OPINION: Combining Arkansas’ industrial strengths
January 26, 2026
By Matthew Pelkki
University of Arkansas at Monticello
Center for Forest Business
The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not represent any official position of the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
(833 words)
MONTICELLO, Ark. — As Arkansas enters 2026, forest industries, much like agriculture, are facing important and difficult challenges. Declining timber harvests are contributing to overstocked forests and the increasing threats of insect infestations, disease outbreaks and wildfires – risks that threaten both economic stability and public safety.
At the same time, prices for standing timber continue to decline, with pine sawtimber and pulpwood prices at their lowest point in the last 25 years. In 2025, wood manufacturing facilities in Huttig, Leola, Glenwood, Arkadelphia and Russellville were closed or idled, causing further strain on rural economies.
There are three primary ways to address the renewal of our forest products industries in Arkansas: Strengthening timber markets, improving rural roads and training the forestry workforce for the future.
Strengthening timber markets
Arkansas needs to develop stronger markets for fiber from small-diameter trees and sawmill residues. Removing small-diameter trees is a key practice for improving wildlife habitat, enhancing forest health and supporting future timber production. Sawing wood produces residues equal to approximately 40 percent of a log’s volume. Without a commercial market, this material is a waste that requires disposal in a landfill.
Biochar offers a promising solution for both the forestry and poultry industries. Commonly produced from small-diameter trees and mill residues, biochar reduces waste at mills while supporting forest thinning efforts. Combining biochar with wood flakes for poultry bedding improves the coop environment by absorbing ammonia, regulating moisture and controlling pathogens, resulting in improved bird health and weight gain. Absorption of ammonia also reduces the odor from chicken houses and fields where it is spread. Once enriched with bird droppings, wasted feed and feathers, the used bedding is an excellent agricultural soil amendment.
Biochar can also be produced as a metallurgical-grade material to replace coal in Arkansas’ fast-growing steel industry. Using biocarbon in steel manufacturing reduces production costs while lowering carbon emissions from steel manufacturing by as much as 30 percent.
Wood pellets, used for energy production, represent another potential market for mill residues and small-diameter trees. As the demand for natural power sources continues to grow, Arkansas will require not only natural gas, solar and wind power, but also renewable energy sources that provide baseload power – an important role wood pellets can fill.
Engineered wood materials, such as the laminated strand lumber that will soon be produced by Weyerhaeuser in Drew County, also represent an important timber market opportunity. LSL creates stronger, more dimensionally stable lumber from strands of wood that can be flaked from small-diameter trees.
Arkansas has ideal conditions to cluster major economic sectors such as poultry, steel, and energy with forestry. Doing so can strengthen rural economies while improving forest health statewide.
Improving rural roads
In addition to expanding markets, rural Arkansas desperately needs transportation infrastructure improvements. More than 84 percent of the state’s roads are unpaved, and it is upon these unpaved roads that agricultural products, timber and mineral resources are transported on heavy trucks that require year-round access to remote areas. In addition to the access of Arkansas’ vast raw materials, these unpaved roads provide school bus access, mail and emergency services in rural Arkansas. Improving road design and maintenance through the use of mass-timber short water crossings, geotextile fabric and better drainage structures will help ensure year-round access for both industry and rural communities. Developing low-cost, easy-to-install, wood-based bridges using mass-timber products allows better access to rural properties.
Training for the future
Lastly, providing rapid training and “up-skilling” for Arkansas’ workforce is a vital part of the economic survival of our forest industries. The average age of loggers in Arkansas exceeds 55 years, and the logging workforce has declined by 46 percent in the last 20 years. Loggers are the key link between forests and the wood manufacturing industry. Without a healthy logging workforce, landowners cannot manage their forests economically, nor can mills obtain the raw materials they need to make paper, lumber and other wood products.
Trained loggers are essential to sustainable forest management, and most forest industries in Arkansas require training and certification of loggers in environmental protection and safety. Modern logging equipment is highly automated, computerized and expensive. A single harvesting machine costs more than $500,000, and a typical logging business in Arkansas owns more than $2 million in equipment.
Through the Higher Industry Readiness through Educational Development grants, the state has funded a Sustainable Trades Alliance in southeast Arkansas. The alliance brings together the University of Arkansas at Monticello College of Technology at Crossett, the Arkansas Center for Forest Business and more than 45 industry partners focused on the forestry supply chain and industrial trades. Workforce recruitment and readiness in the logging sector are central to the alliance’s mission.
The Arkansas Center for Forest Business, located in the College of Forestry, Agriculture, and Natural Resources at the University of Arkansas at Monticello is working on developing market pipelines, infrastructure improvements and workforce initiatives designed to find solutions that enhance forest health and forest benefits for all Arkansans, while also supporting sustainable rural communities in our state.
About the Arkansas Center for Forest Business
Established in 2021, the Arkansas Center for Forest Business is part of the University of Arkansas, College of Forestry, Agriculture and Natural Resources. The Center provides technical assistance for market-based solutions to forest resource challenges, programs for degree and post-baccalaureate education, and information on timber supply, forest products markets and operational efficiency. The Center for Forest Business will provide market-based economic solutions to forest resource issues, improving business practices for forest enterprises, and enhancing economic competitiveness.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three campuses.
Pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services (including employment) without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution.
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Media contact:
Traci Rushing
trushing@uada.edu
870-460-1852