Four of every five acres of commercial redwood forest are now independently certified as well managed and harvested on a sustainable basis. The major redwood lumber mills and landowners have completed independent third-party certification of their redwood forestlands. As a result, over 1 million acres, approximately 80 percent of the available redwood commercial forest are certified under one of the two most widely recognized certification programs: Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) or the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI SM ) program.

There are 1.74 million acres (1) of Coastal Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) forests on California’s north coast. About 26 percent, or 450,000 acres of these forests are preserved in national, state and municipal parks, national monuments and other administratively withdrawn lands (2) where harvesting is prohibited.

Of the remaining 1.29 million acres where harvesting can take place, approximately 1.03 million acres (3) (80 percent) are currently being well managed according to independent third-party certification programs.

Forest certification provides consumers with assurance that the redwood products they purchase have been harvested in an environmentally sound manner. The basic tenants of certification programs include:

sustainable forestry
prompt reforestation
protection of water quality
enhancement of wildlife habitat
minimizing the visual impact of harvesting
protection of unique sites
improvements in wood utilization
These voluntary third-party certification programs are in addition to the mandatory requirements of California’s Forest Practices Act, recognized as the most thorough timber harvesting regulation in North America. Section 913 of the Forest Practices Act requires that any company owning commercial forests greater than 50,000 acres prepare a Sustained Yield Plan. These plans must project an equal balance of growth and harvest over a 100 year period while ensuring sustainability of all forest resources, including wildlife, watershed and soil.

References:

1 U.S. Forest Service Inventory and Analysis, Pacific Northwest Forest Range and Experiment Station, Portland Oregon reporting 1,244,000 acres with a plurality of redwood trees and another 496,000 acres with redwood present. (See also Fox III, Lawrence, “A Classification, Map and Volume Estimate for the Coast Redwood of California,” 1988, revised Oct. 1989, Humboldt State University, Arcata, Calif., with California Department of Forestry; reporting a plurality of redwoods on 1,663,000 acres and occurring on another 287,000 acres.)

2 Solinsky, Frank and Dean, Consulting Foresters, Trinidad, “Acreage and Volume of Coast Redwood Timber in Public Ownership In California”, Sept., 1990. (More recently withdrawn acreage added.)

3 Forest Stewardship Council, www.fscoax.org. American Forest & Paper Association’s Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI SM) Program, www.afandpa.org/forestry/sfi or www.aboutsfi.org.

Garden Grades  

The garden grades, Deck Heart,
Construction Heart, Deck Common, Construction Common, Merchantable Heart and Merchantable, are offered seasoned or unseasoned. They are frequently specified for decks, fences and garden structures where knots or other characteristics have little or no effect.
       

All Heartwood
     

Construction Heart/Deck Heart
A heartwood grade containing knots of varying sizes and other slight imperfections. Available seasoned or unseasoned. This highly useful grade can be ordered surfaced or rough. Deck Heart has similar appearance and uses as Construction Heart but is also graded for strength. Deck Heart is available in 2×4 and 2×6 only.

Uses Decks, posts, retaining walls, fences, garden structures, stairs or other outdoor uses in contact with the ground.
               

Merchantable Heart
This economical heartwood grade allows slightly larger knots than construction grades; holes limited to size of knots. Allows checks, some splits and some manufacturing flaws. Available unseasoned, surfaced or rough.

Uses Fences, retaining walls, garden structures or other outdoor uses in contact with the ground.
       
Heartwood and Sapwood
   
 

Construction Common/Deck Common
Same general characteristics as Construction Heart, but contains combination of heartwood and sapwood. Unseasoned or seasoned, it can be surfaced or rough. Deck Common is also graded for strength and is available in 2×4 and 2×6 only.

Uses Decking, fence boards and other above-ground garden uses that do not require heartwood’s insect and decay resistance.
               

Merchantable
Has same characteristics as Merchantable Heart but contains sapwood in varying amounts. This economical grade is available unseasoned and can be ordered surfaced or rough.

Uses Fence boards, rails and other above-ground outdoor and garden uses. Also subflooring and temporary construction.

Architectural Grades  

The architectural grades, Clear All Heart, Clear, Heart Clear, Heart B and B Grade, are normally sold kiln dried (preshrunk and stress free) for the finest exterior and interior architectural uses. No other wood equals these finish grades in beauty and dimensional stability. They are the choice grades for siding, paneling, trim and cabinetry where attractiveness and tight joinery are desired.
       
All Heartwood
     

Clear All Heart
Finest architectural heartwood grade, normally Certified Kiln Dried (also available unseasoned), well manufactured, free of defects one face (reverse) face may have slight imperfections). Available surfaced or saw-textured.

Uses Siding, paneling, trim, cabinetry, molding, fascia, soffits, millwork. Also fine decks, hot tubs, garden structures, industrial storage and processing tanks.

Heart B
Quality heartwood grade containing limited knots and other characteristics not permitted in Clear All Heart and Heart Clear. Available kiln dried or unseasoned. This grade can be surfaced or saw-textured.

Uses Siding, paneling, trim, fascia, molding and other architectural uses. Quality decking, garden shelters and other outdoor uses in contact with the ground.

Heartwood and Sapwood
     

Clear
Same general quality as Clear All Heart
except contains sapwood in varying
amounts. Some imperfections not
permitted in Clear All Heart. Normally
Certified Kiln Dried (also available
unseasoned). Available surfaced or
saw-textured.

Uses Siding, paneling, trim, cabinetry,
molding, fascia, soffits. Also quality
decking, garden shelters and other
above-ground applications.

B Grade
Quality grade containing sapwood, limited knots and other characteristics not permitted in Clear. Certified Kiln Dried; also unseasoned. Available surfaced or saw-textured.

Uses Siding, paneling, trim, fascia, molding and other architectural uses; quality decking, garden shelters and other above-ground outdoor applications.

With 100% financing from the Bank of America, a nonprofit conservation group has purchased 50,000 acres of redwood forest along the Mendocino County coast north of Fort Bragg for $65 million and plans to use it for commercial timber harvesting while shielding the land from development.

“We know that this property without protection would have been subdivided into smaller parcels,” Art Harwood, a sawmill operator and president of the Redwood Forest Foundation, told reporters Thursday in the redwood grove outside the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco. “Every year in the U.S., millions of acres of forest are bought and sold, and the pressure is particularly high in Northern California.”

Bank and foundation officials said the deal is the first of its kind that relies entirely on private financing.

However, much of the debt is to be paid through the sale of a conservation easement to another nonprofit group that plans to seek state funding.

Harwood said the land, acquired from Hawthorne Timber Co., was heavily logged in the 1980s and ’90s and now consists primarily of second-growth redwood and Douglas fir. “There are a few old-growth trees scattered out there, but we will not be cutting them,” he said.

Foundation officials said they plan to do very little logging at first, and never on more than 3% of the property a year to ensure a long-term supply of jobs and timber. The Redwood Forest Foundation, which is dedicated to restoring working forests, plans to use logging revenue to help pay off the 20-year loan.

The foundation, based in the southern Mendocino County town of Gualala, intends to sell the conservation easement to the Conservation Fund, which plans to use state money approved by voters last year in Proposition 84, the clean water, parks and coastal bond measure.

“We haven’t negotiated the cost of the easement and the terms,” said Chris Kelly, who manages California operations for the fund. “But our intention is to have an agreement allowing no subdivision, development or conversion to non-forest uses, and possibly there will be a cap on harvesting.”

The land is north of Fort Bragg and about 50 miles north of two other parcels purchased recently by the Conservation Fund.