The Board of Forestry will meet on Tuesday, March 26, 8:30 a.m. to 5:10 p.m. and Wednesday, March 27, 8:00 a.m. to 4:50 p.m. in the Department of Environmental Conservation conference room, 410 Willoughby Avenue, Juneau Alaska. The agenda will include reports on:
- Fiscal Year 2013-14 forestry, forest practices, and monitoring budgets
- Forest road projects and funding
- HB79/SB 28 bill regarding proposed Susitna State Forest and negotiated timber sales
- Repeal of regulations referencing the Alaska Coastal Management Program
- Proposed mass wasting regulation
- Forest practices compliance and effectiveness monitoring
- Forestry/fisheries symposium report
- Annual forest practices reports from the departments of Natural Resources, Environmental Conservation, and Fish and Game
- Wood energy in Alaska, including biomass energy proposals for Tok and Fort Greely
- Best management practices for biomass harvesting
- Division of Forestry program updates and realignment
- Tongass Land Management Plan implementation and Five-year Review; Chugach National Forest Plan revision
- National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting and forest roads
- Federal Roadless Rule implementation
- Southeast Alaska land ownership initiatives: Sealaska land entitlement and Mental Health Trust Authority land exchange
- Alaska Timber Jobs Task Force recommendations and implementation
- Panel on endangered species listings in Alaska
- Briefings on the Tongass 77 Campaign, Chinook Research Plan, and Boreal Alaska Learning Adaptation and Production (BAKLAP) initiative
Other forestry matters may be included on the agenda. The meeting is intended to comply with the requirements of AS 41.17.047(b) and (d).
There will be an opportunity for public comment. Public comment is scheduled on the draft agenda for Tuesday, March 26 at 1:15 p.m. The meeting will be teleconferenced both days in the Division of Forestry conference room, 550 W. 7th Ave., Suite 1450, Anchorage, and the Department of Natural Resources medium conference room, 3700 Airport Way, Fairbanks. However, if no member of the public is present at a teleconference location by 9:00 a.m., the teleconference may be terminated.
For more information, contact Marty Freeman at the Division of Forestry in Anchorage (marty.freeman@alaska.gov; 269-8467). For special accommodations due to audio or visual impairment, please contact Doreen Dick at the Division of Forestry (Doreen.dick@alaska.gov; 269-8463). Any individuals wishing to receive future announcements of Board of Forestry meetings by e-mail or in hard copy should contact Doreen Dick to be added to the mailing list.