'These are absolutely beautiful creatures, and it’s really rewarding to know our logs will contribute to their social and physical well-being,' says Steve Keniston, Lower Columbia area manager.
In celebration of World Elephant Day on August 12, our Lower Columbia Timberlands team in Oregon donated a truckload of logs to the Oregon Zoo’s Elephant Lands habitat. The 25-ton load of logs — a mix of Douglas-fir and maple up to 40 feet long, all harvested from Rainier, Oregon — will help encourage the Oregon Zoo’s five Asian elephants to be active as they would be their natural environment.
“We’re excited to provide these natural elements from our forest to help the elephants play and get the exercise they need,” says Steve Keniston, Lower Columbia area manager. “These are absolutely beautiful creatures, and it’s really rewarding to know our logs will contribute to their social and physical well-being.”
Steve and Eric Dewitt, Northwest Oregon harvest manager, worked together to scout the perfect logs for the donation. The logs made their journey from Rainier to Portland at sunrise earlier this month and are now being enjoyed by the Oregon Zoo’s Asian elephant herd. (The donation was featured in a segment on Portland news station Fox 12 earlier this month.)
The zoo’s popular Elephant Lands habitat includes feeding stations, mud wallows and water features, such as a 160,000-gallon pool, that are designed to support the natural dynamics of Asian elephant society. Considered highly endangered in their range countries, Asian elephants are threatened by habitat loss, conflict with humans and disease. It’s estimated that just 40,000 to 50,000 of them remain in fragmented populations from India to Borneo.
“These logs will give the elephant family some great new surfaces to push against, scratch on and climb over,” says Steve Lefave, who oversees the zoo elephant area. “We're very grateful to Weyerhaeuser for this generous donation in honor of World Elephant Day.”
From Harvest to Elephant Lands Habitat
