Robert L. Krepps

Testimony on Oak Mortality

September 3, 2002

Statement of Robert L. Krepps

Forestry Division Administrator

On behalf of the

Missouri Department of Conservation

and the

National Association of State Foresters

Before the U.S. Senate Agriculture Subcommittee

on

Forestry, Conservation and Rural Revitalization

September 5, 2002

Subject: Oak Mortality in the Ozark Highlands

INTRODUCTION

On behalf of the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the National Association of State Foresters (NASF), I am pleased to accept the invitation from Chairwoman Lincoln to testify regarding oak mortality and decline that is occurring in Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma in an area known as the Ozark Highlands.

Today, I am representing the Missouri Department of Conservation and the State of Missouri as Forestry Division Administrator. The continued decline in oak health and increasing mortality of red and black oak in Missouri and the other states in the Ozark Highlands are very important issues to me as Forestry Division Administrator, as they are to the federal government through the national forests. Businesses and citizens depend on the forest resources of our state.

MDC and NASF appreciate the attention of the subcommittee and are gratified by your efforts to become better informed of the issue of potential loss of our red and black oak forests. This is not a simple issue; we find that many factors are coming into play that create and compound this situation. Factors such as site conditions, advanced tree age, drought, and insects and disease are but a few. Other witnesses will and have described in more detail these factors. In my testimony, I would like to briefly describe the impacts on recreational use of lands affected by oak decline and mortality.

RECREATIONAL IMPACT

In general, impacts to recreation will be varied but yet very real to all who visit or recreate in the area encompassed by the Ozark Highlands. Whether hunter or angler, camper or hiker, or a visitor just passing through on the highways through the Ozarks, there will be some level of impact. Oak decline is most severe on ridgetops, south- and west-facing slopes and sites with thin rocky soils. These site conditions describe much of the forestland around some of the most popular recreation areas in Missouri.

Much of Missouri's tourism industry is centered in the forested areas of the state -- such as the Lake of the Ozarks, Branson and Table Rock Lake, the Ozark National Scenic Riverway, and the Mark Twain National Forest. Tourism is important to Missouri. Tourism is Missouri's third largest industry, it generates more that $12.5 billion annually for the state's economy and provides one of every fourteen Missouri jobs.

As more travelers chose to drive instead of fly, the effects of oak decline will be readily visible to them. The first impact visitors will notice will be the amount of dead and dying trees on the landscape. Visual impact will be very noticeable as trees die and deteriorate across the landscape. In some areas, large expanse of dead trees will be noticeable for several years. In other cases, factors such as fire will further impact the forest views. Changes in the scenic beauty of forests can contribute to losses in tourism and recreation. Heavy oak mortality changes the appearance of the forest with increased numbers of dead trees and eventually a change in species composition.

Dead and declining trees located in areas receiving high recreational use are "hazard trees" due to the real danger of falling limbs and trees. Hazard trees combined with multiple targets (people, structures and vehicles) greatly increase landowner liability. Hazard tree removal along roads, within campgrounds, parks, picnic areas and hiking trails can be very expensive and time consuming. Often managers are faced with a decision to remove the trees at high cost, close the facility to protect the public, or face the potential liability. On private land, the reality is nothing will be done to reduce hazards.

A primary recreational use of the Ozark Highlands is hunting abundant wildlife, such as white-tailed deer, wild turkey, squirrel, raccoon and others. Many of these species depend on acorn production as a major food source. As oak decline increases, a reduction in mast (acorn) production will occur with the result being decreased populations of many wildlife species, which equates into decreased hunting opportunities. Studies have shown that stands affected by oak decline have experienced a 41 percent reduction in mast production.

SUMMARY

The overriding theme in management of oak decline and mortality must be: What are our objectives in managing the forest? If public safety concerns us, then removal of the hazard trees along roadways, trails, campgrounds, and picnic areas must be strongly advocated. If managing for sustainable wood production or sustainable populations of deer, then forest management objectives should seek to prevent oak decline through regular thinning and shorter rotation age for red and black oaks. In Missouri, we intend to actively manage the state forest land, which includes harvesting and thinning, where needed. On private lands, we encourage landowners to improve the vigor of their forest by thinning young stands and harvesting mature stands. We are actively using the provisions of programs in the Farm Bill such as EQIP for forest health management on private lands. "What we do today will affect what our oak forests look like 80 years from now!" I hope that our children and grandchildren will look back with pride at the efforts we put forth today.

I want to thank Senator Lincoln for the opportunity to present our concerns to the subcommittee. I am pleased to be a participant in dealing with the overall issue of oak mortality and decline. I look forward to working with the subcommittee on long-term forest health. I would encourage the subcommittee to support measures that would allow states and their partner agencies to address these oak decline issues at the local level, through:

*Provide incentives, financial or otherwise for private landowners to do proper forest

management and us resource professionals in their management.

*Level the playing field between the National Forest System and the states; Through

simplification of rules and regulations for managing the national forests and

use of more cooperative management projects encompassing federal, state and private

lands.