Congressman Smith Celebrates National Forest Products Week

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate National Forest Products Week.

Forest products provide more than 60,000 jobs and inject more than 9 billion dollars into Missouri’s economy. In southeast and south-central Missouri we produce everything from charcoal, lumber, wood flooring, whisky and wine barrels, pallets, telephone poles, railroad ties, gunstocks and much, much more. But, the number one obstacle to expanding in Missouri is the availability of timber. Folks cannot get enough wood to make more products and employ more people.

At the same time, we have trees dying on the Mark Twain National Forest faster than the government will allow industry to cut them down. Each year, 50 million board feet of timber, with an estimated value of nearly 5 million dollars, dies in the Mark Twain. Instead of being harvested, this timber is wasted and becomes a fire hazard.

We have increased the amount of the timber harvest at Mark Twain National Forest from 38 to 50 million board feet recently, but we can do much better. Better forest management is good for the forest and will put people to work.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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