12 Pallets West
ALSC Adopts Proposals to Improve HT Program
Forms Wood Packaging Material Advisory Council with NWPCA as Co-Chair
The American Lumber Standards Committee met November 8 in Phoenix, Arizona to consider several proposals that came out of a joint NWPCA/APHIS/ALSC workshop that would maintain the integrity of the HT program, but lessen the unintended consequences of minor violations to the program’s voluntary participants.
There are two important changes to the program. The first eliminates the zero tolerance policy for mark obliteration and establishes a new threshold for out of compliance to “more than 5%”. So in practice, if 40 of your pallets are inspected, more than 2 would need to be out of compliance for there to be an issue. The second significant change is that if any representative sample does exceed the new tolerance threshold and is out of compliance, the marks not obliterated shall be corrected (instead of the previous requirement that they be held for remarking). This allows a facility to keep documentation (logs/pictures/etc…) of the correction for the agency to verify, but would not hold up a facility’s inventory waiting for review and release by the agency. These changes are effective now.
In another opportunity for the wood packaging industry to have increased voice within the ALSC structure, the ALSC formed a new Wood Packaging Material Advisory Council with NWPCA as co-chair. The other co-chair is NWPCA member Dave Dixon from Package Research Laboratory. More details on this advisory council coming soon.
NWPCA says it appreciates ALSC’s quick adoption of these proposals and looks forward to working closely with them as it seeks to continuously improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the HT program. Contact Brent McClendon for more information on these changes or the recent meeting.
Source: Pallet Central
U.S. Forest Service Exceeds Yearly Forest Restoration Goals
Here is some good news for the wood products industry and those who might fear that wood product usage leads to deforestation. The U.S. Forest Service announced that it exceeded its forest restoration goals for Fiscal Year 2014, highlighting the agency’s continued commitment to improving the health of the America’s National Forests, reducing the threat of catastrophic wildfire, and protecting watersheds.
“The Forest Service has made strategic investments across all agency programs to advance our efforts to create resilient forests and sustainable communities,” said U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell. “This work reduces the wildland fire threat to communities and firefighters and minimizes the risk of forest pests and climate change, while supporting American jobs and rural economies.”
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