45th Annual Western Forests Economists Meeting

May 3, 4, 5 2010

The Resort at the Mountain

Schedule of Activities and Speakers

 

Monday   May 3

Registration in Main Lodge Lobby    2:00 to 7:00 PM

 

Field Trip to Old Growth Stand   3:30 to 5:00 PM  (Meet at The Resort to car pool.  One half mile hike on trail required).  Discussion about the stand history, possible management strategies including potential timber values, and the role of old growth stands in the forested landscape.  Hosted by Bill Davidson & Mark Rasmussen, Mason, Bruce, & Girard

 

Fluid Session  7:00 PM.  Braemar  Suite.  Casual visiting.  Snacks, beer, wine provided.     Reminiscing by some of our Elders – What was forest economics like 45 years ago?  What were the issues of the day?  What is unchanged?  What is a lot different? Remembering Barney Dowdle.

 

Tuesday   May 4

 

Breakfast:  7:00 A.M.

 

General Session   8:15  to 10:15 

Past and Present of Forest Policy & the Status of the Forestry Business in the US

Moderator -- Marc Vomocil

  Bill Robbins:        Emeritus Distinguished Professor of History; Oregon State University.

                                The Human Dimensions of Forestry in the Pacific Northwest

  John Blackwell:   Chair of the Oregon Board of Forestry;   Protocol, Vitriol and Alcohol, the   

                                   Tribulations of a Board of Forestry Chairman

  David Jackson:     Director, Economic Services,   Western Wood Products Association;      

                                 The U.S. Economy and Softwood Lumber Supply and Demand (2010-2013)

 

Break 10:15 to 10:30

 

Concurrent Session 1  10:30 to 12:00    

   Session A:   Carbon Credits – Creating a Market Out of Thin Air   

                        Moderator – Mark Rasmussen

      John Perez-Garcia:  Professor, School of Forest Resources,  University of Washington.        

                                                                                                     Defining a Product

      Wolfgang Ortloff:     Director,  Equator, LLC.                   Creating Demand

      David Ford:  Executive Director, Oregon Small Woodlands Association and Managing

                             Director, Woodlands Carbon Company.         Developing Supply

 

                                 

 

   Session B:  Wood Supply Issues in SE Alaska and the PNW    Moderator - Su Alexander

      Su Alexander:   Regional Economist,  Alaska Region Secure Rural Schools Coordinator,
                                    Alaska Region, USDA Forest Service.             

                                  Timber in Southeast Alaska: Moving into an Uncertain Future

      Evan Hjerpe:     Resource Economist.   The Wilderness Society.    

                                  Economics of Transitioning to Sustainable Forest Management on the Tongass

      John Sessions:   Professor, Department of Forest Engineering, Resources and Management. Oregon    

                                     State Univ.   Regional Biomass Supply Projections for the Pacific Northwest

 

 

   Session C:  Recent Natural Resource Economics Research   Moderator - Claire Montgomery

      Xiaoping Zhou:  Focused Science Delivery Program,  Portland Forestry Sciences Lab, Forest Service. 

                                   Impacts of Forest Landscape Management on Long Term Carbon Accounting

      Jane Harrison:  PhD student in the College of Forestry. Oregon State University.

                                  The Expense of Biodiversity to Wyoming Ranchers: Incorporating   

                                  Opportunity Cost into Wolf Conservation Policy

      Yohan Lee:        PhD student in the College of Forestry. Oregon State University.

                                  The Optimal Spatial Allocation of Initial Attack Resources

 

Lunch:  12:00

 Tom Potiowsky:       Oregon State Economist, Oregon Office of Economic Analysis.                                      

State of Oregon's Economy and that of Neighboring States.  Past, Present, and Future.

 

Concurrent Session 2  1:30 to 3:00

   Session A:   Impacts of Forest Carbon Offset Sales Programs – Regional & National Views

                       Moderators – Darius Adams, Greg Latta

      Greg Latta:      Senior Faculty Research Assistant, Department of Forest Engineering,   

                                Resources and Management.  Oregon State.     Forest Carbon Models Used in  

                                Evaluation of the Economic Impacts of HR. 2452 and S. 1733

      Darius Adams: Professor Emeritus, Department of Forest Engineering, Resources and  

                                 Management. Oregon State.  Regional Impacts of a National Program of

                                 Forest Carbon Offsets Sales

      Eric White:      Research Associate, Department of Forest Engineering, Resources and Management. OSU.  

                                Regional Land Use Conversions in Response to the Use of Biomass for Bioenergy

 

 

   Session B:  Risk in Forestry     Moderator – John Perez-Garcia

      Joanne Ho:                 Recent Ph.D. Graduate,  School of Forest Resources,  U. of  Washington

      John Perez-Garcia:   Professor, School of Forest Resources, University of Washington

                                          Can Modified Weather Derivatives Reduce Variability                                                                                                                             

      Stanislav Petrasek:   Ph.D. candidate,  School of Forest Resources, University of Washington    

                                          Real Options Valuation of Carbon Sequestration Opportunities in PNW
      Stanislav Petrasek

      John Perez-Garcia:     Insights into Uncertain Timber Prices Using Real Options

                                Valuation Techniques; What Does It Mean to the Decision Maker?

