HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 148 Offered January 9, 2008 Prefiled January 8, 2008 Commending the Virginia Forest Products Association on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. ---------- Patrons-- Sherwood, Gilbert, Hogan, Landes, Lohr, Nutter and Scott, E.T. ----------

WHEREAS, the Virginia Forest Products Association will celebrate 50 years of outstanding service to the citizens of the Commonwealth in 2008; and

WHEREAS, Virginia’s extensive renewable forest resources have provided significant contributions to the state since wood products were manufactured in America's first sawmill established at the Jamestown Settlement; and

WHEREAS, Virginia’s forest products industry moves goods throughout the nation by wooden pallets and containers to provide Americans with thousands of products that are used each and every day to build and furnish homes; enhance education, packaging, and safety through paper products; and improve the quality of life of all citizens; and

WHEREAS, Virginia’s forest products industry annually provides billions of dollars of economic contributions to every region of the Commonwealth through thousands of industry-related jobs, as well as providing markets to encourage the continued growth of timber resources by hundreds of thousands of forest landowners; and

WHEREAS, a healthy forest economy and the wise management of private forestlands provides many intrinsic benefits that accrue for all Virginians, including wildlife habitat, forest-based recreation, clean air and water, and natural beauty, which are enjoyed by visiting tourists and residents; and

WHEREAS, the Virginia Forest Products Association (VFPA), formerly known as the Lumber Manufacturers’ Association of Virginia, was founded in 1958 to encourage the vitality of Virginia’s lumber and forest products industry, to benefit its members, and to support a sustainable forest resource and forest product markets to benefit all the citizens of the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, the VFPA’s program of work has developed and promoted educational activities for thousands of Virginia’s citizens, students, and industry workers designed to maximize their productivity and knowledge of forest products and further the wise use of the Commonwealth’s forest resources; and

WHEREAS, in 1960, the VFPA, along with the Cooperative Extension Service of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), created and currently manages the East Coast Sawmill and Logging Equipment Exposition, Virginia’s largest trade show and the premier event of its type in the nation, attracting tens of thousands of visitors to the Commonwealth from nearly every state in the union, and dozens of countries around the world; and

WHEREAS, the VFPA has dedicated a significant portion of its members’ resources to represent the forest products industry before the General Assembly of Virginia and agencies of the Commonwealth that impact the wise utilization of Virginia’s extensive forest resources; and

WHEREAS, the VFPA has partnered with allied organizations and the General Assembly of Virginia to support and enact such landmark forestry and conservation legislation as the Reforestation of Timberlands Program, the Silvicultural Water Quality Law, and the Private Forest Land Conservation Act; and

WHEREAS, the Virginia Forest Products Association has been called upon by state agencies, such as the Department of Forestry, College of Natural Resources at Virginia Tech, Department of Transportation, Department of Environmental Quality, Department of Conservation and Recreation, and Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to provide timely and instructive information on matters before them that might impact the forest products industry in Virginia; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly commend and congratulate the Virginia Forest Products Association on the occasion of its 50th anniversary, which will be celebrated at its 50th Annual Convention, February 15 - 17, 2008, at the Kingsmill Resort and Conference Center in Williamsburg; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the Virginia Forest Products Association as an expression of the General Assembly’s congratulations and best wishes for their continued success in support of Virginia's forest products community.