National Association of Conservation Districts

National Association of Conservation Districts

NACD's mission is to serve conservation districts by providing national leadership and a unified voice for natural resource conservation.

Forestry Notes

September 2011
Volume XX, Issue 10
| PDF version | Archive of Previous Issues |

  1. Forest RPG gathers at Grey Towers
  2. Common waters: From forests to faucets
  3. Meet the NACD Forest RPG
  4. Joint Forestry Team meets with executives
  5. Forestry Briefs
  6. Conservation Calendar

1. Forest RPG gathers at Grey Towers
Attendees examine key northeastern forestry issues during three-day meeting

In August, the NACD Forest Resources Policy Group (RPG) visited Grey Towers National Historic Site in Milford, Penn. for its annual meeting.

Grey Towers is the one-time home of Gifford Pinchot, the first chief of the U.S. Forest Service. In 1963, the Pinchot family donated the home and 100 acres to the U.S. Forest Service, which has managed the property in the years since. Today, Grey Towers is open to the public for tours, and it serves as the home to the Pinchot Institute. The Forest RPG was given a private tour of Grey Towers and held its Tuesday and Thursday sessions in the Cornelia Suite, named for Gifford’s wife.

Robert Maiden, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, opened the meeting with a briefing on forestry issues in his state. The Forest RPG was joined by NACD Urban RPG chairman Ron Rohall, who offered insight into a number of urban forest-related projects districts are involved with in Pennsylvania.

Don Eggen of the Pennsylvania Department of Forest Pest Management discussed how pests such as emerald ash borer (EAB), gypsy moth and Asian longhorn beetle are continuing to devour Pennsylvania forestland. According to Eggen, EAB was first detected in the state in 2007, but now has been found in 22 counties.

Noel Schneeberger of the Forest Service spoke on the growing number of forest pests affecting the northeastern region. While EAB is the most talked about, Schneeberger predicts others, such as thousand cankers disease and the winter moth, will generate a great deal of concern in coming years. Schneeberger believes districts can have the greatest impact in helping to defend against forest pests by educating landowners and forestland users on the dangers of transporting firewood.

NRCS National Forester Bruce Wight offered the group an update on Joint Forestry Team activity, while Andy Mason of the National Agroforestry Center discussed recent advancements in agroforestry. National Association of State Foresters staff liaison Jake Donnay briefed the group on Forests in the Farm Bill Coalition work, and Steve Yaddof (representing the Forest Service at the meeting) touched on new developments at the Forest Products Lab.

On Wednesday, Forest RPG members were given a tour of the Milford Experimental Forest by Peter Pinchot, Gifford's grandson. The origins of the experimental forest date back to the start of the 20th Century, when it was used as the summer training grounds for Yale School of Forestry students. Forest RPG members were able to see how the Pinchot family is attempting to grow American chestnut and helping to protect the forest against the deer population.

In the afternoon, the group toured Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, where Park Service leaders are dealing with hemlock woolly adelgid. Hemlock is Pennsylvania’s state tree.

On the final day of the meeting, the Forest RPG established new priorities for 2012, discussed Forest RPG member roles, reviewed partnership activities, and agreed to explore ways to better communicate with and make the Forest RPG more accessible to district staff around the country.

“It was exciting to visit the cradle of forestry for this year’s meeting,” says Doug Rushton, who represents the Pacific Region for the Forest RPG. “Pinchot is the father of American forestry, and to have his grandson (Peter) visit with us and take us into the forest was a memorable experience for the group.”



2. Common waters: From forests to faucets

It’s something Susan Beecher thinks about – the county boundary lines where conservation work often begins and ends. For more than two decades that’s been true of the many projects she has tackled as the executive director for Pennsylvania’s Pike County Conservation District.

But a few years ago, those boundaries became blurred, and the lines on the county map were suddenly just lines.

In 2007, Beecher was invited to join a group whose mission was to improve jurisdictional communication and collaboration to support sustainable communities and working landscapes throughout the Upper Delaware River watershed. The group was facilitated by staff from the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and the Pinchot Institute for Conservation, with conservation representatives from New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania – the three states that border the watershed.

Soon Common Waters was born.

Initially, conservation leaders held a forum on sustainable growth and development in the watershed, and developed an atlas listing many of the area’s resources. The real breakthrough occurred in early 2010, when the Pinchot Institute for Conservation received a $1.9 million grant from the United States Endowment for Forestry and Communities. The Endowment has leveraged their funds with NRCS Conservation Innovation Grants program funds to support pilot projects that link downstream water consumers with private landowners upstream.

