EWP Briefing Papers

Permanent URI for this collection

https://hdl.handle.net/1794/13126

Founded in 1994, the Ecosystem Workforce Program was created to help lead the rural Pacific Northwest into the age of ecosystem management--management for healthy communities and healthy environments. The EWP believes that, by creating high skill forest and watershed jobs that enable people to work near their homes, we will establish a structure for long term resource stewardship. Our goal is to demonstrate the linkages between a quality workforce, a healthy economy, healthy community, and effective management for forest ecosystems.

For more information, visit the web site at: http://ewp.uoregon.edu/

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Browsing EWP Briefing Papers by Author "Charnley, Susan"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Adopting stewardship contracting : lessons from four national forests
    (Ecosystem Workforce Program, Institute for a Sustainable Environment, University of Oregon, 2011) Moseley, Cassandra; Donoghue, Ellen M. (Ellen Mary); Charnley, Susan; MacFarland, Kate
    Congress granted broad stewardship contracting authority to the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management in the FY 2003 appropriations act to help these agencies accomplish restoration and hazardous fuels reduction and increase community benefit from these activities. During the first several years of the authority, the use of stewardship contracting was uneven, with some national forests making significant use of the authorities while others hardly used stewardship contracting at all. Although the stewardship contracting has become more wide spread in recent years, it is not clear why some national forests were early adopters and others were more hesitant to use the authorities. This study provides insight into the question of why the use of stewardship contracting was initially so variable.
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    Implementing the Economic Stimulus on National Forests: Using Hazardous Fuels Reduction to Create Local Jobs
    (Ecosystem Workforce Program, Institute for a Sustainable Environment, University of Oregon, 2009-02) Charnley, Susan; Moseley, Cassandra; Donoghue, Ellen M. (Ellen Mary)
    How can hazardous fuels reduction on national forests best contribute to local job creation? Many rural counties where national forests are located have higher unemployment rates than the nation as a whole. Hazardous fuels reduction funded through the economic stimulus package can help alleviate unemployment while reducing the risk of uncharacteristic fire and the cost of suppression. Previous research suggests, however, that the economic benefits of forest restoration often do not reach rural communities near national forests.i Thus, success will require the Forest Service to focus attention on strategies that are most likely to create economic opportunity in these communities. This briefing paper draws on research findings to offer insights about how the Forest Service might maximize the economic stimulus effects of hazardous fuels reduction funds.
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    Local benefits from land management : a strategy for measuring performance
    (Ecosystem Workforce Program, Institute for a Sustainable Environment, University of Oregon, 2011) Moseley, Cassandra; MacFarland, Kate; Enzer, Maia J.; Jungwirth, Lynn; Podowski, Liz; Donoghue, Ellen M. (Ellen Mary); Charnley, Susan
    The Forest Service faces a long-standing challenge of reporting accomplishments in ways that Congress and the public find compelling. Over the past several years, the Forest Service has made significant improvements to its accountability system. The Forest Service plays an important role in rural economies, especially in the rural West. However, the Forest Service does not track the economic effects that Forest Service work has on local communities. Describing the Forest Service’s impact on rural communities could increase understanding and support for the agency’s work. The Forest Service can use data that it already collects to track initial measures of the economic effects of its management on local communities.
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    Sawmills, biomass facilities, and hazardous fuels reduction : does location matter?
    (Ecosystem Workforce Program, Institute for a Sustainable Environment, University of Oregon, 2011) Nielsen-Pincus, Max; Charnley, Susan; MacFarland, Kate; Moseley, Cassandra
    Severe wildland fire has become one of the most significant resource management challenges that the USDA Forest Service faces. National policy has focused on reducing uncharacteristic fuel loads and wildfire risk. However, the cost of hazardous fuels reduction is high. Utilization of small diameter trees and brush offers the potential to reduce treatment costs. But, we do not know how close sawmills and biomass facilities need to be to treatments to have an impact. This research examined how the locations of sawmills and biomass facilities influenced the amount of hazardous fuels reduction accomplished by the Forest Service, associated biomass utilization, and contracting mechanisms used to implement hazardous fuels treatments.