Family Woodlands Conference in Duluth offers help to landowners in blowdown area

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Family Woodlands Conference in Duluth offers help to landowners in blowdown area
(Released February 8, 2012)

Landowners affected by last summer’s wind storms in Pine County and other parts of Minnesota will find help at the Family Woodlands Conference set for March 9-10, at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center in Duluth.
The conference, sponsored by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and other organizations, will offer several sessions that address blowdown issues. Sessions include how to avoid pest infestation, how landowners might salvage wood on their property, and how to protect against wildfire with so much fuel on the ground.

Other sessions include land management for specific tree species in the face of forest pests and for wildlife and recreation, plus information on the Firewise Program, which can help landowners make their property less susceptible to wildfire.   

The conference also includes a tour of sites where landowners have reduced wildfire risk.  A workshop on measuring the fire risk around a home or cabin and the surrounding landscape is the subject of another presentation.

Cook County Firewise committee members will share their approach to dealing with a past devastating wind event in relation to woodlands.

The conference provides an opportunity to meet other woodland owners, discuss options and ideas, and learn more about blowdown issues. For more information, call Mimi Barzen at 218-327-4119 or Stephanie Kessler at 218-326-1130.

Information is also available by visiting www.mndnr.gov/forestry/woodlandconference.