This money allowed the Pinchot Institute to develop the Common Waters Fund, which aims to assist forest landowners in the region in managing their lands, which in turn will preserve the water that flows downstream through the Delaware River. The Upper Delaware River watershed is heavily forested, but landowners there often lack adequate financial and technical assistance to manage their lands, and few have long-term management plans to guide their actions.

Through an MOU with the Pinchot Institute, Beecher is coordinating Common Waters Fund work in the upper basin, and the group recruited conservation districts in each state to act as the point of contact for landowners and partners. “Districts know landowners in their counties and are much more aware of local resource issues,” says Beecher. “And I think local landowners are more apt to deal with someone they know from their county.”

According to Beecher, there are four categories that qualify for funding:

To qualify, landowners or tenants must have at least five acres of forestland and must meet EQIP eligibility requirements. Applicants can receive up to $25,000 for conservation easement assistance, up to $20,000 per year for planning or eligible forest management practices, and up to $5,000 for the construction of a timber bridge.

One eligible forest management practice many landowners have applied for is deer fencing. The intense deer population in the region makes forest regeneration difficult. Other eligible forest management practices include riparian buffer plantings, prescribed burning, streambank restoration, and even targeted grazing for goats or sheep. “We actually had one goat project funded in New Jersey,” laughs Beecher.

Common Waters has tried to keep the application process quick and simple. “We try to turn things around in a month,” Beecher says.

Beecher hopes the initial $1.9 million is just the starting point; the Common Waters Fund has begun to pursue long-term funding sources to keep forest conservation work alive in the Upper Delaware River watershed. Downstream users – such as the water suppliers for Philadelphia, pharmaceutical companies, bottling companies and recreational users – could help fund the project in the future through donations.

“There’s a whole campaign being developed to present to those water users,” says Beecher. “It certainly is going to include educational components that talk about the relationship between forests in the watershed and the clean water people use downstream.”

More funding would allow Common Waters to tackle other forest issues, such as the growing pest problem.

“This has been a good opportunity for three states worth of conservation districts to work together on a project that benefits all of us,” says Beecher. “I’d like to see more districts doing that – working across state and county boundaries on projects like this that have farther reaching benefits than some of the programs we typically work on in conservation district offices. Working across boundaries is crucial to succeeding in watershed management and conservation efforts.”

To learn more about Common Waters, visit http://commonwatersfund.org, or email Susan Beecher at sbeecher@pikepa.org. To learn more about the United States Endowment for Forestry and Communities, visit http://www.usendowment.org.



3. Meet the NACD Forest RPG

Conservation district staff in all parts of the country face a variety of forest-related issues, whether it’s sharing information with landowners about available programs and funding, connecting landowners with forest expertise to develop a management plan or prepare for a timber sale, or helping local conservation partners in disease control or fire restoration efforts.

The NACD Forest Resources Policy Group (RPG) helps to identify those areas where districts can play a role in the forest, and for more than three decades it has helped to shape policy and grow relationships with federal agencies and other national forestry leaders. Two key partners have been the U.S. Forest Service and the National Association of State Foresters (NASF). Often, the NASF Forest Resources Management Committee meets jointly with the Forest RPG, and this summer, representatives from NACD and the Forest Service worked together to draft a new five-year cooperative agreement for the two organizations.

Conservation district employees or board members looking for guidance on forest-related issues are encouraged to reach out to the Forest RPG member assigned to their region. The RPG member will either be able to offer help or connect the district staff with someone who can.

Here is a current list of Forest RPG members, with contact information:

Charles Holmes
Chairman (Alabama)
Joined Forest RPG: 1999

Holmes is the longest-serving chairman of any NACD committee or resources policy group, having recently been appointed to his 13th year. Thanks in large part to his leadership, the NACD Forest RPG (formerly the Forestry Committee) has maintained strong relationships with the U.S. Forest Service and has helped to influence forest policy in the Nation's Capital through NACD’s legislative committee.

In Alabama, Holmes operates the Holmestead Company on the same land his great-great-grandfather purchased in 1819. The farm and historical and agricultural buildings are open as a teaching property. He has also been active in state and local conservation district activity, and is the past president of the Alabama Association of Conservation Districts.

In 2007, Holmes was appointed by NACD to help draft a memorandum of understanding for NACD, NRCS the Forest Service and National Association of State Foresters which led to the Joint Forestry Team. In the past few years he has also helped to advise NACD leadership on longleaf pine restoration efforts in the south. He has served on the NACD Board of Directors since 1988.

