Starting January, 12, 2012, the Qualified Logging Professional Program will start the next QLP course. This course is a Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) 30 hr. approved course for safe and sustainable wood harvesting practices. The course will be held at   So. Aroostook Community Schools (SACS), Dyer Brook, Maine.

Classes will meet January 12, February 9, March 8, and April 12, 2012. The January 12^th class starts at 5 PM, and will include an Introduction to SFI & CLP, Forest Practices Act (FPA), and Contracting. Speakers will be Pat Sirois from SFI, Dan Jacobs from the Maine Forest Service, and Marc Pinette from LP.

Participants must attend all of the classes to earn QLP certification & final classes during Spring Breakup. There are a total of 30 hours classes, plus the Field Interview. A lunch will be provided at the first class and at other classes that start at 5 p.m.

Additional topics at future classes will include Wildlife Habitat, Forest Mapping, Personal Protective Equipment, Water Quality, Transportation Safety, CPR/First Aid, etc.

Cost:    $150 to cover the cost of the Field Interview —  $150 is due at the February class.

To Register: Call Otis Smith at 521-3100 x5.

By Nick Sambides Jr., BDN Staff

EAST MILLINOCKET, Maine — The new owners of the local paper mill toured the facility Wednesday for the first time since buying it last week and announced plans to have it fully operational by Oct. 10, with 215 workers starting to fill a full year of orders.

Full Article on BangorDailyNews.com

By Nick Sambides Jr., BDN Staff

EAST MILLINOCKET, Maine — Two days of intensive work culminated late Friday with a New Hampshire investor’s purchase of two paper mills that will employ as many as 250 workers by mid-October and ignite a rebirth of a Katahdin region suffering a 21 percent unemployment rate.

Gov. Paul LePage’s office announced the creation of the new Great Northern Paper Co. with parent company Cate Street Capital of Portsmouth, N.H.,

By Nick Sambides Jr., BDN Staff

EAST MILLINOCKET, Maine — The Katahdin Paper Co. LLC paper mill on Main Street will close in 60 days if a pending deal to buy it and a closed sister mill in Millinocket is not consummated, company officials say.

Katahdin Paper parent company Brookfield Asset Management of Toronto will issue the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notice, which provides a 60-day warning of a closure, on Tuesday, said Andrew Willis, a company spokesman.

Read entire article in the Bangor Daily News

Mill has lost $57M since ’04 restart

Ponsse 8 Wheel Ergo Harvester and the Ponsse Buffalo King forwarder Demo

Ponsse / Chadwick BaRoss are conducting a field demonstration of the new Ponsse 8 Wheel Ergo Harvester and the Ponsse Buffalo King forwarder on Tuesday, October 19 from 10 AM – 4 PM in the West Branch region of Maine.

The demonstration site is located northwest of Millinocket.  Take the Golden Road for approximately 29 miles to the Telos Road.  Turn right on to the Telos Road and travel approximately 20 mile up the Telos Road to the Useless Road on your right.  Look for Ponsse signs and flags.

If you have any questions contact Chadwick BaRoss sales representatives:

Nelson Savage: 207-557-9979

Al Bridges: 207-557-9935

Democrat Libby Mitchell

Gubernatorial contender Elizabeth “Libby” Mitchell has pulled out of a Thursday morning forum because two unenrolled candidates were not invited to attend, organizers said this morning.

Mitchell, a Democrat, Republican Paul LePage and unenrolled candidate Eliot Cutler were all scheduled to appear at a “leadership roundtable” in Bangor to answer questions about cross-border economic development. It would have been the first time the three candidates appeared together. Unenrolled candidates Kevin Scott and Shawn Moody were not invited.

Read Full Article in the Portland Press Hearld

Forest Connect offers Webinars for Forest Owners: Program offers live, interactive seminars on a wide array of topics

Click HERE for more information

Thursday, May 6, 2010, 3-5 pm, Rockport

This program will be presented by Maine Forest Service District Forester Morten Moesswilde. The workshop is co-sponsored by Knox-Lincoln Soil and Water Conservation District, and Coastal Mountains Land Trust. This is a hands-on field workshop to talk about thinning young forests to improve long term growth, timber quality, wildlife habitat, or even aesthetics of these stands. These activities are sometimes referred to as “Pre-commercial thinning” or “Timber stand improvement”, and are appropriate in forests with trees roughly 2-10 inches in diameter. Often a “firewood” thinning can both improve the stand and produce usable wood for fuel, crafts, or other projects. We’ll emphasize the basic ideas of tree species selection, density, crown health and vigor, and defects. The workshop will take place at CMLT’s Beech Hill Preserve, meeting at the Rockville Street trailhead. This program is FREE for all participants and is co- sponsored with the Knox-Lincoln SWCD and the Maine Forest Service. Please contact Rebecca Jacobs at 273-2005 ext 101.

Maine Forest Service District Headquarters

356 Shaker Rd Gray

8 am to noon

Fee $10

Thinking of buying a GPS, or do you already have one that’s never come out of the box?  Come learn GPS basics with the Maine Forest Service.  We will provide GPS units for the day so please leave yours at home. The day will consist of approximately 2 hours in classroom and 2 hours outside.  Please dress for the weather! Coffee and snack provided.  Class size will be limited to 25.  Please register in advance by contacting Colleen Hoyt at (207) 780-4205 or email choyt@umext.maine.edu.  For questions about class content, please contact Ken Canfield at (207) 441-3712 or ken.canfield@maine.gov.