Issues
NASF Letter: USDBC - green building and forest certification standards (Mar. 12, 2010)
Posted on Friday, March 12, 2010NASF members support both forest certification and green building. LEED can and should grow the practice of green building by more fully recognizing the environmental benefits of wood as a material, and by expanding options for wood sourced from certified forests.
Biomass Energy
Posted on Monday, February 8, 2010
NASF views forests as a strategic national resource of vital importance to meeting the nation's economic, environmental, and energy needs. The Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) and other federal energy initiatives must fully include a broad renewable biomass definition - such as the one included in the 2008 Farm Bill - if national renewable energy goals are to be met.
Sustainable Forestry
Posted on Friday, November 6, 2009
The proper management of our forests is a critical national priority. Sustainable forest management ensures that the three primary needs of our society - environmental, social and economic -- are balanced and working together, thus creating a forest resource that is sustainable. An all-lands vision for sustainable forests must recognize the value of all forests and trees - rural and urban, public and private - in all states and U.S. territories. A Stewardship Handbook for Family Forest Owners
Posted on Monday, October 5, 2009
Stewardship is the pursuit of a forest owner’s personal goals within a set of stewardship principles. Taken together, your goals with these principles, serve the overall and long-term health and vigor of your forest or woodlot.
This document is an update of the 2005 publication. A limited supply of hard copies is available -- contact NASF to request hard copies.
NASF Resolution No. 2009-6: Forest Inventory & Analysis (FIA) Program Funding and Priorities
Posted on Wednesday, September 23, 2009A current and accurate forest inventory is a threshold requirement if we are to conserve and restore all of America's forests. The inventory must address the rapidly emerging issues of climate change, carbon, biomass, and land use change. But portions of the nation's forests are not being inventoried, funding is inadequate to implement FIA as currently designed, and FIA needs to be enhanced to provide data relevant to current and emerging issues.
NASF Resolution No. 2009-1: Building Support for Sustainable Forests
Posted on Wednesday, September 23, 2009NASF is a founding member and participant in the Roundtable on Sustainable Forests (RSF), which is an open and inclusive process committed to the goal of sustainable forest management (SFM) on public and private lands in the United States. In response to the challenges and opportunities faced by our nation's forests, the RSF, with NASF staff participation, has drafted a Sustainable Forests Action Strategy.
State and Private Forestry Efforts Conserve, Protect and Enhance Forests Across the U.S.
Posted on Friday, March 27, 2009
A new publication jointly published by NASF and the Forest Service - the Redesign Report Card - provides a summary of the first wave of projects in a new multi-stage process that effectively and proactively invests federal, state, local and private resources in a way that makes a meaningful impact on the ground. Guided by the principle "Focus + Priority = Outcome," Redesign leveraged nearly $23 million in matching funding from state agencies and partner organizations in 2008 to augment $19.5 million in federal funding.
NASF Letter: Pelosi/Reid/Durbin/Hoyer -- NASF economic stimulus recommendations (December 23, 2008)
Posted on Tuesday, December 23, 2008NASF urges you to invest taxpayer dollars in providing future employment opportunities in forest-based communities as well as infusing capital into the management of our nation's public and private forests. State foresters have the primary responsibility of delivering numerous federal programs administered by the USDA Forest Service State and Private Forestry program (S&PF). Through existing initiatives, state forestry agencies can ensure rapid deployment of federal funds at the local level. Investment in any or all of the following land stewardship activities on non-federal lands (through S&PF) are "shovel-ready" and can provide green jobs over the next two to five years.
Draft 2010 National Report on Sustainable Forests
Posted on Monday, December 15, 2008The U.S. Forest Service has posted the draft of the 2010 National Report on Sustainable Forests. The document is a report on the state of the forests in the U.S. and the indicators of national progress toward the goal of sustainable forest management. While the report presents data primarily at a national or regional scale, it also provides a valuable context for related efforts to use the indicators to measure progress at such other geographic and/or political scales as ecoregions, states, watersheds, and communities. The Forest Service will receive comments from the public on this report for 120 days, until April 10, 2009.
Four Actions to Support Sustainable Forests: Presidential Transition White Paper (November 2008)
Posted on Monday, December 1, 2008
The National Association of State Foresters is committed to helping this administration provide the forestry leadership needed for our country. Our recommended actions reflect the most pressing challenges facing our nation's forests and should be incorporated into an integrated approach to ensure healthy and sustainable forests for us and for future generations.