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 State & Private Forestry NewsAugust 29, 2012 |
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Director Visits Morgantown for
1-Year Anniversary
Morgantown staff took Tony Ferguson to the Seneca Rocks Visitor Center on the Monongahela National Forest to see the forest health exhibit they created. Pictured left to right: Forest Health Group Leader Dan Twardus, Urban Forester Anne Cumming, Director Tony Ferguson, Entomologist Amy Hill, and Program Analyst Melissa Emerson. Photo: Bob Lueckel
MORGANTOWN, W.Va.-Standing by his commitment to get to all the field offices of the Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry within his first year, Director Tony Ferguson visited the Morgantown office on August 14-15. He began his visit by attending Morgantown's monthly safety meeting. Following the meeting, staff took him to the Monongahela National Forest. On the second day of his visit, he gathered with employees to hear a presentation on the integrated emerald ash borer response project in Ohio.
"I really enjoyed getting to meet those of you that were in the office and had a great time hearing about some of the activities in the Forest Health program area," said Ferguson. |
Summary of Input on Draft Strategic Issues Available Soon!
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa.--The Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry (NA S&PF) Strategic Planning Team thanks employees, partners, and stakeholders who provided input on the draft strategic issues for NA S&PF to address over the next 5 years. Fifty employees and over 60 partners and stakeholders from State forestry agencies, nongovernmental organizations and partnerships, other Federal agencies, academia, and others provided input. Average importance ratings given for the draft strategic issue questions were high across all issues. As a result, we have decided moving forward to look at the unique niche for NA S&PF to address all of these strategic issues.
A summary of the input received on the draft strategic issues will be available soon. We appreciate the ideas and input provided and will closely consider them as we turn to the next task of drafting strategies. The draft strategies will be shared for internal and external review and input in October 2012.
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First U.S. Nanocellulose Pilot Plant Unveiled
MADISON, Wis.--The U.S. Forest Service's Forest Products Laboratory has opened a $1.7 million facility that produces wood-derived nanomaterials. These cellulosic materials provide high strength with low weight-characteristics that are attractive to the automotive, aerospace, electronics, and medical device industries, and the military, among others. The pilot plant will provide working quantities of the nanomaterials to researchers and early adopters of the technology, aiding commercialization of new products. Watch video.
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Smokey Bear and NASA's Cosmo Highlight Fire Technology
Massachusetts District 4 Forest Fire Warden Scott Bassett (far left), Space Shuttle Astronaut Michael Foreman of NASA (far right), and forest visitors met with Cosmo and Smokey Bear, on August 15. Photo: Glenn Rosenholm
DURHAM, N.H.--Smokey Bear and Cosmo, mascot of NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), came together to highlight the role of satellite technology in fighting forest fires and protecting forest health. More than 250 people participated in the public gathering held August 15 at the Myles Standish State Forest in Carver, MA. Boy scouts and girl explorers from across the Bay State, along with local campers and residents, took part in the event sponsored by NASA, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. Forest Service participants from three branches of the agency represented the Eastern Region (Region 9), the Northern Research Station, and Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry. This event was part of NASA's Destination Station. Smokey has also gone up to the international space station, and on August 9th celebrated his 68th birthday with NASA, at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
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Behind the Forest Service Shield-Maureen Brooks
"I am motivated by knowing my work is important. I want to be sure I don't miss anything." Photo: Juliette Watts
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa.--Maureen Brooks is the community fire planner with the Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry's Fire and Aviation Staff in Newtown Square, PA. State partners depend on Maureen for technical assistance with fire planning and wildfire risk assessment, wildland-urban interface issues, Firewise programming, fire prevention activities, and grant implementation and monitoring. She helps partners work out how to do get these tasks done. For example, in preparing Community Wildfire Protection Plans, or CWPP, she identifies the right people to develop a plan and the kinds of activities that can be in it. She draws on her knowledge of what has worked for others.
Read more
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Large Acreage Conservation Easement Monitoring Roundtable
DURHAM, N.H.--The Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources invite you to a roundtable discussion on aspects of monitoring large acreage conservation easements. The free two-day roundtable, consisting of a meeting day and field trip day, will be held on September 19 and 20, 2012, in Duluth, MN, at Superior National Forest Headquarters. Topics include these: the challenges and opportunities of third party certification for conservation easements through the eyes of those who develop, evaluate, and undergo certification for forest lands; and best practices for monitoring large-acreage conservation easements with a special focus on baseline documentation, leases, recreational motorized access, and established rights of way. The meeting portion can be accessed remotely. All attendees must register. To receive an invitation, contact Miranda Hutten, phone 603-868-7683.
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Want to Know if It's Invasive?
BELTSVILLE, Md.-The Invasive Species Information Center of the USDA National Agriculture Library has a list of electronic resources that you can turn to for help in determining whether plants and animals are invasive. In addition, resources include aquatic species and microbes that cause tree diseases. See resources.
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Run, Hide, Fight: Surviving an Active Shooter Event
HOUSTON, Texas--After the shooting at a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., the city of Houston released a how-to video on surviving a shooter event. The video was created with funds from the Homeland Security Department. Houston's Public Safety Office said it had started working on the video before the theater shooting, reports the ABC station in Houston. Entitled "Run, Hide, Fight," the video depicts a fictional shooting incident at an office building. The video is not intended to replace the plans for physical security which every front desk should have in place (and one size does not fit all, local situations differ, therefore locally developed plans are best). It is intended to bring up a situation most of us would rather not think about, but having a plan in your head might mean all the difference between surviving and being injured or worse. Watch the video.
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Plan Your Green Vacation or Holiday Travel
By Mary Dougherty-van Dam
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa.-Once school is back in session, the holidays are right around the corner. Maybe you are planning a fall or winter vacation. Travel offers an opportunity to be "green." When booking your vacation or holiday travel, remember to ask the travel agent, hotel, or transportation company about their green philosophy. This summer my spouse wanted to visit his family in The Netherlands, so we researched several resources, not only for pricing and availability but also for their environmental friendliness. In our case, we ended up choosing an airline that focuses on not contributing to climate change. Not only do they use biofuel, they are always looking for ways to reduce the weight of the aircraft. Examples are using lighter cutlery, tableware, trolleys (where food and duty free items are stored), coffee and tea pots, and seats. All of those differences add up to a lighter aircraft that burns less fuel and emits less carbon dioxide. Not only is the airline working on climate change, they are lowering the price of their tickets for consumers, in some cases, by about half. This is an example. Shop around to see what is out there. Remember that it could pay to go green. |
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