In August, Holmes was inducted into the Southeastern Conservation Hall of Fame.

Conservation district staff can contact Charles at holmesca@pinebelt.net.

Tom Crowe
North Central (Indiana)
Joined Forest RPG: 2008

Crowe spends most of his time with his hands in the dirt or out tramping through the woods. During his 27 years as a private consulting forester, he estimates he’s planted more than six million seedlings for landowners in northern Indiana. In addition, Crowe provides forest management assistance, including forest management plans, timber stand improvement (pre-commercial weeding and invasive species control), and timber marking, marketing and appraisal services. Most of the several hundred landowners he works with own less than 40 acres of woodland.

Crowe serves as the supervisor for the Allen County Soil and Water Conservation District and as a regional director for the Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, assisting with forest-related issues. More than anything, Crowe likes to educate landowners on the benefits of good forest management and the need for a written plan. “Management can increase the economic return a landowner sees and improve water and air quality and wildlife habitat, while minimizing risk and potential damage from insects, diseases, fire and other concerns,” he says. “A plan provides direction and continuity to maximize the long-term benefits of the forest.”

In addition to his Forest RPG duties, Crowe also represents NACD on the Joint Forestry Team and Interagency Agroforestry Team.

North Central Region conservation district staff can contact Tom at toms.trees@hotmail.com.

Orval Gigstad
Northern Plains (Nebraska)
Joined Forest RPG: 2006

Trees don’t come to mind when most think of Nebraska, but Gigstad has been surrounded by forestry his entire life; he was raised in a Nebraska City home across the street from the Arbor Lodge State Park and the mansion of former USDA Secretary of Agriculture J. Sterling Morton. As a board member for the Nemaha Natural Resource District, Gigstad has been involved in a number of activities to bring more trees to the landscape. “We do sell trees and provide tree planting services, including soil preparation and weed barrier mats if the landowner is interested,” he says. “Shelter belts and wildlife habitat create most of the demand for our trees.”

In fact, the need for windbreaks (and snow fences) is one of the key forestry issues in Nebraska and other northern plains states. Districts help landowners keep those structures working properly. “We know that many of these windbreaks need rehabilitation, as age and disease have began to cause problems,” says Gigstad.

Gigstad has served on Nebraska’s state association board for the past 16 years and on NACD’s Board of Directors for the past 12. When not busy with those duties he focuses on his veterinary career.

Northern Plains Region conservation district staff can contact Orval at 402-269-3267, or via email at orv.gigstad@windstream.net.

Doug Rushton
Pacific (Washington)
Joined Forest RPG: 2007

Doug Rushton has impacted forestry in Washington from a number of posts throughout the years. During his time with the U.S. Forest Service, he worked in the Targhee, Colville and Olympia National Forests, and for five years he focused on water quality issues as the forestry coordinator for Washington’s Department of Ecology, the state environmental agency.

Perhaps Rushton’s greatest influence has come thanks to his service in Washington’s conservation districts and his role in the state chapter of the Society of American Foresters. In 2007 he lead development of a memorandum of understanding for the two state organizations - the state conservation districts and SAF - probably the first such agreement in the nation. It stressed education, policy, legislative issues, and other areas of cooperation.

Rushton also helped to collect forestry expertise data from all of the district offices in the state. “The information was sorted by district and posted on the WACD website so districts in need of forestry assistance could go to there and see who in a nearby district might be able to lend them a hand,” he says.

Conservation leaders in Washington have no shortage of forest issues to deal with – wildfire, forest pests, fragmentation – but success has been found in growing partnerships. “Districts around the state have focused on their local needs, generally in partnership with Extension, NRCS, state forestry (the Department of Natural Resources), and anyone else they can cajole into participating,” Rushton adds.

Pacific Region conservation district staff can contact Doug at 360-789-2638, or via email at drushton21854@gmail.com.

Dan Dixon
Southeast (Georgia)
Joined Forest RPG: 2005

Dixon found forestry after working in the kaolin industry for 36 years. “I got into growing trees when I retired because farming was on its way out in Georgia unless done on a very large scale,” he says.

Dixon serves as the treasurer for the Central Georgia District, which makes forestry one of its top priorities. “Timber is the second largest industry in the area,” says Dixon, who notes there are several biomass companies setting up shop in the seven-county district. “Longleaf planting has also become a major project in the entire Southeastern region now.” This year Dixon has plans to begin his own longleaf project.

