by Fred Hillman

(Originally published in the Wausau Daily Herald, April 15, 1996)

When it comes to practicing exceptional forest management, the Menominee Indian Tribe's roots run deep in northern Wisconsin.

Though not in full control of its own 220,000-acre Menominee County forest until 1973, the centuries-old tribal philosophy of sustainable development has resulted in the region being recognized as one of the most environmentally sound in the world.

"We always try to bring up the point to people that visit here, that it's not a forest that has sat still," Forest Manager Marshall Pecore said. "It's not uncut land."

That philosophy helped Menominee Tribal Enterprises become one of 15 recipients last month of the President's Council on Sustainable Development award presented by Vice President Al Gore.

More than 2 billion board feet of timber - about 30 million board feet annually - has been extracted from the forest since records have been kept, yet it appears to be untouched. In fact, the amount of timber has increased from 1.3 billion board feet in 1854 to 1.7 billion today.

"They have clearly demonstrated the ability to balance the harvesting of timber and the creation of jobs with the preservation of habitat for wildlife," said Debbie Hammel, forestry programs director for Scientific Certification Systems of Oakland, California. "The Menominee have just been incredibly successful at striking that balance and maintaining it."

The efforts haven't gone unnoticed. In addition to the presidential award:

• In 1991, the Menominee Tribal Enterprises forest was one of the first two certified by Scientific Certification Systems for its environmentally sound tree cutting practices.

• In 1995, the forest was recognized by the United Nations. It also was visited by U S. Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt and Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Ada Deer, a member of the Menominee Tribe.

MTE President Lawrence Waukau, who traveled to New York and Washington, D.C., to receive the U.N. and presidential awards, said the notice the forest is attracting falls in line with his goals.

"Part of my philosophy of management is to bring more recognition to the forest because it is such a beautiful place," Waukau said. "The Menominee need a foundation of pride and the forest is it. The land base is it."

He compared the forest to a family farm when explaining the Menominee's efforts to take good care of the property.

"It's the basis for the culture, the tradition and the economic livelihood of the people," he said.Waukau estimates the forest accounts for about 400 jobs. Of about 170 people who work at the sawmill in Neopit and the forestry center in Keshena, about 98 percent are tribal members.

Waukau considers the forest to be even more important to the tribe economically than casinos because of its stability and perpetual value." The forest is not at the whim of political change," he said. "It's a stable economic force that's well-managed." It will be here even if gaming ceases to exist. The forest will maintain its economic vigor."