A new natural resources center with the unique mission of developing and demonstrating innovative resource management methods which provide for the production of both commodity and environmental values is being established on the western Olympic Peninsula in the Pacific Northwest. Creation of the Olympic Natural Resources Center was recommended by a state panel examining policy on old growth forests and was mandated by the Washington state Legislature in 1989.
The Legislature appropriated $150,000 to the University of Washington, Seattle, to develop plans for the Center, which will, be open to all scientists, educators and economists who wish to use its facilities. Research and education programs on both terrestrial and aquatic resources, as well as the social and economic implications of resource use practices, will be supported.
The Center will provide a structure for long-term cooperation between various land managing organizations and interest groups on the Olympic Peninsula. Much of the work will be conducted through cooperative agreements with land managers and owners throughout the Pacific Northwest, and will range from basic ecosystem research to technological transfer on alternative forest products and logging systems. The Center will also have a strong landscape-level focus, and will address issues that cross ownership boundaries.
For further information contact Gordon Smith, Program Director, Olympic Natural Resources Center, University of Washington College of Forest Resources, AR-10, Seattle WA. 206-543-3205.