Tuesday, the state’s Board of Natural Resources approved a $6.6 million purchase of 2,309 acres of forestland from Rayonier, an international forest products company. The mostly forested tract is in central Lewis County, about 3 miles south of Mossyrock. The acquisition is aimed at putting the brakes on the rapid rate at which forestland in Washington is being converted into housing, urban, or agricultural uses. From 1998 to 2004, non-federally owned forestland in western Washington was being converted to nonforest uses, such as housing, at an estimated rate of just over one percent a year. That transformation of the landscape has reduced wildlife habitat, outdoor recreation, and jobs in the local timber-based economies. Although the tract purchased is prime forestland, it is just 15 minutes from Interstate 5, moderately sloped, and already zoned for 80-acre home sites. Now, the land will be a part of the Common School Trust and provide non-tax revenue for school construction, as well as wildlife habitat and outdoor recreation for generations to come. Tuesday’s news release explains more.