 

                                                      

   Session C:    Stumpage Markets, Transaction Costs and Tax Policy       

                         Moderator TBA

      Jean Daniels:     Research Forester.  USDA Forest Service.    Pacific Northwest Research Station.   

                                  Stumpage Market Arbitrage for National Forest Timber in the Western U.S.

      Harry Nelson:    Asst. Professor, U. of British Columbia.   Vancouver, Canada.

                                         Transaction Costs Associated with Wood Supply Agreements

      Lili Sun:              Economist,   Industry, Trade and Economics,  Canadian Forest Service,

                                   Natural Resources Canada.  

                                   Tax policy and the forest sector: an international comparison

                                                     

 

Break   3:00 to 3:30

 

Concurrent Session 3   3:30  to  5:00

   Session A:      The Canadian Report         Moderator - Thomas Maness

      Catalin Ristea:  PhD Candidate, U. of British Columbia.  Vancouver, Canada.

                                  Potential for Fast-Growth Poplar Plantations for Cellulosic Ethanol

                                  Production – A Life Cycle Analysis Approach

      Brian Peter:      Forest Research Economist,   Industry, Trade and Economics, Canadian   

                                 Forest Service,  Natural Resources Canada.    The Economics of Mountain      

                                 Pine Beetle Range Expansion and Control

      Olaf Schwab:    Senior Economist, Canadian Forest Service. Ottawa, Canada.

                                 Effects of Renewable Energy Incentives on Forest Product Markets

 

   Session B:  Socio-Economic Issues Regarding Forestry   Moderator – Gary Lettman

      Nancy Hirsch:    Chief,  State Forests Division, Oregon Department of Forestry.

                                   Current Issues Faced By the Oregon Department of Forestry and the Role

                                   Economic Analysis Plays in Evaluating and Addressing Those Issues

                                   Versus Other Social and Environmental Criteria                              

      Guy Robertson:  Sustainability Program Lead, U.S. Forest Service Research, Washington D.C.   

                                   The Montreal Process Socioeconomic Indicators for Forest Sustainability

                                   and What They Can Tell Us About Forests in America

      Bill White:          Senior Economist, Northern Forestry Centre, Canadian Forest Service,
                                   Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.    The Role of Non-employment Income in

                                   Rural Canadian Resource Dependent Communities   

      

Tuesday Evening    6:00  Bar-B-Que   Mallards Café  Followed By a Fluid Session  in  the

                                  Braemar Suite.  Casual visiting.  Snacks, beer, wine provided.   

 

 

 Wednesday   May 5

 

Breakfast:   7:00 A.M.

 

  

General Session   8:15  to 10:15

Ecosystem Services – What Are They and the Developing Markets for Them

Moderator -- Marc Vomocil

Sara Vickerman:           Defenders of Wildlife. Senior Director Biodiversity Partnerships.

                                        Ecosystem Service Markets:   Potentials and Pitfalls

Bartholomew “Mac” Martin: The Willamette Partnership. Water Resource Analyst;

                                         Mechanics of a Market for Buying and Selling Ecosystem Services

Robert Deal:                   USDA Forest Service, PNW Research Station,  Research Forester and

                                          Science Team Leader;   Ecosystem Services Unit;.
                                          Ecosystem Services Project from Public Lands

Break 10:15 to 10:30

 

Concurrent Session 4  10:30 to 12:00

   Session A:          Returns to State Forest Trust Lands       Moderator – Mark Rasmussen

      Jordan Larson:           Resource and Forest Economist with Montana’s Department of 

                                            Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC). 

                                            Montana’s Department of Natural Resources

      Gary Lettman:            Principal Forest Economist, Oregon Department of Forestry

                                            Oregon’s Department of Forestry

      David Groeschl:           Division Administrator, Forestry & Fire, Idaho Department of Lands

                                             Idaho’s Department of Lands

 

   Session B:     Economics of Harvesting               Moderator – Bruce Glass

      Steve Pilkerton:    Research Forest Engineer, Department of Forest Engineering, Resources and

                                         Management. Oregon State University.

                                         Log Lengths and Cutting Patterns for Timber Valuation

      John Sessions:       Professor, Department of Forest Engineering, Resources and Management. Oregon    

                                         State University.       Northwest Modeling Biomass Transport Costs

     

 

LUNCH & BUSINESS MEETING:    12:00

 

ADJOURN   1:00  Optional Field Trip to Old Growth Stand  for Those Who Couldn’t Go on Monday.   .  I will take anyone who wants to go to the old growth stand.    Marc