This year, the conversation was dominated by Finch Paper’s decision to stop producing pulp at its mill in Glens Falls, New York, and the ripple effects of a lost market for 400,000 tons of pulpwood on landowners, logging contractors, truckers, foresters, and land managers across New York, Vermont, and New England. The challenge is acute, with stories of harvested wood sitting in the forest with nowhere to go and logging contractors putting their equipment up for sale.
This blow comes on top of record diesel prices, exponential increases in the cost of equipment driven by the Iran war, tariffs and trade disputes, and an aging workforce that is not being replaced. And, at a time when tree mortality in the Northeast is being driven more by insects, disease and extreme weather than logging.
In short, we’re in a moment of tremendous challenge to the health of forests and the livelihoods of people who steward and depend on them. And there is a clear opportunity, and need, for smart policy and investment.
Thankfully, the Summit highlighted opportunities providing a counterbalance to these challenges, and the urgency and energy of everyone gathered to do something about them added hope and optimism.
VSJF is in the midst of its , which is supporting eight start-up and seed-stage U.S. businesses bringing new wood products and services to market. We heard from these entrepreneurs about biochar enriched interior wall tiles, wood-derived carbon fiber for high-performance uses, hyper-local wood flooring, new mass timber assemblies, AI-driven management tools for landowners, wood-derived coatings for food packaging, and a wood alternative to coal-derived carbon.
We took part in and learned from robust discussions about wood energy policy, mass timber housing and market development, and investment in the forest industry. We were encouraged by the presence of a number of Vermont legislators, and, as one put it, the “unusual level of engagement” in listening for productive strategies to support the forest sector.
The Finch Paper announcement has galvanized a strong response in Vermont, with much attention on what it will take to rebuild lost wood markets. Modern wood heat — using wood as a replacement for oil to heat homes, businesses, and entire community districts with automated, efficient technology — is near the top of the list. A Summit panel explored a range of opportunities, including thermal renewable energy credits, using the state’s Renewable Energy Standard to encourage more wood energy use, and advanced wood heat as a solution for larger buildings and facilities. As one participant noted, given the current alignment of circumstances, if there was ever a moment to make wood heat happen in a big way in Vermont, it’s now.
Challenge, opportunity, and hope.
The time our team spent at the Summit affirmed a few things that are shaping our work. One, the challenges facing forests and forest industries are real and undeniable, and it is critical that policymakers and the broader public hear and understand them. Two, innovation, paired with the wood and the forest know-how that this region has in abundance, can create a next generation of forest goods and services. And, three, forests and stewarding them for the future, are a shared value that brings together diverse perspectives and partners, which is exactly the type of coalition it usually takes to get something done.
