Soil and Water Conservationists

Overview Nature of Work Knowledge Areas Skills Utilized Job Activities Abilities Job Conditions Work Satisfaction Education/Training

Forests and rangelands supply wood products, livestock forage, minerals, and water. They serve as sites for recreational activities and provide habitats for wildlife. Conservation scientists and foresters manage the use and development of these lands and help to protect them. Some advise landowners on the use and management of their land. Conservation scientists and foresters often specialize in one area, such as wildlife management, soil conservation, urban forestry, pest management, native species, or forest economics. But most work falls into one of three categories: forestry, conservation science focusing on range lands, and conservation science focusing on farming and soil.

Foresters oversee our Nation's forests and direct activities on them for economic, recreational, conservational, and environmental purposes. Individual landowners, the public, and industry own most of the forested land in this country, and they require the expertise of foresters to keep the forests healthy and sustainable. Often this means coming up with a plan to keep the forests free from disease, harmful insects, and damaging wildfires, for example, planning when and where to plant trees and vegetation and when to cut timber. It may also mean coming up with ways to make the land profitable but still protected for future generations.

Foresters have a wide range of duties, often depending on who they are working for. Some primary duties of foresters include drawing up plans to regenerate forested lands, monitoring their progress, and supervising harvests. Land management foresters choose and direct the preparation of sites on which trees will be planted. They oversee controlled burning and the use of bulldozers or herbicides to clear weeds, brush, and logging debris. They advise on the type, number, and placement of trees to be planted. Foresters then monitor the seedlings to ensure healthy growth and to determine the best time for harvesting. If they detect signs of disease or harmful insects, they consult with specialists in forest pest management to decide on the best course of treatment. When the trees reach a certain size, foresters decide which trees and how many should be harvested and sold to sawmills.

Procurement foresters make up a large share of foresters. Their job is to buy timber, typically for a sawmill or wood products manufacturer, by contacting local forest owners and negotiating a sale contract. This typically involves taking inventory of the type, amount, and location of all standing timber on the property, a process known as timber cruising. They then appraise the timber's worth, negotiate its purchase, and draw up a contract for purchase. The forester next subcontracts with loggers or pulpwood cutters for tree removal and to aid in laying out roads to access the timber. Throughout the process, foresters maintain close contact with the subcontractor and the landowner to ensure that the work meets the landowner's requirements and Federal, State, and local environmental regulations.

Throughout the forest management and procurement processes, foresters are often responsible for conserving wildlife habitats and creek beds within forests, maintaining water quality and soil stability, and complying with environmental regulations. Foresters must balance the desire to conserve forested ecosystems with the need to use forest resources for recreational or economic purposes. For example, foresters are increasingly working with landowners to find ways to generate money from forested lands, such as for hunting or other recreational activity, without cutting down trees. An increasing concern of foresters is the prevention of devastating wildfires. Using a variety of techniques, including the thinning of forests or using controlled burns to clear brush, foresters work with governments and private landowners to minimize the impact of fire on the forest. During fires, they work with or supervise fire fighters and plan ways to attack the fire.

Some foresters, mostly in the Federal Government, perform research on issues facing forests and related natural resources. They may study tree improvement and harvesting techniques; global change; protection of forests from pests, diseases, and fire; improving wildlife habitats; forest recreation; and other topics. State foresters may perform some research but more often work with private landowners in developing forest management plans. Both Federal and State foresters enforce relevant environmental laws, including laws on water quality and fire suppression.

Relatively new fields in forestry are urban forestry and conservation education. Urban foresters live and work in larger cities and manage urban forests. They are concerned with quality of life issues, such as air quality, shade, beautification, storm water runoff, and property values. Conservation education foresters train teachers and students about sound forest stewardship.

Foresters use a number of tools to perform their jobs. Clinometers measure the height of trees; diameter tapes measure tree diameter; and increment borers and bark gauges measure the growth of trees so that timber volumes can be computed and growth rates estimated. Remote sensing (aerial photographs and other imagery taken from airplanes and satellites) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data often are used for mapping large forest areas and for detecting widespread trends of forest and land use. Once a map is generated, data are digitized to create a computerized inventory of information required to manage the forest land and its resources. Moreover, hand-held computers, Global Positioning Systems (GPS), and Internet-based applications are used extensively.

Conservation scientists manage, improve, and protect the country's natural resources. They work with landowners and Federal, State, and local governments to devise ways to use and improve the land while safeguarding the environment. Conservation scientists mainly advise farmers, farm managers, and ranchers on how they can improve their land for agricultural purposes and to control erosion. A growing number of conservation scientists are also advising landowners and governments on recreational uses for the land.