Georgia’s vibrant forest industry has resulted in “ever increasing property taxes” which has created concern among landowners. A year ago Dixon helped arrange for U.S. Forest Service taxation specialist Linda Wang to give a presentation to the district.

Another growing concern in the southeast is the pine bark beetle, but like many areas across the country conservation leaders like Dixon are still trying to figure out the best way to manage the problem. “A clear cut is usually the only way to stop them but when prices on timber are low this can hurt the landowner,” he says.

Southeast Region conservation district staff can contact Dan at 478-628-2551, or via email at dandaled362@yahoo.com.

R.D. “Sonny” Jones
South Central (Arkansas)
Joined Forest RPG: 2003

Some of Jones’ best work in Arkansas has been to challenge unfavorable regulations for logging operators. He helped to create the Arkansas Timber Producers Association, for which he served as president for the Association’s first four years. “By working together (loggers) have been able to keep insurance rates in check and have also acquired a six thousand pound tolerance on the highway weight limits in Arkansas.” The Association also helped to develop a well-respected program that trains loggers from Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arkansas.

In 1995, Jones was one of eight national recipients of Georgia Pacific’s “Outstanding Logger Award,” based on overall safety, environmental records and general business management practices. “The honor did not excite me as much as the fact that I received it because of the quality of contract work my company was able to produce for Georgia Pacific,” he says.

Jones’ is also the chairman of the Drew County Conservation District board, considered to be one of Arkansas’ strongest forestry districts. The district encourages EQIP participation and helps minority landowners secure assistance to improve their forestland. “Our district has also provided outreach for area teachers so that they can teach their students the value of the forest for recreation, clean water, wildlife and other benefits the forest provides,” he says.

South Central Region conservation district staff can contact Sonny at 870-367-2012, or via email at loggerrj@aol.com.

Steve Gatewood
Southwest (Arizona)
Joined Forest RPG: 2011

Few have as much first-hand experience in dealing with wildfire as Gatewood, who has dealt with it in two corners of the map. Gatewood’s early fire education came in Florida, where, as the leader of the state’s Forestry Forum, he helped to draft and lobby for the state’s “Right to Burn” legislation. Now a leader in forest fire work in the Flagstaff area, Gatewood believes Arizona will need to implement similar legislation.

Arizona’s fire seasons are complicated by jurisdictional boundaries and less than 20 inches of annual precipitation. Gatewood serves as the Technical Services Program Manager for Coconino Natural Resource Conservation District, which is a member of the Greater Flagstaff Forests Partnership (GFFP). The non-profit group, made up of representatives from roughly three dozen organizations and agencies, assists private landowners in fuel reduction and fire restoration efforts. For three years, Gatewood served as GFFP’s director.

Gatewood is also the operator of Wildwood Consulting, which works with landowners on natural resource issues in the southwest.

Southwest Region conservation district staff can contact Steve at 928-600-3858, or via email at wildwoodvb@earthlink.net.

Garth Davis
Pacific (Washington)
Joined Forest RPG: 2008 (employee representative)

Fire is a common issue in the Pacific Northwest where Davis has served as Spokane Conservation District’s Forestry Program Manager for the past five years. Pacific region districts, like Spokane, use the Firewise Program to help landowners create defensible space to protect their homes from wildfire. The district holds an annual plant sale, including reforestation seed stock that Spokane County residents can plant after a fire or harvest.

Davis’ district is also active in urban forestry efforts. “One of our planting programs is in partnership with Avista Utilities (the local electrical provider) where we plant trees that shade homes and reduce cooling costs in the summer,” he says.

Davis brings a wealth of other experience to his district and the Forest RPG, including having been a graduate of the first class (2006) of the Municipal Foresters Institute. “Being an SAF Certified Forester and an ISA Certified Arborist, I believe I have a combination of forestry and arboriculture experience and education to help landowners with their trees and forests.”

Pacific Region conservation district staff can contact Garth at 509-535-7274, or via email at garth-davis@sccd.org.



4. Joint Forestry Team meets with executives

On July 28, the Joint Forestry Team (JFT) held its summer meeting at the United States Department of Agriculture. U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell, NRCS Chief Dave White, NACD President Gene Schmidt and NASF President Jeff Jahnke led the meeting, which began with the announcement of the 2011 Two Chiefs’ Partnership Awards.

Jahnke updated the team on the statewide forest resource assessments and strategies, including state forest action plans. The plans include four key points: forest fragmentation and the loss of forestland and the adverse impacts it will have on the environment, including water; how forest health and invasive species increasingly threaten the nation’s forest resource; the economic importance of the timber industry and how important its viability is to the nation’s economy; and the increased intensity of forest fires. These statewide forest action plans, when integrated with statewide wildlife action plans, will be used to identify priorities and assist in getting work done on the ground.

