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EAB found in Cooke County

The presence of the invasive emerald ash borer (EAB) has been confirmed this week in Cooke County. EAB is an invasive wood-boring pest of ash trees that has killed millions of trees across 35 states since its arrival to the United States in 2002.

On June 21, Texas A&M Forest Service collected several adult beetle specimens in northern Cooke County and tentatively identified them as EAB. The beetles were collected in an EAB trap that is part of a state monitoring program run by Texas A&M Forest Service each year.

A specimen was sent to the USDA Department Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) national lab and was confirmed as EAB. Due to the trap’s proximity to Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Forestry Services have been notified.

“EAB is a major threat to urban, suburban and rural forests as it aggressively kills ash trees within two to three years after infestation,” said Allen Smith, Texas A&M Forest Service Regional Forest Health Coordinator.

The beetle was first detected in Texas in 2016 in Harrison County. Since then, EAB has been confirmed in Bowie, Cass, Dallas, Denton, Marion, Morris, Parker, Rusk, Tarrant, Titus and Wise and now Cooke counties.

DETCOG: Register NOW for Texas Broadband Office Public Meetings

Two meetings will be held the last week of July (Lufkin and Jasper) to allow local leaders a chance to directly provide input on the final Texas Broadband Plan. Texas is receiving $3.31 Billion to use for Broadband, in addition to the $1.5 Billion planned by this year’s legislature. To make sure that the Deep East Texas Region sees the funds needed to reach every home and business in every county, our voices need to be heard.

The meetings are open to all and will include a discussion of Texas' broadband work and planning process. There will also be breakout group discussions about barriers and solutions to digital opportunity.

Click here to register for one of the sessions or paste https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/texas-bdo-public-meetings-2171019 into your browser.

Tests Highlight Seismic Resilience of Tall Mass Timber

Last month [WoodWorks] shared the NHERI TallWood Project’s latest milestone, which saw a 10-story mass timber structure undergo seismic simulations on the world’s largest outdoor shake table at the University of California San Diego. The goal was to validate mass timber’s ability to withstand powerful earthquakes with little or no structural damage.

In an interview with UCSD, Shiling Pei, associate professor at the Colorado School of Mines and lead investigator on the project, said, “It performed exactly as we expected—the building remained damage free after two major design-level earthquakes back to back.”

What does this mean for the future of mass timber building systems? Keep reading to learn more.

TxDOT and the LDOTD are working their way toward construction of a replacement for the 1938 bridge over the Sabine River on the congressionally designated Interstate 14 Corridor (SH 63/LA 8). The bridge is functionally obsolete, past its service life and being undermined by the river’s rapid migration. The bridge replacement project is fully funded and expected to go to contract in the next two years.

The environmental clearance process is nearing completion and the state transportation departments are seeking public comment on the Draft Environmental Assessment. The draft EA document can be reviewed online at the TxDOT link below. Comments can be provided online, by mail or email, and at public hearings in Leesville, LA, on July 25, and in Burkeville, TX, on July 27.

The replacement bridge will be built at a new location 1,800 feet to the south. The total project covers about three miles including approach roadways. The bridge will have two 12-foot travel lanes and two 10-foot shoulders, conforming to standards that will allow it to be part of a future I-14 multi-bridge river crossing.

Please consider submitting a comment in support of the proposed new alignment. The deadline is August 11. Comment instruction and project information are included below and at this link:

Historic SH 63/LA 8 Bridge at the Sabine River - notice of draft environmental assessment and draft Section 4(f) documentation and virtual public hearing with in-person options

Click on the graphic above for more information and registration.

Job Opportunities

FIA Staff Forester I - 2 Positions

Location: Lufkin & Henderson, TX

Start Date: As soon as a suitable candidate is identified.

Major/essential duties: The Forester will serve as a forest survey crew leader and be responsible for the survey program in the assigned region. They will investigate land ownership in the tax office, contact landowners, locate field plots, collect and transmit forest survey data and meet production goals. They will also assist with local and statewide emergency response incidents.

Application procedures: Submit application, cover letter, resume, and transcripts at:

https://tfsweb.tamu.edu/jobs

TFA Seeking Excellence in Wood Design Nominations

The TFA Marketing Committee is accepting nominations for the 2023 Excellence in Wood Design Awards. Nominations are open to projects completed in the last five years that aesthetically utilize wood and/or use wood products structurally.

The award winners will be recognized at the TFA Annual Meeting, October 18-20, 2023 in Nacogdoches. Applications may be downloaded from the TFA website and emailed to tfa@texasforestry.org.

Exhibitor/Sponsor Sign Ups are open for the 2023 TFA Annual Conference

Click here for information and online purchase.

There's a lot going on...

Join us!

Calendar

July 18 - TFA's Teacher Conservation Institute, Green Jobs, in Pittsburg. Click here for more information.

July 28 - Trinity County Forest Landowners Association will visit the Sterling Solutions facility in Lufkin on Friday, July 28 to see the manufacturing process for their Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) products. This is a follow up for the group after Dr. Aaron Stottlemyer’s program in January on growing use of CLT in Texas construction including the new Texas A&M Forest Service building in Hudson, Texas. RSVP for tour to 847-275-5831.

August 3 - Registration is open for the TFA Regional Meeting in San Jacinto County near Willis. Click here for more information.

August 11 - Registration is open for TFA's Branching Out Seminar for landowners. Click here for details and registration.

August 29-30 - 3rd Annual Sustainable Forestry and African American Land Retention Joint Regional Conference, hosted by Prairie View A&M University and University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Click here for details.

October 18-20 - SAVE THE DATE! TFA Annual Conference in Nacogdoches. Details to follow.