Standing With the Firefighters Who Protect Our Forests

At Zip-O-Log Mills and Zip-O-Laminators, our business is built on the forests of Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. Every board we mill, every beam we laminate, starts with the trees that firefighters across this region work tirelessly to protect.

This season, like every fire season, brought long days and longer nights for the wildland firefighters, engine crews, hotshot teams, and aviation units who stood between our communities and the flames. We know the toll this work takes — physically, emotionally, and on the families waiting at home. On behalf of everyone at Zip-O, thank you. Your work protects not just the timber that sustains our industry, but the towns, watersheds, and wildlife that call these forests home.

The Numbers Behind This Season

This year has tested Oregon's firefighters like few before it. As of this week, roughly 2,336,000 acres have burned across the state this wildfire season, according to the Northwest Coordination Center — officially surpassing the state's previous all-time record of 2,081,661 acres, set in 2024. Oregon has now made history for the wrong reasons, and the season is showing no signs of slowing down, with roughly two months still remaining before Oregon's typical wildfire season winds down in October.

Several fires this season have grown into megafires — generally defined as blazes exceeding 100,000 acres — including the Rowe Creek Complex and Hay Creek Complex, among the largest fires burning in the state. Oregon Department of Forestry officials have said 2026 has outpaced even the difficult 2024 season in terms of fire count, scale, and strain on resources.

Just across the border, Washington has faced its own crisis: wildfires in Spokane and Stevens counties have forced thousands of evacuations and prompted a statewide emergency declaration.

Numbers like these are a sobering reminder of what firefighters are up against every single day this season — and why the work of fire crews, along with the forest management policies that support them, matters more than ever.

Forests Worth Protecting

The Pacific Northwest's forests are more than a resource — they're the backbone of rural economies across Oregon and Washington, and a defining part of the region's identity. Protecting them takes more than crews on the ground. It also takes sound forest management: thinning overgrown stands, maintaining fire breaks, and investing in the tools and staffing that give firefighters a fighting chance before a spark ever becomes a wildfire.

Both Oregon and Washington have taken steps in recent legislative sessions to support that work — from funding forest health and wildfire mitigation programs to reviewing how state forestlands are managed for long-term resilience. It's a reminder that protecting our forests is a shared responsibility between the crews on the fire line and the policies that support them.

New Action in Salem

Oregon's 2026 legislative session brought House Bill 4105, a measure aimed at establishing more reliable, predictable forest management outcomes on state forestland. The bill directs the State Forester to set a sustainable timber harvest level for lands managed under Oregon's forest statutes, with an emergency clause attached given the urgency lawmakers assigned to the issue. It cleared its House committee this spring and was referred to Ways and Means for further consideration. The underlying goal — more consistent, science-based management of state forestland — speaks directly to the kind of proactive forest health work that helps reduce wildfire risk before fire season even begins.

Governor Tina Kotek has also kept wildfire response squarely in focus in 2026, declaring a state of emergency in June as hot, dry conditions raised fire danger statewide, and directing additional resources to the Oregon Department of Forestry and the Office of the State Fire Marshal.

Where Candidates Stand

Forest management has become a defining issue in Oregon's 4th Congressional District race. Monique DeSpain, the Republican nominee challenging incumbent Val Hoyle, has made active forest management central to her campaign — arguing that Oregon's forests are vital to the region's economy, environment, wildfire prevention, and public safety, and calling for sustainable timber harvesting, fuel-load reduction, and co-stewardship with tribal partners to curb the fires that have devastated the state this season.

DeSpain has been endorsed by Citizens for Sensible Forest Management, a nonpartisan group focused on wildfire-reducing forestry practices, and has voiced strong support for reforms like the Fix Our Forests Act, legislation aimed at streamlining forest management and reducing wildfire severity across western states. She has submitted bold public comments in favor of the repeal of the Roadless Rule and for executive action and legislation to open Oregon's O&C Lands to sustainable harvesting and active management. DeSpain pointed to this year's historic fire season — and the policies that got Oregon here — as a central reason voters should demand a change in approach in Washington, D.C.

The general election is November 3, 2026.

Our Commitment

As a fourth-generation, family-owned mill, we don't take these forests for granted. We're proud to operate in a region where sustainable forestry and fire preparedness go hand in hand, and we'll keep supporting the people and practices that keep these lands healthy for the next generation.

To every firefighter who suited up this season: thank you for everything you do.