Senator Crapo of Idaho shares revitalization vision during lumber tour – says communities in the Inland Northwest Region need improved infrastructure to diversify

Sawdust powdered U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo’s blue blazer as he strolled through Riley Creek Lumber Co.’s mill, following fragrant hemlock boards as they rolled down the production line.

Earlier, the senator talked forest policy with workers in the break room. Later, mill owner Marc Brinkmeyer would give him an earful on Canadian lumber imports.

Becky Kramer
Staff writer

http://www.spokesmanreview.com/news-story.asp?date=031904&ID=s1500847&cat=section.business

Mills like the one Crapo toured Thursday are a shrinking part of the Idaho Republican’s constituency. Crapo figures he’s vis
ited 10 or more mills during his years in federal office.

"Some of them no longer exist," said Lindsay Nothern, his press secretary.

Resource jobs have experienced heavy casualties in the Inland Northwest — partly because of changing federal policies, and partly because of market conditions, Crapo said. As communities wrestle with downturns in timber, mining and agriculture, they need help transitioning to a new economic base, Crapo said.

"We need to build the infrastructure, the bandwidth, the education, the health care and the access to capital for entrepreneurs …," he said, "so that communities can strengthen and diversify."

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For more info: http://www.inlandnwregion.org/

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The Inland Northwest Revitalization Act, which Crapo introduced earlier this month, addresses many of those issues.

The act grew from four years of discussion between economic development officials in Idaho, Eastern Washington, Eastern Oregon and Montana.

The federal government owns more than half of the region’s land.

As federal policy shifted from resource extraction to resource protection, many communities lost jobs, Dwight Johnson, spokesman for the Idaho Department of Labor, said in a phone interview.

"We’re not making a judgment about whether the (policy) change was good or bad," Johnson said. "We’re just saying there has been an impact, and we need to find another way to sustain these economies."

The legislation is modeled after federal aid that flowed to Pacific Northwest communities during the 1990s, when spotted owl protections drastically reduced timber harvests there.

The act would create the Inland Northwest Regional Partnership, representing 137 counties and 23 Indian tribes.

The partnership would focus on business growth, retraining workers, community planning and access to technology.

More than 80 federal programs already provide aid to rural communities. Part of the effort is better use of what’s already available, Crapo said.

State officials also hope to see some new money flowing into the region.

The strategy would cost $10 million to $12 million annually, according to estimates in the bill’s summary. The program would run eight years.

But Crapo was careful not to make any promises about funding Thursday.

"I don’t know what we can do with the budget situation we’re in. We cannot promise significant new money," he said.

Crapo ended the mill tour with a session on Canadian lumber. Imports from British Columbia and Alberta also have contributed to the timber industry’s struggles.

"We notice when they flood the market," said Brinkmeyer, Riley Creek’s owner. Efforts to resolve U.S.-Canadian lumber trade disputes have been unsuccessful.

But the Chilco sawmill has fared better than others in the industry. Several years ago, Louisiana-Pacific — the mill’s previous owner — planned to close it. The mill’s 75 employees worked together to improve efficiency. The sawmill remained open, and last year it sold to Riley Creek.

• Becky Kramer can be reached at (208) 765-7122 or by e-mail at [email protected].