Making myself crazy!!

I live in the tiny state of Rhode Island...i have been very interested in taking advantage of cutting downed trees on public or BLM land and it makes me crazy seeing hundreds of trees lying around rotting by the side of the roads, and freeways. I have searched the web for permits, etc concerning cutting trees for firewood and cannot find anything for this state! Does anyone know if there is such a program in this state? My last resort will be to call the DEM or BLM tomorrow and see if i can get an answer...

Maybe this should be your first rather than your last resort. Get the correct word straight from the horse's mouth so to speak.

I'm with you, so many trees all cut up and just sitting on the side of the road.

In my area the bureaucrats want the trees to sit and rot, provide habitat for insects and birds, rodents, etc. they don't want me to burn wood either. self sufficiency is being regulated out of existence.

The bugs need some, the birds need some, etc, there's wildlife benefits to letting some wood lay. Not saying you'd take every last stick, but in population dense places, if one person had permission, everyone else would want it to and as a group they'd clean it up until it was all gone.

There's also the possibility of liability and perhaps that's another reason there isn't an easy route to get on the land and cut wood.

Extremely unlikely. Case in point: look at Michigan. Anyone can get permits; few do. I remember one spot in particular that is federal land rather than state land. I know of only one man who cut firewood there. He had some very easy picking and was very happy to be the only one. He took out a lot but hardly made a dent in there. I used to cut near Gaylord. In all the time I did, I never saw another soul cutting on the state land. The DNR wanted more and they even gave me a permit to cut a stand of trees they wanted down. It was right next to the road too so easy pickings.

Well, i called the DEM, and was told that RI "did" have a program for cutting dead and downed trees, but not anymore. If they catch you cutting a tree whether it is alive, dead, or down, you get a $5,000.00 fine. It figures....i hate this state

Maybe so, but Michigan is not Rhode Island. RI= 1,006 inhabitants per square mile, MI = 173.9 inhabitants per square mile.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_by_population_density
Also even within Michigan the people are concentrated in the south to a large degree, so the folks in the northern part of the L.P & the whole U.P have forests aplenty, but not so everywhere. RI could run out of trees fast if many started cutting. I still think that nearly anywhere in the U.S. can support some intelligent harvest, just a matter of managing it well. Unfortunately that would take money and people, which state gov'ts don't have much of these days.

Good points and you are correct. However, how many of those 1006 residents per sq mile would burn wood? Truth is, few will do it because of the work involved. Some won't do it because it is "dirty." Some don't like the looks of a wood pile, etc, etc.

And of those that burn wood, how many would want to cut and process their own?

And a $5,000 fine?! That's pretty ridiculous. I feel like going off on a rant about bureaucracy, but I'll just be quiet.....

And a $5,000 fine?! That's pretty ridiculous. I feel like going off on a rant about bureaucracy, but I'll just be quiet.....[/quote]

I feel the same way!

whew! Especially in your state.

They aren't stopping me, other than killing the economy and driving employers out of State, I am burning all night on a no burn day. Only at night though, I wouldn't risk any visible smoke on a clear, but cold(60, lol) sunny day. My neighbors ask what I do with all the wood in my yard, they say they never see or smell any smoke. I'm a Raider fan , but SF is just next door

I don't think PA has any burn restriction yet. Just a matter of time I guess.

Would be pretty hard on the Amish, no?

Total No-Cut policy = Poor forest management = Decline of species.
But, the forest will survive; and in the long run thrive. Just sad that the ignorant always seem to outnumber us.

I would bet you all of YOUR money, if you park yor truck away from the rd (aka not a dangeraous spot out of way and rd for you or others), nobody including the cops will stop or say, or do anything. And if they do, just apologize and play dumb/say I will leave immediately. A cop would be hard pressed to actually give you a ticket for cutting some dead wood! Now if the same guy caught you more than once, OR you have a tree or firewood "business name" on your truck, they might think you should no better..... But even if a cop wrote it up, I doubt a judge would hold it up if you were apoligetic and let it go as a warning.

But of course, it is YOUR money!

You sure we're all talking about the same "public" land?
OP mentions "freeways". That land should be highway department right of way. It is not likely BLM jurisdiction.
If you're talking about a parkland roadway, that may be different.

MD State Highway Administration maintains all of their ROW as a single "forest". This is to meet the requirements of Forest Conservation Act; (a whole other long story of bureaucracy). Our Dept of Nat Resources has no say in cutting of deadfalls; that comes under highway maintenance. Real live trees OTOH are under an elaborate FCA plan filed with DNR.

Practically speaking, we have found that placing traffic cones around our vehicles and work area seems to get us a free pass. Cops et. al. just drive right by.

I'd say so. They burn just about everything.

What happened before there were people here cutting? IMO Smokey the Bear is a worse example of a decline of species.

Truth is, the population is a heck of a lot more dense in RI! I get the impression that you don't have much for neighbors that burn, but where I live it seems like most do, especially within the last 10 years or so. I know the ash borer played a part though and am curious to see how long 60%-80% of my neighbors keep at it.