77-5-215. Definitions.

MONTANA STATUTES AND CODES

     77-5-215. Definitions. As used in this part, unless the context indicates otherwise, the following definitions apply:
     (1) "Contract harvesting" means a timber harvest or timber sale occurring on state trust lands by which:
     (a) the department solicits bids and contracts with a firm or individual awarded the bid to:
     (i) perform all necessary work to harvest and process trees into merchantable forest products;
     (ii) sort trees pursuant to contract specifications and department use standards; and
     (iii) transport and deliver the products to forest product purchasers; and
     (b) the department sells the forest products to one or more forest product purchasers through the competitive bidding process pursuant to 77-5-201(1) and (2).
     (2) "Contract harvesting costs" means expenses related to the production of log sorts or other merchantable products from a stand of timber and the transportation of the products to point-of-sale locations. These expenses may include but are not limited to:
     (a) sale preparation and development costs;
     (b) marketing of forest products and administration of contract harvesting contracts;
     (c) road building and maintenance;
     (d) labor for felling, bucking, yarding, and loading;
     (e) scaling of forest products; and
     (f) the transportation of sorted logs and other merchantable products from the harvest site to a point of sale.
     (3) "Decked" means a pile of logs or other merchantable forest products that have been prepared for sale or shipment and placed upon a landing.
     (4) "Forest health concerns" means issues that can be addressed through management or harvest of merchantable or nonmerchantable trees and includes:
     (a) forested lands that are overcrowded or stagnant and that are showing declining annual growth;
     (b) wildland-urban interface areas where timber harvest or forest management is necessary to prevent catastrophic or other damage to forested lands, livestock, buildings, or other infrastructure;
     (c) fire fuel buildup and treatment on forested lands;
     (d) forested lands susceptible to imminent or repeated insect or disease attack and timber degradation;
     (e) forested lands that are in a high state of decline or decay or are rapidly deteriorating;
     (f) forested lands with high recreational use and high degradation risk; and
     (g) forested lands under drought stress.
     (5) "Forest products" means any product produced from the forest that the department can sell through competitive bid or direct negotiation.
     (6) "Log sorts" means trees or portions of trees that are grouped and sorted into various product categories, including but not limited to pulp logs, sawlogs, and house logs.
     (7) "Sawlogs" means merchantable timber prepared and sorted as decked, scaled logs and sold f.o.b., as defined in 30-2-319, at a designated location, expressed in terms of dollars per thousand board feet or dollars per ton.
     (8) "Scaled" means the measured volume, weight, or other measurement of a log, load of logs, or other products.
     (9) "Stumpage" means the value of timber as it exists, uncut, within a harvest unit, expressed in terms of dollars per thousand board feet, dollars per ton, or other appropriate value per-unit designation.
     (10) (a) "Timber" means any wood growth on state trust land, mature or immature, alive or dead, standing or down, that is capable of furnishing merchantable raw material used in the manufacture of lumber or other forest products.
     (b) The term does not include cultivated Christmas trees.