Eyerly fire sale draws big bid this time

A third attempt at selling fire-killed timber from the 2002 Eyerly Fire was not only successful on February 8, it produced a surprisingly high final bid.

The timber had been appraised at $42,000, but bidding didn’t stop until it reached $276,00 for the 4.4 million board feet of timber on 1,045 acres.

Butte Timberlands of Fall Creek took the sale after active bidding by four prospective purchasers, according to Sisters District Ranger Bill Anthony. Other bidders were B & F Logging of Prineville, Thomas Creek Logging from Stayton, and Ward Brothers from McCall, Idaho.

“The sale officer stated that it was very active bidding, more spirited than he had seen in years,” Anthony said.

In addition, Butte Timberlands will have the option of harvesting another 5.6 million board feet on another 810 acres if there is a market at that time and for an additional payment.

The Sisters Ranger District repackaged two previously unsold Eyerly Fire salvage sales, hoping that a diminished salvage timber sale would attract interested bidders this time — and it did.

No bids were received during the first two salvage sales. Forest industry spokesmen explained at that time that they were concerned about the value of two-year-old fire-killed timber. This was followed by a canceling of the emergency status of the sale last September after the value of the timber declined enough in the two years since the fire to not justify continuing that status.

“We have learned a lot each time we have held a sale based on the feedback we have received from prospective purchasers,” Anthony explained. “We repackaged the proposed sale and dropped out units that were no longer economically viable and the expensive operations requiring helicopter logging.”

Other units requiring road maintenance also have been dropped and the minimum size of material that the purchaser must remove was increased, he added. “Several factors helped make the sale,” Anthony said, “all improving the overall timber market recently.”

There was less competition with other fire salvage sales nearing completion and there were no new major fires last year, he explained. The tsunami relief effort in Southeast Asia has increased the demand for lumber.

In addition, the unsuccessful McCall-based bidders have a special market for checked dead wood for home construction and were willing to pay the high transportation costs to Idaho because their manufacturing costs are low for the rustic lumber.

Because of a lawsuit affecting this sale filed by four environmental organizations last month, the sale was not awarded at this time. The purchasers were advised that the offer would hold for 90 days. If the lawsuit has not been resolved by that time, the purchaser would have the option of extending their bid or withdrawing from the sale.

“We plan to complete our response to the lawsuit by next month and hope for a decision by the court within two months,” Anthony said.

The lawsuit seeks a preliminary injunction to delay the sale. Plaintiffs in the lawsuit are the Cascadia Wilderness Project, Oregon Natural Resources Council, League of Wilderness Defenders — Blue Mountains Biodiversity Project and the Sierra Club.

Timber sale revenues will help fund reforestation and other restoration work on the Eyerly Fire.

“The success of the Eyerly sale gives us additional hope that we can pull off a successful salvage sale for the B & B Fire salvage later this year,” Anthony said. “We wouldn’t be doing all of the pre-sale work if we didn’t think it would sell.”

Of the original 4,836 acres of fire-killed timber first offered, this sale was reduced to 1,045 acres, Anthony explained. The original sale offered 23. 2 million board feet with the current sale offering only 4.4 million board feet.

In 2002, the Eyerly Fire burned 23,573 acres near the head of the Metolius Arm of Lake Billy Chinook on the Deschutes National Forest about 20 miles north of Sisters. Some 17,871 acres of the fire was on the Sisters Ranger District with the remaining acres on state, private and Confederated Tribes of Warm Spring land.

The fire destroyed 18 homes in the Three Rivers area.