Roughly 68% of forestland in the county is privately owned and managed primarily for timber production. Private timberlands are managed by trained local foresters who provide for sustainable harvest of commercial timber as well as a number of other social and environmental values.  This work supports a local wood and paper manufacturing sector in Clatsop and surrounding counties that creates thousands of good, year-round jobs. Forest sector jobs in our county pay on average $68,200 a year—that’s nearly double the average annual wage in Clatsop County of $35,100.

Private and public working forests also provide valuable watershed protection, fishing, hunting, and other recreational opportunities that make our county a great place to live and visit.

Clatsop County is home to one of the most productive state forests in Oregon.  In 2017, this forest generated $27.5 million in timber for processing at local sawmills. Of that, Clatsop County’s taxing districts received roughly $18.3 million for schools, roads, and other services. The Department of Forestry received the remaining $9.2 million to help cover costs of keeping these forests healthy, including maintenance and wildfire prevention and response.

All of this is possible through partial and regeneration harvests taking place on less than 2% of Clatsop State Forest each year.