Forest Service hearing on timber yield unit

The U.S. Forest Service is holding a public event April 1 to gauge local views on its proposal to create a single timber yield unit with portions of the Beaverhead-Deerlodge, Custer Gallatin and Helena-Lewis & Clark national forests, including sizable chunks in Jefferson County. 

The unit is meant to provide long-term stability for the timber industry, ensure better management and create healthier forests, reducing the risk of wildfire, according to the FS. 

The Montana Tri-Forest Federal Sustained-Yield Unit aims to produce 350 million board feet of timber over its initial 10-year period.