USDA is closing research facilities that support Michigan forests

Key Points:

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture is closing all four Forest Service research and development facilities in Michigan, including locations in Houghton, East Lansing, Wellston, and L'Anse, as part of a broader restructuring that will shutter 57 such facilities nationwide.
• The Forest Service headquarters will relocate from Washington, D.C., to Salt Lake City, Utah, aiming to position leadership closer to the majority of federal lands in the western U.S., a move intended to streamline operations and improve forest management.
• Michigan forestry experts express concern that closing local research stations could negatively impact the management of nearly 3 million acres of Michigan national forests, especially given ongoing threats from invasive pests and diseases like emerald ash borer and beech bark disease.
• The restructuring will force some Michigan Forest Service employees to relocate to facilities in Wisconsin and Ohio, though details on the number of affected staff and transition timelines remain unclear.
• State officials, including the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, are still evaluating how the closures and reorganization will affect forestry management and collaborative efforts with research institutions.