Foresters at Work

Foresters oversee our Nation’s forests and direct activities on them for economic, recreational, conservational, and environmental purposes. Individual landowners, the public, and industry own most of the forested land in this country, and they require the expertise of foresters to keep the forests healthy and sustainable.

Often this means coming up with a plan to keep the forests free from disease, harmful insects, and damaging wildfires, for example, planning when and where to plant trees and vegetation and when to cut timber. It may also mean coming up with ways to make the land profitable but still protected for future generations.

Foresters have a wide range of duties, often depending on their employer. Some primary duties of foresters include drawing up plans to regenerate forested lands, monitoring their progress, and supervising harvests.

Land Management Foresters

Land management foresters choose and direct the preparation of sites on which trees will be planted. They oversee controlled burning and the use of bulldozers or herbicides to clear weeds, brush, and logging debris. They advise on the type, number, and placement of trees to be planted.

Foresters then monitor the seedlings to ensure healthy growth and to determine the best time for harvesting. If they detect signs of disease or harmful insects, they consult with specialists in forest pest management to decide on the best course of treatment. When the trees reach a certain size, foresters decide which trees and how many should be harvested and sold.

Procurement Foresters

Procurement foresters make up a large share of foresters. Their job is to buy timber, typically for a sawmill or wood products manufacturer, by contacting local forest owners and negotiating a sale contract. This typically involves taking inventory of the type, amount, and location of all standing timber on the property, a process known as timber cruising.

They appraise the timber’s worth, negotiate its purchase, and draw up a contract for purchase. The forester then subcontracts with loggers or pulpwood cutters for tree removal and to aid in laying out roads to access the timber.

Throughout the process, foresters maintain close contact with the subcontractor and the landowner to ensure that the work meets the landowner’s requirements and Federal, State, and local environmental regulations.

Conserving Wildlife Habitats

Throughout the forest management and procurement processes, foresters are often responsible for conserving wildlife habitats and creek beds within forests, maintaining water quality and soil stability, and complying with environmental regulations.

Foresters must balance the desire to conserve forested ecosystems with the need to use forest resources for recreational or economic purposes. For example, foresters are increasingly working with landowners to find ways to generate money from forested lands, such as for hunting or other recreational activity, without cutting down trees.

Prevention of Wildfires

An increasing concern of foresters is the prevention of devastating wildfires. Using a variety of techniques, including the thinning of forests or using controlled burns to clear brush, foresters work with governments and private landowners to minimize the impact of fire on the forest. During fires, they work with or supervise fire fighters and plan ways to attack the fire.

Some foresters, mostly in the Federal Government, perform research on issues facing forests and related natural resources. They may study tree improvement and harvesting techniques; global change; protection of forests from pests, diseases, and fire; improving wildlife habitats; forest recreation; and other topics. State foresters may perform some research but more often work with private landowners in developing forest management plans. Both Federal and State foresters enforce relevant environmental laws, including laws on water quality and fire suppression.

Urban Foresters

Relatively new fields in forestry are urban forestry and conservation education. Urban foresters live and work in larger cities and manage urban forests. They are concerned with quality of life issues, such as air quality, shade, beautification, storm water runoff, and property values. Conservation education foresters train teachers and students about sound forest stewardship.