Management Plan Template
Thank you for your interest in the Managing Your Woods: A Template for Your Plans for the Future that was developed by ATFS, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the U.S. Forest Service, with input from state foresters and other partners.
The goal of this joint management plan template is to allow landowners to use one management plan to participate in the American Tree Farm System, the Forest Stewardship Program, and the NRCS incentive programs.
This national template has been developed in accordance with all the national program requirements for the three programs listed above. The template is not a program requirement for any of the three programs; rather it is a tool for landowners and foresters.
The template was developed using information from four states: Missouri, Mississippi, Montana and Oregon, who had previously developed templates that would allow landowners to participate in their state Tree Farm, Forest Stewardship and NRCS incentive programs. After developing the first draft of this template, the template was sent to ATFS, state forester and NRCS networks for feedback and comments.
This template and its associated landowner and forester guides is the result of their feedback.state Tree Farm programs, state foresters and NRCS can join together to review the template to see if it would be a useful tool for landowners in their state. If so, then the template can be adapted for your state’s use. As long as all the components of the national template are present and addressed in the state modified template, then there is no need for national level approval.
States are also encouraged to add their own state-specific requirements, programs and resources available for landowners and foresters.
To implement the template and allow easy access for landowners, the state Tree Farm program, state forester and state conservationist will have to develop a process for landowners to apply for the programs. Some ideas that other states have developed include:
- A panel that reviews/approves plans for all three programs in that state. The panel is made up of representatives from each program.
- One person
identified by the state who can approve plans for all three programs. The program signature page will need to be updated to
include a description of the process for landowners and the appropriate signatures
necessary for a landowner to participate.
