The Nature Conservancy to Speak at Central Region Forest Landowners Conference

Saturday, March 8, 2008

UNIVERSITY PARK — Penn State Cooperative Extension, in cooperation with Penn State School of Forest Resources, the DCNR Bureau of Forestry, the Woodland Owners of Centre County, the North Central Forest Landowners Association, and the Clearfield/Jefferson Counties Forest Stewardship Committee are providing an educational conference specifically for forest landowners and managers to learn and discuss forest and wildlife management on private forest lands. The conference is scheduled from 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM., Saturday, March 8, 2008, at the Penn State School of Forest Resources Building, University Park, PA.

Dylan Jenkins, Pennsylvania’s director of Forest Conservation for The Nature Conservancy, is among the outreach foresters presenting on private land management. His session, “Conservation Tools for Maintaining Working Forests for the Long Haul”, features the Conservancy’s approach to sustainable forestry for people and wildlife, and discuss management practices and tools available to the private forest owner.

Forests cover nearly 60% or over 17 million acres of Pennsylvania. Over 750,000 private forest landowners own approximately 75% (12.5 million acres) of this land. Forests provide us with many benefits including wood products, wildlife habitat, places to recreate, and beautiful vistas. They also give us clean water by protecting watersheds and clean air by removing carbon dioxide. Forests are also vital to the economy of Pennsylvania. The forest products industry is the fourth largest industry in the state, employing over 90,000 workers in 2,500 firms and contributes almost 5 billion dollars to the state’s economy annually. To continue providing these benefits into the future forests must receive proper management.

Conference participants will learn about: abandoned mine reforestation, forest insects and diseases, invasive plant species, fisher reintroductions, woodlot management, forest finance, timber marketing, wood energy, forest conservation, and more.

To register or for more information contact Dave Jackson at the Centre County Cooperative Extension office at 814-355-4897 or Tim Pierson at the McKean County Cooperative Extension Office at 814-887-5613. The registration fee is $30.00 which covers speakers, breaks, a luncheon, and educational materials. The deadline for registration is Friday, February 29. Participants must be pre-registered.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.