Five-Day Gathering Showcases Industry Best Practices in Northeast Pennsylvania
The Northern Tier Hardwood Association (NTHA) welcomed attendees to its second annual Sustainable Timber Harvesting event, held over five days in late September 2025 in the scenic woodlands of northeast Pennsylvania. The event featured hands-on demonstrations, expert presentations, and interactive industry stations that highlighted the latest advancements in sustainable forestry.
By bringing together industry leaders, board members, and community stakeholders, NTHA seeks to foster greater awareness of sustainable techniques and underline the economic and environmental significance of forestry in Pennsylvania.
Board members of NTHA played a pivotal role throughout the gathering, facilitating discussions and overseeing demonstrations.
The event’s core attractions were a series of live demonstrations, each led by respected professionals in their fields:
· Forest Management: Deer Park Lumber foresters conducted guided walks and explained sustainable forestry management, new technologies and the environmental and economic importance of PA’s hardwood forests.
· Hand-Felling: Kevin Snyder Logging showcased traditional timber harvesting methods, demonstrating the precision and skill required for safe, effective tree felling using a chainsaw.
· Mechanized Harvesting: Matt Carney of Elite Timber Harvesting operated state-of-the-art machinery, illustrating how technology improves efficiency while minimizing environmental impact.
· Manufacturing: Paul and Penny Reining of Reining Timber Services ran a portable sawmill on-site, transforming logs into lumber and highlighting the versatility and value-add of small-scale milling. Attendees were also able to observe a modern firewood processor and sharpener in action.
The 2025 event saw a strong turnout, with numbers doubling that of last year. Forty members of the general public attended, alongside 14 regional officials, with 2 local PA
representatives and local conservation districts. Notably, 171 high school students from regional districts participated, reflecting the event’s emphasis on education and workforce development in the forestry sector. As NTHA’s Sustainable Timber Harvesting event closed its second year, organizers expressed optimism for the future of forestry in northeast Pennsylvania.
