Budget 101: Natural Resource Conservation Service

April 27, 2011 at 4:00 pm by Christine Cadigan

Less than 4 percent of family forest owners Photo credit Flickr's A. Davey have forest management plans—many incorrectly assuming that simply leaving their forests alone is the best option.

Forests face more insect and disease threats now more than ever before and it is critical we manage our forests to prevent more devastation and loss of species.

Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) Conservation Operations funds technical assistance and outreach to both help and educate landowners. This funding proves essential for implementation of the existing Farm Bill programs, and without this guidance, even the few dedicated forest stewards would seriously lack professional guidance.

No one appreciates this technical assistance and guidance more than our Tree Farmers. Take, for example, Joe Massoni who owns a 40 acre tree farm in Cle Elum, Washington. Joe purchased a poorly managed and significantly damaged piece of land, and with the help of his NRCS forestry professional and the Farm Bill EQIP program, is bringing this property back to life! The NRCS guidance was essential for Joe to see his lifelong goal of owning well-managed forest land begin to take root.

Across the country, Susan Benedict has an extremely close relationship with her NRCS agent in State College, Pennsylvania. Susan and her family own nearly 1,000 acres in central Pennsylvania and are working with their NRCS agent to benefit from even more Farm Bill Conservation programs—she’s even investigating ways to encourage pollinator habitat in a forested ecosystem!

It is clear from Tree Farmer testimonies that NRCS Conservation Operations are essential to developing good forest management, and the American Forest Foundation is dedicated to supporting continued funding for these programs.

Take action today: ask your members of Congress to protect the health of our forests.