Page 27 - 2018 MHT Annual Report

NAUKATI EXCHANGE
TIMBER SALE
The TLO sold a negotiated timber sale to Viking Lumber Company, which is the largest remaining sawmill in the state. This sale will assist in providing much needed timber to sustain the Southeast timber industry. The sale executes upon conveyance of the Phase 1 portion of the USFS/AMHT Land Exchange and is composed of old growth timber on lands to be acquired in Phase 1 and Phase
2 in the Naukati area of the Exchange. The 10-year sale is expected to provide about $15 million to the Trust.
ICY BAY TIMBER SALE
Mobilization efforts began in May 2018 with Sealaska Timber Corporation (STC) hiring Fairchild Trucking of Fairbanks to harvest Icy Bay timber. The TLO and STC were able to maximize the coordination of timber
and mineral operations to reduce costs and increase efficiencies, such as STC being able to utilize open deck space on the TLO Mineral exploration barges. Fairchild purchased, moved and installed a 65-person man-camp. Fairchild Trucking began harvest operations in June 2018 and although the Trust saw
no revenue on this sale in FY 2018, FY 2019 should yield between $1.5 and $2 million.
HOLLIS TIMBER SALE
The TLO is working to utilize a Hollis timber sale to improve the condition of parcels
for a future land sale. In cooperation with the Department of Natural Resources,
the subdivision plat was redesigned, and easements shifted to maximize revenue derived from the disposal. A timber sale
will be used to construct new access, open views and highlight existing features prior to subdivision sales.
KENAI FUEL MITIGATION
The Kenai fuel mitigation sale is on schedule with the contractor removing bark beetle- killed spruce on the first 110 acres. The contract has been extended to another unit of 104 acres. Once the sale is complete, 881 acres of Trust land will have dangerous fuels (bug-killed spruce) removed. The Trust will receive $88,100 over a 10-year period.
LANDOWNERS GROUP
The TLO has been working with the Division of Forestry, USFS, University of Alaska
and Sealaska Corporation to ensure the required infrastructure necessary for a viable Southeast timber industry to remain in place. As part of this collaborative effort, the TLO is administering a USFS timber sale under the “Good Neighbor Authority.”
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