FOREST STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM IN SOUTH CAROLINA
What is the SC Forest Stewardship Program? South Carolina’s Forest Stewardship Program provides forest management plans, free to private landowners. Each plan is customized to meet the landowners’ management objectives. A Stewardship Plan also includes detailed maps, descriptions of forest types, and recommended management actions, for the next ten years.
Do I qualify for a stewardship plan? If you are a private, non-industrial forest owner and your property is at least 10 acres, with a minimum of 5 forested acres, and you have more than one management objective, you are qualified for the Forest Stewardship Program. You can have your plan prepared by any Registered Forester.
What are the benefits of joining the SC Forest Stewardship Program? There are several advantages to having a forester prepare a Stewardship Plan for your land. As a landowner, you will have clear science-based management advice, based on existing conditions and your objectives. A current plan is one qualification needed for the American Tree Farm Program, wood certification organizations and other forest management programs offered by the USDA FSA and NRCS. A forest management plan may serve as evidence of agricultural use for tax purposes, and the SC Forest Stewardship Program also has a system for recognizing exemplary land managers as SC Forest Stewards. This recognition is accompanied by an outdoor display sign and a plaque with the name of the owner or property.
GOOD STEWARDSHIP CAN HAVE MANY DIFFERENT MEANINGS, DEPENDING ON THE OBJECTIVES YOU WISH TO REACH FOREST STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM IN SOUTH CAROLINA
What objectives are best suited to your management goals? To define the actions a landowner must take in managing forest, first the objectives need to be defined. In the Stewardship Plan, one objective is considered the primary objective, of the greatest importance; another is the secondary objective, of lesser, but still major importance. And finally, multiple tertiary objectives can be defined, according to the landowner’s desired results. Potential objectives include the following: • Timber for income • Soil & Water Conservation • Forest Health • Recreational Activities • Wildlife (Hunting) • Aesthetics • Wildlife (Recreational viewing) • Cultural & Historic Preservation • Biodiversity Conservation • Agroforestry & Silvopasture
How to get a stewardship plan for your land To have a stewardship plan written for your property, fill out an application, which can be found on our website at: http://www.state. sc.us/forest/stewapp.pdf Send it in to your Regional Stewardship Forester at the address provided. You can also contact us by phone or email, or visit an SCFC office in your area for more information.
About us South Carolina’s Forest Stewardship Program is a federal and state This publication made possible in part through a grant from the partnership with funding from both. The state program is intended to USDA Forest Service. provide free plans customized to the owner’s objectives. This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
Contact an SCFC Stewardship Forester
PIEDMONT REGION PEE DEE REGION COASTAL REGION Jaime Jones James Brunson Vaughan Spearman (803) 276-0205 • [email protected] (843) 662-5571 • [email protected] (843) 538-3708 • [email protected]