WELCOME TO THE BE WOODS WISE BULLETIN
Spring 2005

This is the second issue of a quarterly newsletter published by the Maine Forest Service (MFS) to connect Maine landowners with information about their forests, and with the resources – people, new publications, events, websites, etc. – they need to make informed choices about their woodlands.

Be Woods Wise supports and encourages landowner stewardship. Stewardship means protecting and improving a whole range of resources – recreation, wildlife habitat, woodland aesthetics, forest health, soil and water resources, wood or other forest products. Stewardship means meeting your needs as landowner while sustaining natural resources for the future.

Be Woods Wise and other MFS landowner assistance efforts are supported by grants through the USDA Forest Service’s Forest Stewardship Program, the USDA Forest Service’s Forest Land Enhancement Program, and other sources.

“HOT” TOPIC – FIREWOOD

Now might be a good time to think of next year’s firewood. As of March, dry firewood is selling for $185 a cord in the Augusta area. If you are planning any thinning or tree removals this summer, you might do your pocketbook a favor cutting all the limbs and tops and putting it into cord piles of firewood. During the course of the summer it will season, maybe even dry out if the pile is covered and well-ventilated.

Next fall, if and when the price of oil heads for the hills, one of two things could happen. You might be glad you’ve put up some of your own wood for the woodstove. On the other hand, if you’ve put those piles where they’re visible from a traveled road, those folks who have been watching the piles all summer long may come a-calling. If you put a price on the one-cord piles, come September 1st, raise it by a few dollars and see what happens. And, if you don’t sell it, you can become your own best customer!
Peter Lammert is the MFS Utilization and Marketing Forester, and can be reached at the Augusta office, at 207 287-4995.

WOODSWISE COST-SHARE PROGRAM – MAY SIGN-UP

Maine Forest Service, with funding from the USDA Forest Service, offers financial incentives or “cost-sharing” to woodland owners to implement some recommendations of their Forest Management Plans*.

MFS District Foresters will be accepting applications for the implementation of eligible projects during the month of May. Applications are due by May 31st in the MFS District Forester office. Landowners must have an MFS-approved plan to be eligible and projects must be conducted with the help of a private forester who is eligible to act as a WoodsWISE Stewardship Forester. Approximately $200,000 will be available for projects.

Interested landowners must apply and be pre-approved for cost-sharing, before the project begins to be eligible. The program then reimburses landowners for actual, documented costs once the work is completed.

Application forms, eligibility & project requirements, and additional information are available at www.state.me.us/doc/mfs/fpm/wwi/wwi.htm/. For additional assistance, contact the MFS Augusta office, your MFS District Forester, or your consulting forester. *Landowners who do not have an approved Forest Management Plan can apply for cost-share for plans at any time. The plan must be completed before landowners are eligible for project cost-sharing.

PROJECT CANOPY

Project Canopy is Maine’s community forestry program. It helps cities and towns build and support sustainable community forestry programs, and maximize the benefits that trees and forests provide. Project Canopy provides hands-on assistance and training for communities, volunteers, and professionals, educates people about the benefits of community trees and forests, and connects people who have a particular expertise with people who need that expertise.

Any long-term community forestry program needs commitment and understanding from many different community groups. Project Canopy’s role is to get people in different corners talking to each other, so that awareness about trees can flourish. We do that by using down-to-earth strategies, and sending technical experts into your city or town to lend hands-on assistance. To learn more about Project Canopy please visit www.projectcanopy.org or call 1-800-367-0223.

EVENTS

Maine Forest Service and other organizations host frequent events of interest to woodland owners, foresters, loggers, and others. Call MFS or visit our calendar: http://www.maine.gov/doc/mfs/mfs/events.shtml.
If you know of an event for the calendar, please contact MFS.

Forest Trees of Maine, one of MFS’s most popular publications, is now available online, at www.state.me.us/doc/mfs/pubs/ftm/ftm.htm.

WORKING WITH NATURAL RESOURCE PROFESSIONALS

Ten Maine Forest Service District Foresters are located in field offices throughout the state. Their primary role is to provide information and technical assistance to landowners – and, if need be, help them locate other professionals. MFS program staff/specialists are in the Augusta office. MFS services are free.

The following lists some of the other natural resource professionals you may encounter – or whose services you may need.

Private, independent consulting foresters provide professional services such as forest management planning, timber harvest administration, layout, and supervision, and other services, directly to landowners. All Foresters in Maine must be licensed by the state – most have a four-year degree in forestry. No one may offer professional forestry services in Maine without a license. Other foresters may be employed by forest products companies, large landowners, etc.

Loggers are skilled in the actual cutting and removal of timber. They vary widely in the equipment they use, the type of harvests they conduct, how they utilize and sell trees they harvest, and the degree of training they have received. Master Logger, Certified Logging Professional (CLP), and Qualified Logging Professional are Maine-based independent training and accreditation programs for loggers.

Forest Rangers are employed by Maine Forest Service. They are tasked with preventing and putting out wildfires, as well as with enforcing most forest laws.

Arborists are specialists in the care of individual trees. Arborists are knowledgeable about the needs of trees, especially in residential settings, and are trained and equipped to provide proper care. Practicing arborists must obtain a license through the Maine Department of Agriculture. For help finding an arborist call MFS and ask to speak to the Community Forester, Mike DeBonis. You can also call the Maine Department of Agriculture at (207) 287-3891.

Wildlife Biologists are employed by state/federal agencies, nonprofit organizations, and forest products companies. A few are independent consultants. Some are registered as Certified Wildlife Biologists by The Wildlife Society, a private entity.

To find the MFS District Forester nearest you, or for more information or help finding other professionals, call the MFS Augusta office or go to www.state.me.us/doc/mfs/fpm/ff/foresters.htm.

MAINE TREE FOUNDATION

The Maine TREE Foundation, founded in 1989, has as its mission to “educate and advocate for the sustainable use of the forest and the ecological, economic and social health of Maine’s forest community. Under Maine TREE’s vision, “the public values and supports Maine’s healthy forest ecosystems, forest professionals, scientific forest management, and sound public policies that sustain Maine’s forest-dependent people and communities.

Maine TREE sponsors The Long Term Education About Forests (LEAF) Program, Project Learning Tree (PLT), the Maine Tree Farm Committee and the Certified Logging Professional (CLP) Program. Teacher Tours are in their eighth summer and have introduced almost 500 Maine educators to the forest and the forest products industry in four-day “muddy boots” experiences in Maine’s woods and mills. Foresters, loggers, land and mill owners, educators and other professionals help teachers learn about Maine’s forest resource and the people who work in it. Tours feature a PLT workshop and provide educators with a Maine CD-ROM, Maine Forests Forever Green, a compendium of information about Maine’s forests, Maine Forest Facts, and other classroom/curriculum material.

Maine TREE is an independent, private, non-profit education organization, supported by contributions from individuals, other non-profits, members of the business community, and by grants. To support Maine TREE’s programs, or for more information, call Maine TREE’s office at (207) 621-9872, email mtf@gwi.net, or www.mainetreefoundation.org.

"We help you make informed decisions about Maine's forests"