NPS - National Park Service

09/14/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/14/2024 14:37

Firewood Available by Lottery at Wrangell-St. Elias

Date:
September 14, 2024
Contact:Benjamin Pister, 907-822-7212

COPPER CENTER, AK -Approximately five to seven cords of dead and downed wood generated from hazard tree removal and wildland fuels reduction at Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve is available for general use. The wood will be given away to members of the public by lottery. Each lottery winner will be allowed one cord per household. This wood is intended to be used by members of the public for home heating.
The wood is decked and accessible by highway vehicles. It consists of dead and dried spruce logs four to nine inches in diameter and in lengths of three to six feet, with a few pieces close to eight feet. The pieces are seasoned and may be easily loaded by hand into a pickup or trailer for removal. The wood must be retrieved and removed from the site before it can be bucked into smaller pieces. No chain saw work may occur at the site. Users selected to receive this wood have no guarantee to the type, quality, length, or diameter of the wood. It will be given away as is, and some may be disintegrating/decomposing from insects. Cords will be roughly measured into approximately 4x4x8 foot piles and each user will be allotted approximately one piled cord.
To sign up for the firewood lottery (one entry per household per physical address) please email the following information to [email protected]* beginning Friday, September 13th through Friday, September 20th:

  • In the subject line of your email include the words "WRST Firewood Lottery"
  • In the body of your email include:
    • Your first and last name
    • Physical Address
    • Mailing Address
    • Phone Number
  • Wait for the park to contact you with further instructions.
A random lottery will be conducted from the email entries received by Monday, September 23rd. The first five to seven names (equal to the number of cords available) will be drawn randomly and notified by email no later than Tuesday, September 24th that they have been selected. Winners who don't respond by Friday, September 27th will be removed, and the next user on the list will be notified. Only those participants who are selected will be contacted. Participants who did not win will not be notified. Winners must arrange to collect their wood, during normal business days (Monday through Friday) between Tuesday, September 24th and Friday, October 4th. Written authorization along with exact location and directions will be provided to the lottery winners upon selection. *If you do not have email, please call Benjamin Pister at (907) 822-7212 by the deadline.