Barte Ball Starker

It is with sadness that we announce the passing of Barte Starker, on December 12, 2017. Barte was an inspiration for all of us who worked with him at Starker Forests, Inc.. His passion and love for forests and active forest management was contagious. That legacy will live on in his family and many colleagues. Barte was a great man.

Here is the article by Bennett Hall from the Gazette Times newspaper.

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October 11, 2017

Fire season and regulated use are over. We will start opening gates for drive in hunting starting today. The gates will be open as we get around to different areas. Please be patient as it may take a couple days to get to them. All the gates that are going to be open should be open by Friday afternoon. Please make sure you have your permits to access our lands and remember to be safe and courteous to others!

October 3, 2017

We are still waiting for ODF to declare an end to fire season on the West Oregon District, where most of our lands are located.

September 5, 2017

Smoky greetings to our Starker Forests recreation and hunting permittees,

Red Flag Warnings continue across most of Oregon today, as well as continued extreme heat warnings and air quality alerts. Conditions on the ground remain ideal for new fire starts and extreme fire behavior on existing fires. Human-caused fires have continued to be an issue on Oregon’s forestlands. Please do all you can to help prevent human-caused wildfires. Know and follow the fire restrictions and closures for where you are located or will be traveling. To find that information on ODF-protected lands, go to http://www.oregon.gov/ODF/Fire/Pages/Restrictions.aspx.

There is a good news – bad news scenario shaping up for later in the week.  We could get some moisture in some areas, but there is a chance it could come with lightning.  The forecast this morning indicated that we could move out of the Red Flag conditions for very dry and unstable conditions, to a Red Flag for thunderstorm on Thursday.

We are at a critical drawdown level for the ODF West Oregon District this morning.  This means fire fighting equipment and personnel are elsewhere.  With the significant growth of the Eagle Creek fire in the Columbia River Gorge, ODF West Oregon District sent two engines that way this morning.  ODF is slowly getting some of their other resources back from other fires (that have timed out after 14 day assignments), but the call for resources on all of the fires is still outpacing our ability to meet all the needs.  Many of the other large fires that have been on the landscape for a while saw significant growth yesterday and last night.

Starker Forests lands remain open to walk-in recreation and hunting.  Please help us continue to have no fire starts on our lands this year.

July 26, 2017

Due to increasing fire danger the Oregon Department of Forestry has, on July 17, 2017, ordered new regulations on forestlands protected by the department in our area.  All Starker Forests lands are covered by these regulations.

Under this order it is unlawful to be in violation of the following restrictions:

• Possession of the following firefighting equipment is required while traveling, except on state highways, county roads and driveways: one shovel and either one gallon of water or one operational 2½ pound or larger ABC rated fire extinguisher.
• Smoking is prohibited while traveling, except in vehicles on improved roads.
• Open fires are prohibited, including campfires, charcoal fires, cooking fires and warming fires.
• Non-Industrial chain saw use is prohibited.
• Use of motorized vehicles, including motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles, is prohibited, except on improved roads.
• Use of fireworks is prohibited.
• Cutting, grinding, and welding of metal is prohibited.
• Mowing of dried and cured grass with power driven equipment is prohibited, between the hours of 1:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.
• Also prohibited throughout fire season are backyard debris burning, the use of exploding targets and the use of tracer ammunition.
• Sky lanterns are prohibited year round in Oregon.

Take Starker Forests Tours in 2017 and tour a gorgeous working forest!

Free guided tours of beautiful Starker Forests are available in July and August. Starker Forests Tours are about three and a half hours long and begin when you’re picked up in front of the Corvallis Comfort Suites Inn lobby at 12:45 and transported to Starker Forests for your tour. The tour involves, among other activities, a 1/4-mile walk , where you will learn about the different practices of forest management that Starker Forests applies. Remember to dress appropriately for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes! You’ll return to the Comfort Suites Inn around 4:30 pm.

Seating for the tours is limited so reservations for all Starker Forests Tours are required. Please call Visit Corvallis at 800-334-8118 or 541-757-1544 to make your reservation. Please be sure to call Visit Corvallis if you need to cancel, so we can make room for those on the waiting list. Please try to call by the Tuesday before your tour, by 5pm if you need to cancel. For those signing up 10 or more people, please call to make arrangements to take tour on a different day of the week. (We like to leave the Wednesday tour available for those reserving for smaller groups, pairs, or by themselves.)

Special, all-day tours happen three times this season. On these days, you’ll tour the Georgia Pacific Mill in the morning, followed by the guided tour of Starker Forests in the afternoon. You’ll be picked up at the Corvallis Comfort Suites Inn at 10:30am and whisked away to tour the mill. Afterwards, it’s off to the forest for the guided tour. Bring a lunch with you to enjoy on the drive! You’ll be back by around 4:30, as usual, and dropped off at the Comfort Suites Inn.

No children under 12 are allowed on this all-day tour, as the Georgia Pacific Mill is a working mill. Guests on this tour must remember to wear closed-toed shoes like sneakers or hiking boots, and long pants. No open-toed shoes like sandals, or shorts or skirts, are allowed. Unfortunately, it’s not possible at this time to sign up for only the Mill tour or only the Starker Forests tour on these all-day tours.

