PORT ANGELES — With Department of Natural Resources funding in flux and timber sales paused, the state agency is trying to keep enough boots, engines and equipment on the Peninsula to protect and manage 371,000 acres of trust lands for revenue and conservation, Olympic Region Manager Bill Wells said.
Wells outlined those pressures and the department’s current priorities during a presentation Wednesday on Coffee with Colleen, the weekly virtual community forum hosted by Colleen McAleer, executive director of the Clallam County Economic Development Council.
Wells, who has worked for DNR since 2003, said the scope of the agency’s work has grown more complex as lawmakers debate funding, forest policy and whether the state should be allowed to generate revenue through ecosystem services.
The Olympic Region headquartered in Forks is one of six regions the DNR oversees. It covers Jefferson and Clallam counties and parts of Grays Harbor County.
It employs 130 permanent and three non-permanent staff as well as 37 seasonal staff. Their responsibilities include managing state trust lands, providing wildfire protection, regulating forest practices, maintaining roads and overseeing recreation and natural areas.
Wildfire preparedness remains a central concern, Wells said, even in a region known for heavy rainfall. The Peninsula’s dense forests mean fires can spread quickly when it’s dry and something ignites.
Although the total acreage burned in 2025 declined from the previous year, Wells said fires continued to strain resources.
It is too early to know whether a relatively mild winter will increase wildfire risk on the Peninsula, he said. Snowpack and spring weather patterns are more reliable indicators, and conditions can change quickly with late-season rain or snow.
In the meantime, DNR is moving ahead with routine preparations for fire season.
House Bill 1168, passed by lawmakers in 2023 to strengthen Washington’s wildfire response, committed $500 million over eight years for fire preparedness and suppression. But Wells said funding approved in recent budgets has fallen short of the levels authorized under the bill.
Without full restoration of the funding by the Legislature this session, DNR could be forced to reduce its wildfire and forest health programs statewide.
“It’s not an expansion request,” Wells said. “It’s about maintaining the resources we already have.”
Timber management also has been affected by policy changes. In Western Washington, about 40 to 48 percent of DNR-managed lands are deferred from harvest due to protections for riparian areas, old-growth forests and species habitat, Wells said.
The state Board of Natural Resources approves timber sales and sets harvest levels based on long-term modeling. Wells said recent pauses tied to policy reviews have delayed some timber sales but don’t have an impact on the harvest acreage.
Differences between planned and final harvest areas are common, he said.
Wells said the county’s forest board trust land generated $9.1 million for Clallam County in 2025, exceeding the 10-year average. DNR received about $3 million of the total $12 million in timber revenue.
Funds from the county trust land go to junior taxing districts such as libraries, schools, fire districts and hospitals.
Wells also addressed HB 2170/SB 5999 that would allow DNR to generate revenue from carbon storage and other ecosystem-based sources. Under current law, DNR is largely limited to timber and land transactions and does not have broad authority to sell carbon credits, he said.
Despite funding uncertainty and policy shifts, Wells said DNR’s central challenge remains balancing public safety, environmental protection and trust responsibilities across a vast and varied landscape.
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Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached by email at paula.hunt@peninsuladailynews.com.
