State Land Stewardship

DEM Division of Agriculture and Forest Environment shares responsibility with the Division of Fish & Wildlife for over 40,000 acres of state-owned forest land, maintaining them as valued environmental, economic, and social/recreation resources. Healthy forests can look quite different depending on their age, the tree species composition, and how the tree species grow. Well-managed forests provide many benefits for water, people, and wildlife that depend on different types of forests at different stages of growth, from young to mature. Management practices include forest thinning to prevent crowding of trees that can make them more susceptible to diseases and pests, prescribed fire to reduce the growth of invasive plants and other competing vegetation, and trail maintenance and litter control to help keep forests healthy from outside pressures.