Maine Adaptive BMP Cooperative (ABC)

Best Management Practices (BMPs) used to protect water quality during a timber harvest (diagram from page 12 of the Best Management Practices for Forestry: Protecting Maine's Water Quality)

Purpose

The Adaptive BMP Cooperative (ABC) exists to establish an integrated framework of endorsed educational programs that provide forest practitioners a documented path toward professional expertise for their unique responsibilities.

Goals

• Establish a clear progression of educational topics and materials for specific disciplines
• Formalize new and existing educational programs for forest practitioners through accreditation
• Assure program consistency in messaging and quality of delivery
• Identify gaps in subject matter that may arise
• Recruit or develop new programming when necessary
• Recognize loggers and foresters who have participated in training

Why is High Quality and Consistent BMP Training Important to Maine’s Forest Products Industry?

1. To protect Maine’s water and fisheries resources.
2. To meet the requirements of the federal Clean Water Act.
3. To increase compliance with Maine’s forestry and environmental regulations.
4. To improve job site efficiency and safety in forestry operations.
5. To reduce the time and expense of training for Maine’s forest products industry.

Maine DEP