Letter to the editor: New mill is tribute to forest industry resiliency in S.C.

The forest industry in Clarendon and surrounding counties recently received some much-needed good news. After a number of months of negotiation, Homanit, a leading manufacturer of wood materials, announced it had chosen Clarendon County to establish a new manufacturing facility. The company will invest $250 million and will create 300 new jobs.

This announcement comes at a time when some older wood processing mills, particularly International Paper at Georgetown, S.C., have closed or are closing. The loss of these markets has created a large decrease in the demand for pine pulpwood, a key product produced by our forest landowners.

The forest industry is the top industry in our state and has been an important part of Clarendon County's economy since the 1890s, with the establishment of a saw mill by D. W. Alderman and Sons. The new mill will be located close to the long-closed Alderman mill site at Alcolu and will be a tribute to the resiliency of the forest industry in our state. Thanks to the Clarendon County Development Board and director George Kosinski and the Clarendon County Council. Welcome!

DWIGHT L. STEWART JR.

S.C. Registered Forester No. 524

Manning