Schmidt relayed the “every acre counts” message. He emphasized the need to educate both landowners and resource professionals on the economic and environmental benefits of the forest.

The next Farm Bill was another key topic, specifically the impact of the debt ceiling and the nation’s financial status. Other topics that were discussed at the meeting: The desire of some to cut, consolidate, and streamline programs; the importance of having technical assistance available to landowners to provide management plans that keep the forest economically viable so they are not converted to other uses; and the potential impact of RC&Ds losing their federal funding.

To close the meeting, the four executives discussed the JFT’s next steps, including looking at various programs and identifying areas where duplication can be avoided. An emphasis will be placed on highlighting the team’s successes and identifying its failures so adjustments can be made. JFT leaders also agreed to work to improve partnership coordination in all states – including activity on state technical committees – to improve services provided to customers, and to inform and educate landowners and the general public on the overall benefits of the forests while serving as an example for state and other forestry partnerships.



5. Forestry Briefs

NACD names John Larson CEO
NACD has named John Larson as its new CEO. Larson had previously served as Executive Director of the Washington Association of Conservation Districts and has worked directly with conservation districts for more than 15 years. Larson is a lifetime resident of Washington State and an alumnus of Washington State University, where he studied Agricultural Economics. Larson has served as WACD’s executive director since 2004, having previously worked as manager of the Conservation Districts Partnership—a consortium of four central Washington conservation districts—and district manager for the Othello Conservation District. Prior to his work with districts, Larson ran his family’s irrigated farm in Royal City for six years. A registered lobbyist in Washington State, Larson began his new role with NACD in Washington, D.C. on August 8.

Whitebark pine tree faces extinction threat, agency says
Scientists are working to breed a more resilient whitebark pine over concerns the tree might become extinct due to climate change, disease and beetle infestation. In July, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service stated the tree faces an imminent risk of extinction. It’s believed to be the first time the federal government has identified climate change as one of the driving factors for why a broad-ranging tree species could disappear. One recent study found that 80 percent of whitebark pine forests in the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem are dead or dying. The whitebark, found in western states, specializes in bad soil and high altitudes. Biologists have tested pine cones from Crater Lake (Oregon) and Mt. Rainier (Washington) and are cultivating seedlings with a natural resistance to the blister rust – one of the tree’s greatest threats. This fall the scientists will plant four hundred of the disease-resistant whitebark pines. The Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that the whitebark pine could disappear within two to three generations — from 120 to 180 years from now. The tree is a critical part of the West’s high-elevation habitats: It helps to slow the annual melt of snowpack and provides food for animals. “If you lose those forests, there are so many impacts, not just in wildlife, not just in grizzly bears, but in the whole hydrology of the ecosystem,” said Jesse Logan, the former lead for the U.S. Forest Service’s West-wide bark beetle project.

Study: European biomass demand to grow 44% between 2010 and 2020
According to a new study from RISI, the leading information provider for the global forest products industry, the demand for lignocellulosic biomass in Europe will grow by 44 percent from 2010 to 2020 due to renewable energy policy. The increased use of biomass will be driven principally from the energy sector, but also from the industrial and residential sectors. The study was published in European Biomass Review. The economics of biomass versus other renewable energy sources is analyzed in the study using macro demand drivers and the National Renewable Energy Action Plans (NREAPs), to forecast biomass demand by sector until 2020. “The NREAPs offer insights into how governments plan to meet the renewable energy targets by 2020,” says study author Glen O’Kelly, “but forecast biomass demand is based on announced investments, carbon costs and the relative economics of biomass, as well as an analysis of macro drivers: forecast GDP, population, household energy use, forest industry production – all considered in this study.”

FPL offers updated Wood Handbook
The Forest Products Laboratory (FPL), in cooperation with the Forest Products Society (FPS), has released an updated edition of The Wood Handbook. The handbook is a “one-stop source for information on wood as an engineering material” and includes information on the following: Properties of wood and wood-based products; Design information for architects and engineers; Wood and non-wood composites; Wood-moisture relationships and wood durability; Wood as an environmentally responsible, sustainable building material; Heat-treating and sterilization procedures for wood infected by invasive insect species. The handbook was first published in 1935 by the USDA Forest Products Laboratory (FPL). A hard copy of the handbook and its companion CD can be ordered for $60 by visiting http://www.forestprod.org/handbook.



6. Conservation Calendar