Tour emphasizes the importance of preserving Pennsylvania's forests

Pennsylvania.

Named for Sir William Penn - father of the state's founder - the name literally means "Penn's Woods" or "Penn's Forest.

But although the name is still appropriate today, the woods and the trees that make up "Penn's Forest" are not the same when the state was founded in the 1600s. At one time, trees covered 95 percent of the land in the Chesapeake Bay region, and Pennsylvania boasted prime woodlands made up of cherry, oak, pine and other high grade trees. However, over-logging in the late 1800s and early 1900s decimated the local forests to the point where only certain types of trees - primarily beech, birch, and ash - are the dominant trees today throughout Pennsylvania. This has had an adverse affect on the state's wildlife as well as other parts of it's eco-system.

Because of this, many government groups as well as some private enterprises have initiated programs to educate people and encourage the preservation and restoration of forest lands throughout Pennsylvania.

On Aug. 12, the Bradford-Sullivan Forest Landowners' Association, with the cooperation of the Lycoming and Tioga Woodland Owner Associations, in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Bureau of Forestry and the Penn State Cooperative Extension, conducted the Endless Mountains Forestry Best Management Practices Tour for Legislators of various forestry sites in Sullivan County.

Legislators from the local, county, state and federal level showed up at the Loyalsock State Forest, Resource Management Center in Dushore, along with private landowners, as well as other people concerned about the conditions of forests throughout Pennsylvania. Following a welcome and introductions at the management center, the group boarded a bus, and where transported to the first stop of the tour.

En route, the group heard a presentation from Mike Lovegreen, district manager of the Bradford County Conservation District, about how the logging industry is working with conservationists to help promote better forestry practices throughout the state.

Lovegreen explained that when trees were harvested around the turn of the 20th century, it had an adverse impact on local rivers and streams due to erosion and other factors. This impact, he said, is still being felt today, and as a result there are state regulations in place that require loggers to follow certain procedures to minimize the erosion to streams when trees are cut down.

Although the logging industry today is more responsible in its harvesting and forest preservation practices, Lovegreen said, it still suffers from a stigma associated with the logging industry of over a century ago. To counter this, Lovegreen continued, the Bradford County Conservation District, the Wyoming County Conservation District, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and the Penn State Cooperative Extension got together with several local forestry industries to help improve the public's perception of what those industries do. Also, Lovegreen said, the groups worked to assist the logging industries in developing techniques to make good environmental decisions.

Forest Stewardship Program

The first stop of the tour was at the property owned by Jeff and Sue Hamilton of Laporte, who participate in the Forest Stewardship Program.

Sue Hamilton explained that when she and her husband purchased their property, they had 120 acres - much of it woodlands.

"I was looking at the woods and I thought to myself 'It just doesn't look quite right in there,'" Sue Hamilton explained about what started her participation in the Forest Stewardship Program.

Contacting the DCNR and other conservation groups, the Hamiltons learned that the forest was out of balance as far as the types of trees and other plants growing in the area. The forest is primarily made up of beech and birch trees, and Sue Hamilton thought that other trees should also be thriving in the area as well.

In 2002, Sue Hamilton continued, conservationists put together a Forest Stewardship Plan for their property, which she attempted to implement. But there were problems involving money and effort.

"When you start implementing these programs it is first of all very expensive," Sue Hamilton explained. "And it was basically me trying to take care of 120 acres and it's a lot of work."

Some money - via grants and other sources - was available through the years, and it allowed the Hamiltons to build a deer fence around the trees they were cultivating, as well as implement other parts of the program.

"Just recently, this past year, I had some EQIP (Environmental Quality Incentive Program) money. When you're trying to clear this land by yourself it takes a long time. But thanks to the funding I was able to hire people to help me do it and it went much more quickly.

"The goals of our Forest Stewardship Plan is to just regenerate a healthy forest for wildlife and for the environment as a whole," Sue Hamilton continued. "Since 2002, I've planted nearly 2,000 trees. And people think, why do you want to plant trees, you've got an awful lot of them. Well, beech and birch trees are nice but I don't want a whole forest of them."

