The National Association of State Foresters extends its congratulations to the new chief of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
WASHINGTON—The nation’s 59 state and territorial foresters look forward to continuing their important work in support of America’s forests with Terry Cosby, the newly named chief of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
“Terry has been an asset to the forestry community for many years. In 2007, as Ohio’s state conservationist, Cosby helped establish the Joint Forestry Team (JFT) among NRCS, NASF, the USDA Forest Service, and the National Association of Conservation Districts. Today, the JFT continues to improve the coordinated, interagency delivery of forestry assistance to working forests, farms, and ranches,” said Joe Fox, NASF president and Arkansas state forester.
“Terry, seeing a need for enhanced forest management in southeastern Ohio, also initiated a Joint Forestry Team in Ohio,” Fox continued. “By 2008, the Ohio NRCS, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Forestry, and the Wayne National Forest had their own Ohio Joint Forestry Team, which has since expanded to include every agency in Ohio with a forest management mission area, including the ODNR Division of Wildlife, Ohio State University Extension, and Central State University Extension.”
“Under Terry’s leadership, NRCS will be even better equipped to deliver the technical and financial assistance forestland owners need to appropriately manage their woodlands. We look forward to working with him in his new role to advance comprehensive, landscape-scale forest management nationwide.”
Cosby’s career with USDA spans over 40 years and multiple states, including Iowa, Missouri, and Idaho. He most recently served the department as acting NRCS chief. More information about his appointment was released by USDA.
Media Contact: Whitney Forman-Cook at wforman-cook@stateforesters.org