Media report on new economic impact study of Maine’s logging industry

Mainebiz, WABI (Channel 5) and WVII (Channel 7) reported on a new study released by the Professional Logging Contractors of Maine that shows Maine’s logging industry contributed an estimated $882 million to the state’s economy in 2014. The study, conducted with the University of Maine and Farm Credit East, revealed logging supported more than 7,300 jobs that year, including more than 4,600 direct logging jobs and additional jobs in industries including trucking, according to Mainebiz. Mindy Crandall, an assistant professor of forest management and economics at UMaine who worked on the report, spoke with WABI about the industry. “I think we might be adapting to some different markets and conditions that are pretty challenging right now,” Crandall said. “But we’re always going to have a need for people to take care of our forests and that’s the loggers and the foresters.” She added the key is to support local logging companies, and help them ride out the challenges while the markets recover. The Bangor Daily News also cited the study.