KENNEBEC JOURNAL • June 16, 2020
Maine logging and forest trucking contractors have joined a national effort seeking federal relief for their industry at a time when COVID-19 and its economic impacts are threatening the survival of the companies on which the entire U.S. forest economy depends. The Professional Logging Contractors of Maine found that 88% of respondents have been negatively impacted by the pandemic. Those impacts include revenue losses, layoffs, loss of clients, reduced productivity, and inability to plan for the future. It is our prediction that a minimum of 20% of the annual timber harvest could be impacted, meaning a nearly $86 million direct economic loss for the Maine economy and over 600 jobs eliminated. We need direct federal assistance to both professional timber harvesting businesses and log trucking businesses. ~ Dana Doran, Professional Logging Contractors of Maine