Dry weather impacting loggers

Published 5:00 am Tuesday, September 5, 2000

The drought Mississippi has experienced the last two years hashelped loggers gain entry to areas too wet to log in the past, butthe dry weather has also had a negative impact on the pulpwoodindustry.

“It’s been plenty dry enough for us to get the wood out, butwe’ve overstocked the mills so prices are down,” said ScottPrather, manager of Perrytown Wood Yard.

Pulpwood loggers, such as Odis Washington, have been able to”haul as much wood as they want” this year. But they havesuperseded the demand, causing pulpwood prices in southwestMississippi to drop by as much as $5 a ton.

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“Hardwood pulpwood two years ago was up around $18-$19 a ton,but here lately it’s been down around $12,” said Prather of thewood used to make paper products.

Dry weather is something pulpwood loggers look forward tobecause it enables them to work in areas that become hard to reachafter a significant amount of rainfall.

In years past, rain has prevented loggers from harvesting woodin swampy areas, but the lack of rainfall in 1999 and 2000 hasallowed them to reach such areas.

Lincoln County has only recorded a little over 23 inches ofrainfall this year, compared to approximately 63 inches in 1997,about 52 inches in 1998 and around 50 inches last year, accordingto figures from the Waste Water Treatment Plant in Brookhaven.

Winter months generally provide the most rainfall, but the lastfew winters have not yielded much precipitation, said Mike Byrne,an Agriculture Program Assistant with Alcorn State ExtensionService.

“Usually in the winter they (loggers) have to stop workingbecause of the rainy weather, but that didn’t happen this year,” headded.

So many loggers have capitalized on the dry weatheropportunities recently that it has had a negative impact on theirbusiness.

Pulpwood loggers have been working as quickly as possible togather timber from less accessible areas and they have harvestedmore than most mills can hold, which sometimes puts a freeze onbuying pulpwood.

“We’ve been cut back a time or two this year, due to the millsbeing overstocked,” said B.R. Howell, manager of a pulpwood yard onWesson Road.

Employees in the pulpwood industry believe more rainfall willrevive the prices a little.

“We really need some rain,” said Prather, echoing a need offarmers and gardeners as well.

The lack of rainfall over the last two years may also have aneffect on the pulpwood industry for years to come because youngtrees are suffering, said Byrne.

“It’s been real hard on the planted trees and a lot of them aredying,” he added.

Although more rain will help out, loggers fear too much damagehas been done to the younger trees. Loggers say they can only hopefor large amounts of rainfall.