Complete Starker Forests Tour Schedule

• July 5
• July 12
• July 19 – Georgia Pacific Mill Tour
• July 26
• August 2 – Georgia Pacific Mill Tour
• August 9
• August 16 – Georgia Pacific Mill Tour
• August 23
• August 30

Company Actively Seeks New CEO

12/7/16

After 41 years following in his family’s legacy, Starker Forests, Inc’s Chief Executive Officer and President, Bond Starker, will retire this coming spring. Bond is the grandson of Thurman James (T.J.) Starker who started the family business more than 80 years ago with a visionary approach to purchasing second-growth forests in a time when logging old-growth timber was common. Bond and his brother Barte, who retired in 2015, have carried their grandfather’s innovative traditions forward since they assumed leadership roles in 1975 to make the company the fifth-generation successful business that it is today.

“One of the trademarks of my grandfather’s accomplishments was his foresight and ability to plan for the future,” Bond said. “That’s a value that our family has maintained for decades – from our forestry practice to our commitment to this community – we’re in it for the long haul, and that won’t change. I’m looking forward to watching the next generation of leadership at Starker Forests continue to implement those strongly-held values and ingenuity in a way that will continue to sustainably grow our forests and communities.”

In preparation for the leadership transition that will take place when Bond retires, Starker Forests is seeking the best person, whether they be internal or external, to carry forward the stewardship of the Starker family culture and the implementation of the Starker Forests Inc. strategic plan. For more information on the position and instructions for interested applicants, please visit www.starkerforests.com/jobs

November 7, 2016

Caring for forests and giving quietly to the community

Starker Forests, Inc. is well-known for producing sustainable timber, wildlife habitats, clean water and recreation on more than 87,000 acres of forestland in Oregon. What is perhaps lesser known is its dedication to serving the communities of which it has been a part for the last eight decades.

Founded in 1936 by T.J. Starker, the company is one of the true pioneers of the Oregon timber industry. The company also was engaging in sustainable forest management before the method was considered popular. Through its business and philanthropic practices, Starker Forests had earned a reputation as one of the most widely-respected family-owned timber companies in Oregon.

For its commitment to the community “ as both an environmentally-conscious forester and philanthropic corporation “ Starker Forests has been named the 2016 AFP Outstanding Philanthropic Corporation. The award recognizes a business that, through their foundation, corporate giving program or their employees, commits significant financial or in-kind resources to assist organizations in meeting community needs “ an entity that is a solid community-minded corporate citizen.

Hunting

Hunting season for western Oregon deer is underway and we have been issuing many permits at our office. If you are hunting and driving on our lands, please stay on rock roads. Driving on dirt roads can damage the road surface and cause erosion that can degrade water quality in streams.

We have five separate logging operations on our lands during hunting season. For safety, please avoid areas of active logging operations.

Fall tree planting

We are in the middle of our largest fall seedling planting effort in our history. Planting seedlings in the fall allows the roots to grow and develop before the tree goes dormant for the winter. We hope this allows for better growth of the seedlings in the following growing season. Crews can plant several thousand trees per day.

Youth Education

Starker Forests will be offering forest education field trips to over 500 elementary school students, teachers and parents this fall. These fun tours at our interpretive trail near Blodgett allow students to learn about trees, plants, wildlife and wood products. Bus expenses are paid for through grants offered by the Oregon Forest Resources Institute.

CEO

Starker Forests will begin advertising for our Chief Executive Officer position this month. Applications will be accepted in January 2017. See the Jobs section of our website for more information.

August 1, 2016
Beginning Friday, July 29, 2016, the West Oregon District will implement our Public Fire Restrictions (Regulated Use) across the district. Current, and predicted weather, are forecasted to continue drying out forest fuels. Natural curing out of other fine fuels will also accelerate this time of year. All of these factors are causing our fire danger levels to increase to a point that conditions will warrant these additional prevention measures.

We appear to be in a steady warm and dry weather pattern for at least the next week. Our indices are progressively moving towards increased fire danger levels. With that, the West Oregon District will go into fire season on Tuesday, July 5, 2016 at 0100 hours. The district will be at an IFPL-1 at that time.

Hillsboro resident Fran Cafferata Coe has received the inaugural Young Forester Award from the Oregon Society of American Foresters (OSAF). The award is given to an OSAF member who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in the development and promotion of an individual program or project, or for a sustained leadership role benefiting the practice of forestry and the Society of American Foresters.

Coe owns Cafferata Consulting, a small natural resource consulting firm specializing in helping forest landowners and managers understand how to effectively manage their forests for healthy wildlife populations and sustainable timber production.

Coe graduated from Oregon State University with a bachelor’s degree in fisheries and wildlife science in 2000, with an emphasis in the interactions between forests and wildlife. She has more than 13 years of experience completing environmental surveys for sensitive, threatened and endangered plant and animal species.

For the last four years, Coe has contracted with the Oregon Forest Resources Institute, where she leads the Wildlife in Managed Forests program, which supports OFRI’s mission of elevating public understanding of how forest stewardship meets social, environmental, and economic needs of both present and future generations.

OSAF and its 15 local chapters represent all segments the forestry profession within the state.

Source: http://www.pamplinmedia.com/ht/117-hillsboro-tribune-news/306248-184014-hillsboro-woman-wins-young-forester-award