News & Announcements

Forest Management Unit Recognized for Wildlife Management Excellence

The Forest Management Unit of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division recently was recognized by the Southeastern Section of The Wildlife Society with the Wildlife Management Excellence Award. This award honors an agency, or unit of an agency, whose management activities promote conservation, management, and provide economic benefits. “Our unit has been able to make remarkable advances in the past five years and are excited about the direction in which we are moving,” said Matt Payne, program manager of the Forest Management Unit.   “We look forward to continuing to advance silvicultural activities that promote a healthy forest
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First-ever Report on USDA Efforts to Expand Agroforestry Practices

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today released the first-ever report on USDA’s role advancing agroforestry. Agroforestry: USDA Reports to America details how agroforestry practices are helping farmers, ranchers and woodland owners enhance agricultural productivity, protect the environment and increase profits. “USDA has invested less than one percent of its budget into tree-based practices. Yet that small investment allows us to help create private goods and public services that reap great rewards, including reduced greenhouse gas emissions and more resilient agricultural lands,” Vilsack said. “However, much work remains to promote and sustain agroforestry practices, which have great potential to promote economic growth and job
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Quail Restoration Efforts Highlight Peabody Wildlife Management Area Rally

Kentucky is a national leader in the bobwhite quail restoration field. Now people can see those efforts first hand during a rally being held at Peabody Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in western Kentucky Oct. 26. This free event includes field tours of habitat restoration areas at Peabody WMA and presentations by experts in quail restoration. Visitors can learn more about the National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative and hear a State of the Bobwhite report from a biologist with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. Decades of research has shown that simply releasing quail onto farm fields doesn’t work. Progressive
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The Case of the Golden-winged Warbler

In summer, the Golden-winged Warbler flits among the thorny blackberry bushes and spiky yellow goldenrod up here, on top of the highest points in the Appalachians. These rounded, stone-strewn humps are the “Highlands of Roan” and as their name suggests, they very much resemble the misty highlands of Scotland—mostly bald compared to the surrounding hillsides of mature forest and carpeted with long grass the color of ponies. Very few people care about the Golden-Winged warbler, and even fewer make it up this high in the Appalachians—above 5,000 feet. Here on the border between North Carolina and Tennessee, the Appalachian Trail
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Accepting Applications for Urban Forestry Projects

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is now accepting applications for urban forestry project grants that can be used to enhance landscapes and provide green spaces in urban areas across the state, Commissioner Joe Martens announced today. “Trees and green space are an important part of a community, even in densely-populated urban areas where such resources are limited,” Commissioner Martens said. “Governor Cuomo and members of the State Legislature understand the benefits of community and urban forests in protecting our air and water and improving the quality of life, and these grants are a valuable tool to
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New Landowner Incentives for Forest Management in Effect

Effective today, landowners in Maryland have new incentives to plant trees and better manage their forests.  Maryland’s Forest Preservation Act of 2013, which requires that the State stay at or above its current tree canopy of 40 percent, assists citizens and local governments who work to increase tree cover on their property with more tools and tax benefits. This first-of-its-kind legislation is part of a statewide effort to reduce greenhouse gas pollution, prevent further climate change and improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay. “Climate disruption is real,” said Governor Martin O’Malley. “If we want to stabilize climate, safeguard human
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