conditions. Additional group meetings should be 

 held for lectures and discussions and, more effective 

 yet, demonstrations of good forestry. Short training 

 courses in timber cruising, in the selection of trees for 

 cutting, and in logging and marketing should be 

 available to those who wish them. Expansion of such 

 activities would require the services of additional 

 extension foresters. 



Although the district foresters of the Pennsylvania 

 Department of Forests and Waters are engaged pri- 

 marily in protecting the forests from fire and in 

 managing State forests, they are available for advice 

 on forest management. The addition of a forest- 

 management assistant to the staff of each district 

 forester would broaden the teaching of good forestry 

 practice. Farm foresters could work under the super- 

 vision of the district foresters. 



At least one farm forester is needed for each of the 

 principal farm-woodland counties: Luzerne, Lacka- 

 wanna, Wyoming, Susquehanna, Wayne, Monroe, 

 Schuylkill, and Carbon. Even within the limits of 

 the three counties where the only full-time farm 

 forester worked, it was impossible to respond to more 

 than a small percentage of the calls; and as the farm- 

 forestry program becomes more widely known, these 

 calls are becoming more frequent. 



Private Agencies 



The services of the industrial forester of the Wyoming 

 Valley Chamber of Commerce and of a few other 

 consulting foresters are available. The Lehigh Valley 

 Flood Control Council and that at Honesdale are 

 taking active steps in the interest of watershed im- 

 provement. But there is more work to be done than 

 these agencies and individuals have the time to do. 



In some other parts of the country industrial 

 forestry organizations and associations of private land- 

 owners have been established to encourage forest 

 conservation and improvement. Similar organiza- 

 tions in the Anthracite Region could accomplish 

 much. These might include: 



An association of commercial timberland owners 



An association of mine-timber and lumber operators 



An association of small woodland owners 



A forestry department in the Pennsylvania Water Works 



Association 



A joint forestry committee set up and supported l>\ the 

 railroads that serve the region 



A forestry department in the Anthracite Institute 

 A joint research committee established by the manufacturers 

 of wood products, especially furniture manufacturers, to in- 

 vestigate the suitability of local raw material 



A flood-control council for the Susquehanna River watershed. 



Cooperation for Effective Action 



If individuals and organizations continue to work 

 independently and without full knowlege of one 

 another's plans and accomplishments, they will be 

 unable to attain full realization of the region's poten- 

 tialities. Furthermore, they will not be able to get 

 results as fast as they could by working together. Full 

 forest developments and utilization can come only 

 through coordinated efforts. Many elements are 

 involved: commercial timber operation, farm forestry, 

 soil conservation, flood control, coal mining, recrea- 

 tion, public works, forest-products manufacture. 

 No one of these can be developed without affecting 

 the others. A fully beneficial development of an) 

 one of them can therefore be carried out only as part 

 of a general plan. 



To carry out such a broad long-range program. .1 

 permanent organization is needed whose function 

 would be to shape a unified plan of action and to give 

 general supervision to its execution. The purpose of 

 such an organization would be to integrate the activi- 

 ties of local agencies. It could map out in detail 

 long-range plans for the entire region and serve .1- .1 

 clearing house for all local programs. It could make a 

 particular point of collecting and having available 

 technical information not onb in forestry, but in all 

 related subjects, from soil anabsis to Hood-control 

 engineering. It could serve as an employment 

 agency, keeping files of available workers, their -kills, 

 experience, and location. It could have as members 

 of its staff specialists whose sen ices would l>e a\ ailable 

 to local organizations. In particular, it could under- 

 take an intensive program of education to make clear 

 to the people of the region what benefits the) and their 

 children would derive from full) productive fores - 



Plans for .1 complex long-range program for full de- 

 velopment of the region's forests cannot be made over- 

 night. The forests offer the citizens oi the region an 

 opportunity to benefil themselves, their hens, and the 

 Nation, lint the situation calls for concerted and 

 accelerated action at once. 



The Anthracite Forest Region A Problem Area 



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