Nothing goads Dave Fischer more than suggesting that lumbering hurts the environment. The Waupaca resident has spent 20 years in the field - 11 running the North Country Lumber Co. in Weyauwega and the last nine as plant manager for Wolf River Lumber Co. in New London.
Trees have a lifespan just like everything else.
They don't grow forever. If you harvest them at the right time, you've not only preserved a wildlife habitat, you've actually improved it. Hardwood often provides the core material for fine furniture, kitchen cabinets, flooring, paneling as well as products like guitars, baseball bats, bowling pins and photographic film. Tenn. Lumber companies would cut their own throats by clear-cutting prime timber land, said Gary Ort, who represents the fifth generation of his family to carve a niche in the lumber and logging industries. There's a lot of hard-working, good people who've made a living doing this.