Voluntary Certification -
The American Tree Farm System
By Bob Simpson
National Director
The American Tree
Farm System
Edited by Steve Nix, About Forestry Guide
Part One - An Introduction With Some Background
Voluntary verification/certification programs are not new to forestry in the United States. Today, nearly 70,000 non-industrial, private landowners have 11.3 million hectares of forests enrolled in the American Tree Farm System, a voluntary certification program. Approximately 7,000 professional foresters volunteer expertise in forest management to Tree Farm members.
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A
Tree Farm is a privately owned forest dedicated to producing renewable and
sustainable crops of forest products while protecting the soil, water,
range, aesthetic, recreation, wood, fish and wildlife resources. A
Certified Tree Farm must maintain standards set by the American Forest
Foundation and is decertified if it fails to continue to meet the
standards.
American
Tree Farm System is sponsored nationally by the American Forest Foundation
(AFF), a nonprofit, educational 501(c)(3) foundation. The AFF operates the
program and sets and controls its forest sustainability standards,
performance measures (see appendix 1) and operations through state and
national committees and cosponsors. It is a privately funded, national
effort to encourage and recognize excellent forestry on private lands that
are committed to sustained production of timber under a multiple use
management approach. The System operates as an informal partnership
encouraging resource management professionals from all disciplines and
sectors (industry, public agencies, private consulting, and associations)
to collaboratively provide expertise to private forest landowners.
The
Tree Farm System was begun in 1941 by wood using industries in the US that
committed themselves to growing repeated crops of trees on that land.
Forest industries continue as major sponsors to the present. Tree Farm has
grown into Americans largest volunteer forest conservation effort
involving foresters from all branches of the profession, landowners of
many backgrounds, and all segments of the forestry community. The System
is financially supported by contributions to the AFF from forest industry,
grants, member contributions and publication sales.
Evolving
from an initial public concern that private forests in the United States
were being cut at unsustainable rates without reforestation, the Tree Farm
program has evolved through the years to address a steadily widening array
of public concerns about privately owned forests. In the 1960s, the
definition of a Tree Farm was expanded to include all facets of multiple
use forestry, in which production of tree crops was only one facet. In the
1990s, the definition of a Tree Farm is further expanding to include an
even broader array of emerging sustainable forestry concepts that are of
public interest.
The
System operates through state Tree Farm committees that have
co-sponsorship arrangements with state forestry associations or other
local organizations with forestry interests. State committees provide Tree
Farmers with opportunities to participate in forestry-related conferences,
field days, study tours and seminars. Some of the larger committees
provide local newsletters and other services.
FIND YOUR STATE TREE FARM COMMITTEE
Members
of state Tree Farm committees include diverse representation from small
forestland owners, forest industry, consulting forestry firms, state and
federal forestry agencies and university forestry extension programs.
Certification and recertification inspections are third party inspections
conducted on the property with the forest owner present.
To
be qualified as an inspecting forester for the American Tree Farm System,
inspectors must meet the following minimum education and/or experience
requirements.
·
A Bachelor of Science, Forestry degree, or higher from a Society of
American Foresters (SAF) recognized college/university.
·
Two year forestry technician degree from a SAF recognized college and
working under the supervision of a qualified forester.
·
Anyone professionally practicing forestry and meeting the minimum
educational requirements set by SAF to achieve the SAF Certified Forester
title.
Upon
meeting these conditions, inspectors must the attend an ATFS Inspector
Training Workshop. At these
day-long workshops inspectors become certified to inspect properties. Inspectors must attend training workshops every five years in
order to maintain their certification.
State
committees arrange for foresters to inspect and certify Tree Farms. To
become a Certified Tree Farmer, a landowner must have a written forest
management plan jointly approved by a qualified forester, technician or
other natural resource professionals with training and experience as
determined by the American Tree Farm System. Additional requirements for
certification are summarized in the following section.
(Part two next week)
Further Reading:
The American Tree Farm System
Find out about the 70,000 people who influence 95 million acres of trees.The American Forest Foundation
"Conserving today...preparing for tomorrow."About Certification
About sites on forest certification
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