industry now use carbon neutral biomass that comes from forest waste--materials like bark, wood

scraps, byproducts, and other unusable products--to help power their plants, reduce emissions, and save energy.

For all these reasons, I am proud to serve as co-chair of the Paper and Packaging Caucus with my colleague from Arkansas, Senator Boozman.

Thank you for the opportunity to recognize the hard-working professionals of the forest products industry in the great State of Michigan. I would urge my colleagues to join me in celebrating National Forest Products Week and applaud the thousands of hard-working Americans who are working hard every day to keep America as the leader in forest products.

Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I would like to recognize National Forest Products Week and the many women and men in Arkansas who rely on forestry and the forest products industry.

As co-chair of the Paper and Packaging Caucus, I am glad to work with my fellow co-chairs--Senator Debbie Stabenow and Representatives Reid Ribble and Gwen Graham--to highlight the role that this vital industry plays in our country.

About 25,000 Arkansans are directly employed in the forestry and forest products sector. Arkansas is home to over 100 wood products, paper, and packaging manufacturing facilities that make nearly $7 billion in products each year. Large and small employers dot the Arkansas landscape. I regularly hear from and meet with Arkansas families who earn a living and make great products at places like Green Bay Packaging, Domtar, Deltic Timber, and Georgia-Pacific. Every year, I meet with family tree farmers and small business operators who rely on our forestry sector to build a successful future. And I track and support efforts to responsibly manage and utilize our renewable Federal forest resources. According to the University of Arkansas, the forest and forest products industry produces $2.3 billion in wages that are pumped into the Arkansas economy each year. This economic activity creates and supports countless other jobs.

I also serve as the co-chair of the Senate Recycling Caucus. In this dual capacity, I have seen the forest products industry's success in pairing economic growth with respect for the environment. The industry is making great strides in promoting sustainability and energy conservation, especially by using carbon neutral biomass, which meets about two-thirds of the industry's energy needs. Other successes include boosting exports and encouraging recycling. Paper recycling programs now reach 96 percent of the American people, and the industry is on target to recover and recycle about 70 percent of its products in the next few years.

At the same time, the industry is facing challenges--from problems with our transportation policies and infrastructure to a regulatory maze that is too difficult and costly to navigate. Here in Congress, we need to solve these challenges together, through common sense, cooperation, negotiation, an open process, and a clear-eyed analysis of the facts.

We also need to support the industry as it transitions. While more information is available digitally, paper and packaging products are still indispensable to our modern economy. For example, many Americans, particularly those in rural settings or with limited resources or computer skills, have difficulty accessing information digitally. That's why in general, and particularly at government agencies, the format of information should be a consumer choice.

In conclusion, paper, packaging, and other wood products are at the heart of modern life and a modern economy. I am glad to join my colleagues in celebrating National Forest Products Week. These recyclable and renewable resources make our lives better, and forestry is truly an Arkansas success story--and an American success story. Thank you.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source