By Alabama Public Radio
Montgomery, AL – The Alabama Forest Recovery Task Force will help south Alabama land owners harvest thousands of trees damaged by Hurricane Ivan. The 24 member panel also will work with state and federal forestry officials to immediately begin the work in 12 counties. State Agriculture Commissioner Ron Sparks says about 700 million dollars worth of timber was damaged. But Governor Bob Riley says he's confident the state's forests will eventually recover. Paper and forest products are the largest manufacturing industry in the state.