Two of the more common conservation scientists are range managers and soil conservationists. Range managers, also called range conservationists, range ecologists, or range scientists, study, manage, improve, and protect rangelands to maximize their use without damaging the environment. Rangelands cover hundreds of millions of acres of the United States, mostly in Western States and Alaska. They contain many natural resources, including grass and shrubs for animal grazing, wildlife habitats, water from vast watersheds, recreation facilities, and valuable mineral and energy resources. Range managers may inventory soils, plants, and animals; develop resource management plans; help to restore degraded ecosystems; or assist in managing a ranch. For example, they may help ranchers attain optimum livestock production by determining the number and kind of animals to graze, the grazing system to use, and the best season for grazing. At the same time, however, range managers maintain soil stability and vegetation for other uses such as wildlife habitats and outdoor recreation. They also plan and implement revegetation of disturbed sites.

Soil and water conservationists provide technical assistance to farmers, ranchers, forest managers, State and local agencies, and others concerned with the conservation of soil, water, and related natural resources. They develop programs for private landowners designed to make the most productive use of land without damaging it. Soil conservationists also assist landowners by visiting areas with erosion problems, finding the source of the problem, and helping landowners and managers develop management practices to combat it. Water conservationists also assist private landowners and Federal, State, and local governments by advising on water quality, preserving water supplies, groundwater contamination, and management and conservation of water resources.

Work environment. Working conditions vary considerably. Some foresters and conservation scientists work regular hours in offices or labs, but others may split their time between fieldwork and office work. Independent consultants and new, less experienced workers spend the majority of their time outdoors overseeing or participating in hands-on work. Fieldwork can involve long hours alone.

The work can be physically demanding. Some conservation scientists and foresters work outdoors in all types of weather, sometimes in isolated areas, and consequently may need to walk long distances through densely wooded land to carry out their work. Natural disasters may also cause foresters and conservation scientists to work long hours during emergencies. For example, foresters often have to work long hours during fire season, and conservation scientists often are called to prevent erosion after a forest fire and to provide emergency help after floods, mudslides, and tropical storms.

Foresters employed by the Federal Government and the States usually work 40 hours a week, but not always on a standard schedule. In field positions, foresters often work for long blocks of time, working 10 days straight, followed by 4 days off, for example. Overtime may be necessary when working in fire fighting, law enforcement, or natural disaster response.

1.	Develop and maintain working relationships with local government staff and board members.
2.	Apply principles of specialized fields of science, such as agronomy, soil science, forestry, or agriculture, to achieve conservation objectives.
3.	Advise land users such as farmers and ranchers on conservation plans, problems and alternative solutions, and provide technical and planning assistance.
4.	Plan soil management and conservation practices, such as crop rotation, reforestation, permanent vegetation, contour plowing, or terracing, to maintain soil and conserve water.
5.	Visit areas affected by erosion problems to seek sources and solutions.
6.	Monitor projects during and after construction to ensure projects conform to design specifications.
7.	Compute design specifications for implementation of conservation practices, using survey and field information technical guides, engineering manuals, and calculator.
8.	Revisit land users to view implemented land use practices and plans.
9.	Coordinate and implement technical, financial, and administrative assistance programs for local government units to ensure efficient program implementation and timely responses to requests for assistance.
10.	Analyze results of investigations to determine measures needed to maintain or restore proper soil management.
11.	Participate on work teams to plan, develop, and implement water and land management programs and policies.
12.	Develop, conduct and/or participate in surveys, studies and investigations of various land uses, gathering information for use in developing corrective action plans.
13.	Survey property to mark locations and measurements, using surveying instruments.
14.	Compute cost estimates of different conservation practices based on needs of land users, maintenance requirements and life expectancy of practices.
15.	Provide information, knowledge, expertise, and training to government agencies at all levels to solve water and soil management problems and to assure coordination of resource protection activities.
16.	Respond to complaints and questions on wetland jurisdiction, providing information and clarification.
17.	Initiate, schedule and conduct annual audits and compliance checks of program implementation by local government.
18.	Compile and interpret wetland biodata to determine extent and type of wetland and to aid in program formulation.
19.	Manage field offices and involve staff in cooperative ventures.
20.	Review and approve amendments to comprehensive local water plans and conservation district plans.
21.	Review proposed wetland restoration easements and provide technical recommendations.
22.	Review grant applications and make funding recommendations.
23.	Conduct fact-finding and mediation sessions among government units, landowners, and other agencies in order to resolve disputes.
24.	Review annual reports of counties, conservation districts, and watershed management organizations, certifying compliance with mandated reporting requirements.
25.	Provide access to programs and training to assist in completion of government groundwater protection plans.

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