Environmentalists: Northwoods timber management should be collaborative effort

APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) - Environmentalists say they want to work with the forest products industry to develop a collaborative solution to a dispute over the Northwoods' timber management.

Paul Strong, a supervisor at the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, said a previous collaboration is a great example. He cited the success of an agreement between Greenpeace and Kimberly-Clark on the use of a material from forests in Canada.

Strong tells the Appleton Post-Crescent that "a collaborative agreement is much better than controversy."

Strong is part of a forestry collaborative that seeks a compromise on 1.5 million acres of national forest land that will please both loggers and environmental interests. It seeks to attract private investment funds, promote the benefits of forest management, and coordinate restoration projects.

The state's two U.S. senators -- Democrat Tammy Baldwin and Republican Ron Johnson -- made separate visits to northern Wisconsin last month, and they vow to work together on the matter until a solution is reached.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)