Opinions split over wood pellet mill

This Sunday Forum is in response to “Cooper should block mill that reduces forests to wood pellets” (Oct. 25).

Cooper must act

According to the author, Gov. Roy Cooper refuses to revoke a McCrory-era permit for the wood-pellet manufacturer Enviva’s proposed factory. This facility would enable ruthless deforestation and pollution, destroying the quality of life for those residing near the facility. McCrory’s DEQ issued the permit illegally, without a public comment period for the low-income residents who will be worst affected by the loss of forest and lack of breathable air.

Despite calls from conservation groups across the state, Cooper has not revoked the permit. In 2016 Cooper’s website boasted, “Roy Cooper stands up for North Carolina – And as governor, he’ll get the job done.” But Cooper’s lack of response to the environmental justice crisis in Richmond County shows that perhaps he can’t – or won’t – get the job done for those who need it most.

Forest ‘stewardship’

In the late 1990s, alarming statements were made that chip mill facilities would result in the “rapid snowballing of forest destruction” in North Carolina and the southeast. This full-scale marketing campaign led North Carolina elected officials to conduct a series of statewide public hearings and eventually, an academically researched and state sponsored Chip Mill Study. The study exonerated the forest products industry and concluded the biggest threat to North Carolina’s forests was the overall urbanization of the state. So what has happened on the ground since the study?

Thanks to the stewardship of the over 500,000 private forestland owners in cooperation with forest products professionals, North Carolina boasts some 18.6 million acres of forestland. This is an amazing achievement considering the urban growth in our state over the past 20 years. Over 85 percent of North Carolina’s forests are still privately owned, and over two-thirds of these forests are owned by private, non-industrial landowners. Our forests not only provide the starting point for our state’s top manufacturing industry, forest products, but these forests produce clean air, clean water and a myriad of outdoor recreation activities and economic opportunities for all North Carolinians.

In the forestry cycle, trees are planted and harvested on different schedules with various methods to ensure the landowner is meeting forest management objectives. For some landowners, the top priority may be creating habitat for wildlife, or for outdoor recreation, or maybe just for the aesthetics, but in the end, a landowner paying taxes on his or her property will look to generate some financial returns on the investment of owning the land. Incentivizing landowners to plant trees is our best and often only sustainable model for increasing the amount of healthy forests in our state. The present-use value tax system and cost-share programs are terrific public policy measures, but in the end, the marketplace provides the best and highest return to forest landowners.

Wood chips used in the production of paper or pellets are produced from small diameter trees. The removal of smaller trees is a forest management practice known as thinning, and it creates more space for the remaining trees to grow while improving wildlife habitat for many species. A landowner makes the majority of his or her profit on a timber sale of the larger trees on the property that are manufactured into lumber products. We should be praising our forest products professionals and our farm and forest landowners for their stewardship of our state’s most valuable, renewable resource, trees.

Enviva ‘concern’

I am concerned about another wood pellet mill being constructed here in North Carolina. I am worried that without a block from Gov. Roy Cooper, not only will the current construction be successful, but there will be several others to follow.

Enviva, the largest wood pellet exporter in the world, is planning to construct another wood pellet mill in Richmond County. This specific area, Hamlet, is a low-income, heavily minority area of the state. They have been taken advantage of by other industries that have built large facilities or railways in their small town. Enviva will simply add fuel to the fire that is already burning within that community.

Enviva was permitted to begin this construction without a public hearing in the community of Richmond County, which is the legal right of the residents. With Enviva planning to cut 13,000 acres of forest per year in order to sustain its operation, it will not be able to replace trees of an old growth forest, the majority of what it plans to cut, for the next 100 to 200 years. So, I am urging the governor to revoke this permit immediately for Richmond County.

Tree farms defended

Wood pellets are about the only market for low-quality hardwood trees and tree tops. Only the best logs are suitable for veneer or furniture and cabinet-grade lumber. The rest is only suitable for chipping. The valuable hardwood species that grow in eastern North Carolina all regenerate and grow better on sites that have been clear cut. Some woodlands have been harvested by other than clear-cutting in the past and now only produce low-grade material which must be removed by clear-cutting in order to let the forest regenerate.

Also, wetland forests are difficult to log and thus are unsuitable for selective harvesting. Thinning and “single tree selection” are not practical. Most of the forest land in this state is in private ownership. Forest land owners have the right and should expect to be able to grow a crop and sell it at a profit. Chip mills allow us to make a profit. If anyone disagrees with this they should buy the forest land and pay the taxes on it. Then they can enjoy watching the trees grow old and die. Otherwise, we tree farmers will continue to manage the forests in sustainable ways, pay taxes and provide jobs in rural eastern North Carolina. I am sure the governor understands this.

This story was originally published November 4, 2017 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Opinions split over wood pellet mill."