Also keep in mind that when you approach the operator or landowner, you're educating them. You can't really blame them for wasting wood that we consider valueable, because commercially it's not.
I was working in arkansas recently and started a tree cookie collection. I actually got stopped by wildlife LEO's because I was cutting slices off existing stumps. That's right, I almost got in big trouble because I was trimming stumps that the forest service cut!!! Luckily I had a firewood permit that satisfied them.
I also would have gotten into trouble for the BIG red oak cookie I took...from a 31" red oak that fell across the road, that I generously cleared for them. That was a job. 31" red oak with a Stihl 251. Should have sent them a bill.
I also wanted a princess/empress cookie. It grows invasive in AR. They cut it and spray poison on it and it is extremely undesirable. Fastest growing hardwood in the world. I was told even with a firewood permit I couldn't cut one. Imagine that. I cannot confirm nor deny whether I found one that beavers killed and therefore qualified as dead/down for my firewood permit.
I do think it's a lot different between public land where we all pay taxes (lots and lots of taxes) for saplings that aren't commercially important and no one cares about but we can't cut because of dumb red tape, and the guy that sneaks into church yards at night to cut ancient yew trees and gives BS reasons to justify himself that amounts to "I just wanna".
