FOREST MANAGEMENT
GUIDELINES FOR MICHIGAN
By the Michigan Society of American Foresters
THE FOREST PLAN
Forests can provide aesthetics, fish, fuelwood, natural areas, recreation, timber, and wildlife in infinite combinations, but any action taken at one time may affect available choices for decades into the future. For this reason, forest plans integrate these factors to address the needs and desires of forest landowners on a continuing basis.
Forest planning is the process of comparing landowner objectives, obligations, and constraints with the capabilities and opportunities of a forest to determine a course of actions for the future. Planning is the first step in forest management which may include forest land acquisition, disposal, or conversion to other land uses.
The larger the forest property under consideration, the more general the overall forest plan may be. A very general forest plan may be supplemented by more specific management direction that implements the provisions of the general forest plan for particular parts, aspects, or time periods of the entire forest property.
As the conditions relating to a forest change, forest plans must adapt as well. A well thought out plan will anticipate the kinds of change that may occur and will be adaptable to changing circumstances. A general forest plan provides flexible guidance that can be used under changing forest conditions. More specific management direction can address particular practices just before they are to be carried out. Eventually, however, all forest plans need to be monitored, evaluated, and updated to make sure that conditions have not changed without being noticed.
All forest landowners have plans, even if they are not formally written or recognized. The amount of time and effort that should be spent in forest planning will depend upon the value and complexity of the forest and on landowner's objectives, obligations, and constraints. Informal plans have the advantage of being cheap to formulate and easy to change but they are easy to forget and difficult to pass on to others (especially in an emergency). They are also more likely to have internal inconsistencies. They may not address complex considerations and may be difficult to use. Formal, written forest plans take more effort to prepare and update but they avoid the weaknesses of informal plans.
The landowner should consider the advice and assistance of professional foresters and other resource professionals when developing a forest plan. The scope, intensity, timetable, cost, and funding of the forest plan should be agreed upon prior to plan preparation. The landowner should consider provisions for interim review of information and recommendations developed in the planning process. Finally, the landowner must decide whether the preparation of a forest plan represents a commitment to initiate and oversee the plan.
THE
BASIC ELEMENTS OF A SOUND FOREST PLAN INCLUDE:
|
This website is maintained by Bill Cook, Michigan State University Extension
Forest in the Upper Peninsula. Comments, questions,
and suggestions are gratefully accepted.
Last update of this page was 8 May, 2008
This site is hosted by School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science at Michigan Technological University.
