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General Information
Professional (certified/registered) foresters advise and provide recommendations to landowners about the management of their forestland. Recommendations typically include short-term and long-term objectives and strategies, and can cover a wide range of forestry topics. Such topics may include: when and how to harvest timber, timber sale negotiations, reforestation (assessments, species, and spacing), forest health decisions, prescribed burning, wildfire prevention, maximizing wildlife habitat, and asset/investment management. Accordingly, foresters are involved with the daily development, protection, and management of objectives for forestland owners.
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The establishment and management of a forest is comparable to growing an investment portfolio. Making money from forestland is generally a safe and low risk investment. Southern forests are competitive with or exceed returns of traditional investments. Most southern forest investments often yield three times that of a bond or a savings account over the same period of time. Landowners may want to enjoy the immediate rewards of their land or they may want to manage their investment to help provide for their heirs. As such, it is important for a landowner to develop a forest management plan defining objectives, non-timber and timber resource needs, and the acceptable risk and/or return from a forest investment. For example, forest regeneration has some degree of uncertainty/risk that is expected due to vegetative competition, weather patterns (droughts/ floods), and species survival rates. Low survival and/or lack of proper site preparation can reduce forest investment yields. Experienced, professional foresters are available to advise and help reduce risks by designing reforestation and management plans to fit site-specific investment needs and capabilities. Recent investment studies show that landowners who use professional foresters for their management activities gain 40% more return over time when compared to those landowners who opt not to use a professional forester.
It is important to remember that regardless how your forestland is used, calling a professional forester will increase the potential for higher forest returns today and in the future. When selecting a forester, be sure to identify qualifications and costs prior to initiating service agreements. Agreements should be performance-based to guarantee the efficiency and honesty of the consulting services.
Certified/Registered Foresters
Many states have legislation that mandates that no person can practice forestry within the states unless they are a registered forester or working under the supervision of a registered forester in that specific state. The general definition of forestry activities as defined by many states include: consultation, investigation, evaluation, planning or responsible supervision of forest management, protection, silviculture, measurements, utilization, economics, education, or other forestry operations on private or public lands. Registered Forester certification is an examination-based certification that promotes experience, continuing education, professional ethics, and adherence to forestry standards.
Additionally, forestry certification programs exist to further verify the extent of a foresters knowledge and experience. The Society of American Foresters (SAF) Certified Forester program was created to “promote excellence in the stewardship of our nation’s resources through enhanced professionalism in forestry. The program advances this through the development, maintenance, promotion, and administration of an examination-based professional forester certification that mandates professional development and commitment to standards of professional practice” (SAF web site: http://www.safnet.org/certifiedforester/becoming/objective.cfm).
ESI Capabilities
Environmental Services, Inc., (ESI) maintains a staff of highly qualified professional foresters with extensive experience throughout the southeastern states. Our certifications includes SAF Certified Foresters and NC, SC, and GA Register Foresters. Our professional foresters have established positive working relationships with state and local government agencies and a comprehensive familiarity with forest management techniques and assessments throughout the region. ESI offers extensive professional and regional experience and a strong commitment to customer service. Our forest management services include, but are not limited to, timber cruises, timber sale coordination, timber damage assessments, land management plans, prescribed burning, log quality audits, stand inventories, and tree health and safety assessments.
Value to Clients
The ESI philosophy and technical approach stresses experience, professionalism, technical competence, communication, and, above all, responsiveness to the needs of our clients. We strive to identify potentially complex issues before they become problems and assist our clients in understanding and dealing with their forest management needs. By utilizing the expertise of our professional foresters, landowners can achieve their land management objectives and realize an increase in return from their forestland investments.
For Additional Information Please Contact:
Donald Hendrix (GA, SC) – 912-236-4711
Scott Sager (FL) - 904-470-2200
Seth Ward (NC) - 252-946-6660
Or Email Us at: Forestry@esinc.cc |