Sue Hamilton explained that she's planted pitch pine, white pine and red spruce to create a more diverse selection of trees in the area. About 34 acres have been cleared of ferns and other undesirable plants, she said, and witchhazel, serviceberry and elderberry plants have been incorporated along the edges for wildlife.

Consulting Forester Dan Swift explained that he assists private land owners with forestry management plans, helping in such areas as timber sales, contract managing and conservation.

"These people are really a wide broad spectrum of forest values," Swift explained.

With some landowners, Swift said, it's obvious all they want to do is get as much money from harvesting the timber on their property as they can. In the middle, he said, is a broad group of people who are more sensitive to the ecological aspects of forestry, but are still reluctant to make a full commitment to preserving their woodlands. Then there are the people like the Hamiltons who are Forest Stewards who are really committed to restoring the forests in their possession.

Swift explained that there are approximately 12 million acres of forest in Pennsylvania under private ownership, far more than the state has in it's possession. As such, he said, it's imperative that such people be informed about the importance of preserving and maintaining their forest properties.

World's End State Park

The group next went to World's End State Park for lunch, along with more presentations. On the way, Park Manager William Kocher provided some facts about the 780-acre facility, explaining that there are 70 housing units, along with 19 rustic cabins. World's End is visited by about 200,000 people per year, he said, and the facility enjoys a pristine reputation.

Kocher said that many of the trees at World's End are being threatened - both by insect pests and disease. The DCNR, he said, is working with the park in the hopes of protecting and preserving its woods from destruction.

At World's End, Environmental Education Specialist Jane Swift explained that the park is a "living classroom" for those who use the facilities. The park provides educational opportunities for people to learn about the importance of maintaining the ecosystem, and what they can do to help preserve it.

Land Protection Specialist Charles Schwarz reported on the two biggest challenges facing Pennsylvania's forests: fragmentation and parcelization.

"Forest fragmentation occurs when large, continuous forests are divided into smaller blocks by roads, right-of-way, clearing for agriculture, urbanization, or other human activities." Schwarz explained. "Parcelization occurs when relatively large tracts are subdivided and different people then own the smaller parcels. Since the smaller parcels frequently become the sites of homes or cabins, parcelization typically increases forest fragmentation."

Schwarz explained that natural gas exploration - and to a lesser extent the development of wind farms - are among the most significant causes of forest fragmentation.

"Pipelines, well pads, roads, power lines and related facilities to develop the energy resources all require clearing of forest land," he explained. "The thousands of three-and-a-half to five-acre well pads and hundreds of miles of pipeline right-of-way coming to northcentral Pennsylvania have the potential to drastically accelerate the fragmentation of the forests. Each mile of a 60-foot wide right-of-way in woodland will clear over seven acres."

Schwarz urged that conservation guidelines be developed in Pennsylvania to encourage the preservation of the large sections of land that make of the forests, and to reduce the negative impacts of parcelization and fragmentation.

Rusty Wheel Timber Sale

The group next traveled to the Rusty Wheel Timber Sale, 74 acres of state land maintained by the DCNR as a "living laboratory" for growing hardwood trees such as cherry. The group was provided information on timber sale silviculture treatments, herbicide treatments, forest regeneration and fencing.

Back on the bus, the group heard a presentation from Vincent J. Cotrone, of Penn State Cooperative Extension, who spoke about restoring tree canopy cover for communities. He explained that the Pennsylvania Urban and Community Forestry program has worked with over 1,000 communities in Pennsylvania since 1991, helping them to plant over 100,000 trees. These trees, he said, help to promote and attractive and healthy communities by providing a canopy cover in the communities.

Arriving in Laporte, the bus traveled through the borough while residents Henry and Ann Street explained about their local Shade Tree Commission and how it was able to get trees planted at various points throughout the community. Henry Street explained that it was a challenge, because the community already had trees, but they were sugar maples planted about 150 years ago. Many of these trees were dying, Henry Street explained, and represented a hazard. The Shade Tree Commission was eventually able to convince the Laporte Borough Council and other members of the community of replacing the older trees with healthier specimens, as well as new trees in other areas.

The bus returned to Resource Management Center, and concluded with a question and answer session from the participants. Assistant State Forester Mike Lester made the closing remarks.

C.J. Marshall can be reached at (570) 265-1630; e-mail: cjmarshall@thedailyreview.com.