CAREERS IN FORESTRY 



17 



supply numerous services to the public, including facilities for outdoor recre- 

 ation, habitat for wildlife, watershed protection, a reservoir of work for 

 local unemployed, and income to the community from forest products. 

 Often the rehabilitation of a tract of cut-over or burned-over land can be 

 undertaken as a community enterprise. Local public forests as living me- 

 morials to war dead have been proposed in some communities. 



A number of schools maintain forests which not only serve as outdoor 

 classrooms for the teaching of elementary forestry, conservation, and natural 

 history, but provide an income to the schools from the growing and selling 

 of forest products. The United States Forest Service is encouraging and 

 cooperating in the establishment of community forests as part of a broad 

 program of public forest development. 



The proper management of community forest properties naturally requires 

 the services of trained foresters. At present, most of the community forest 

 enterprises that are being given technical forestry advice or direction obtain 

 such service from State foresters or Federal forestry agencies. There is a 

 growing tendency, however, toward the direct employment of trained for- 

 esters as community-forest managers. 



Opportunities in Private Forestry 



Though Federal and State agencies, educational institutions, and semi- 

 public associations will doubtless continue to lead in research and extension, 

 the great field for professional foresters in the long run will be in private 

 work. Three-fourths of all the commercial forest land in the 48 States, 



A logging-company forester, at left, discusses problems of handling logs with the two 

 owners of the company, facing him. A Forest Service officer takes part in the discussion, 



since timber sold from a national forest is being cut. 



