Photo (Courtesy of Forest Photo): Beetle Infested Trees in the Black Hills National Forest
Mack Logging Truck in South Dakota
Spoke with Frank Carroll today. He’s a dear friend, Custer landowner, forestry expert, mountain pine beetle exterminator, wildland firefighter and “ahem” a tree hugger. He’s spreading the word about a media tour in South Dakota faster than you can whistle Dixie. The event will demonstrate methods to treat beetle infested trees with techniques, such as:
- tree spraying
- cutting and chunking
- piling to burn infested trees
Mountain pine beetle infestations in the Black Hills of South Dakota and Wyoming are a growing forest health problem and companies such as Timberline Tree Spraying, Neiman Enterprises, Baker Timber Company, D&C Spraying and Warne Chemical are doing what they can to prevent trees from dying. It’s a noble cause. I’m pro permethrin and I vote. I’m also pro for thinning, extracting and processing good timber.
I was raised in rural Alaska and am well aware of the fact that forestry and timber industries are of major ecological, social and ECONOMIC importance. Forest management and timber operations are supported by log handling and processing equipment, heavy-duty trucks, other equipment and supplies. These outfits create jobs where workers need gear and clothing, which in turn help stimulate local economies and grow communities.
As I thought back on my childhood today — specifically the friends of mine who are loggers, heavy equipment operators and truck drivers — I asked myself what was the commonality between my roots in a timber industry-driven community and my adult life working as a publicist for manufacturing with metal and plastics. The answer, job creation.
Take for example, a logging truck… MACK® is one of North America’s largest producers of heavy-duty trucks. Mack trucks are assembled in the United States, and sold in more than 45 countries. Mack Trucks, Inc. is part of the Volvo Group, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of trucks, buses and construction equipment, drive systems for marine and industrial applications, aerospace components and services, and is one of the world’s leading producers of heavy-diesel engines (9-16 liter). The Volvo Group employs more than 90,000 people, has production facilities in 19 countries and sells their products in more than 180 markets. In America, the automobile industry is responsible for 8-million jobs, and according to the Center for Automotive Research, the industry expects to add 150,000 more jobs over the next four years.
Believe it or not, this guy was my Home Ec partner in high school. I'm sorry to say, I was solely responsible for him not getting an "A" in the class. (Sorry Chris)
If you live in a logging town, you won’t see many Volvos; however, you will see a lot of Mack trucks hauling logs from the forest to lumber mills and ship yards. Logs are processed and sent to far away places like China and Japan. Additionally, lumber is used to build wood pallets, boxes, skids and containers – for transporting products manufactured in a variety of industries including automotive, aerospace and consumer products. Hey, this little rinky-dink, wood pallet industry generates an estimated $6.6 billion alone so don’t laugh. As ridiculous left-wing legislation comes to a screeching halt and Congress realizes they need to start protecting the “real” endangered species (aka people), manufacturing activity will increase, demand for supplies and materials will increase, jobs will increase and the U.S. economy will recover.
So let’s summarize the finer points of this blog post:
- a tree is grown ring-by-ring, layer-by-layer (it’s natures very own additive manufacturing technology — note the tree rings in the photo right)
- trees are harvested, processed and sold
- some trees become pallets
- pallets are found in manufacturing facilities and used to move parts around the shop floor
- pallets are also used to move components on an assembly line
- trucks are manufactured and purchased by logging operations
- people are employed every step of the way
So there you go, a fine example of the product life cycle. Now, enough with the effin spotted owls. If you want to help stimulate the economy and save the dying population of America’s work force, the logs must fall and the pallets must keep moving. Who’s with me on this? Woo. Woo.
Disclaimer: My opinions are my own.
OABTW: Forests are a renewable resource. Logging operations and crews are harvesting second growth timber in Alaska from circa 1980 clear cuts as I type. IT’S MONEY. Hey, just watch more money-making, community-building, economy-stimulating logging operations in action now. It’s likely crews are dumping another nice bundle of Sitka spruce owned by Seaalaska Corp and logged by Phoenix Logging Co. at Grace Harbor on Dall Island in Southeast Alaska as I type.
January 20, 2012
Nadrafied