Forests are a critical part of life on Earth. They purify air, filter water, store carbon, provide food and shelter for a diverse array of plants and animals, and produce natural resources like timber, paper and medicine. Forests are also important places for recreation and cultural practices. But forests across the United States are under threat from pests, pathogens, deforestation, climate change, and other stressors. Land-grant university researchers and Extension educators are working to protect forests and the environmental, economic, and social benefits they provide.
Here are a few examples of that work:
- After the 2020 wildfires, many private forest owners in Oregon could not find seedlings or tree planters to reforest their property. Extension educators in Oregon have helped about 300 landowners, who need over 3.5 million trees, decide how to prepare their sites, select species and planting density, and plan for maintenance needs. They have also helped track down available seedlings and place orders.
- In Oregon, many landscapes benefit from occasional prescribed fires that reduce the amount of fuel that can feed devastating wildfires. To overcome resistance to and inadequate resources for prescribed burns, Extension educators in Oregon helped develop a training that gave forest owners and managers the knowledge and tools to implement prescribed burns and a support network to help carry them out. After the training, the number of planned prescribed burn acres had increased from only a few hundred acres to nearly 10,000 acres.
Source: National Impacts Database
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