Forest Stewardship & Stewardship Incentive
Program (SIP)
Lorie ~toller'
BACKGROUND
The purpose of the Forest Stewardship Program is to assist
private forest landowners to more actively manage their forest
and related resources; to keep these lands in a productive and
healthy condition for present and future owners; and to increase
the economic and environmental benefits of these lands.
In its initial phase, the goal of the Forest StewardshipProgram
is to: Place 25 million nonindustrial private forestland (NIPF)
acres under forest stewardship management within five years.
For purposes of this program, NIFP acreage includes lands
owned by any private individual, group, association, corporation,
Indian tribe, or other private legal entity, such as Alaska Native
Corporations. Further, it includes rural lands with existing tree
cover, or suitable for growing k s .
The Forest Stewardship Program focuses on providing
services to landowners not currently managing their forestland
according to a resource management plan that embodies
multi-resource stewardship principles. Private nonindustrial
forestlands that are managed under existing Federal, state, or
private sector financial and technical assistance programs may
be eligible for assistance under the program if the landowner
agrees to comply with the requirements of the program or if
forest resource management activities on such forestlands are
expanded or enhanced to meet the requirements of the Forest
Stewardship Program
Local Government.
Soil and water conservation districts.
Consulting foresters.
Environmental organizations.
Forest products industry.
Forest landowners.
Land-trust organizations.
Conservation organizations.
State fish and wildlife agency.
Any other appropriate interests.
The Committee is ongoing to address stewardship planning
and implementation concerns and overall program coordination.
NEW MEXICO FOREST STEWARDSHIP
PLAN
New Mexico is also required to have a Statewide Forest
Stewardship Plan which seives as the dynamic framework for
program implementation. The Plan is action oriented,
multi-disciplmary in scope, and concurred in by a majority ~f
the State Stewardship Coordinating Committee in wri-.
The
Plan identifies partnership between the interagencies and
organizations and covers the five year period between 1990 to
1995. The Plan also sets the priorities for achieving the goal
and objectives identified for the State for each Fiscal Year
through 1995.
STATE STEWARDSHIP COORDINATING
COMMITTEE
LANDOWNER REQUIREMENTS
To implement the program in New Mexico, the State Forester
has been required to establish a State Stewardship Coordinating
Committee. The committee is administered by the State Forester
and is comprised of individuals representing the following:
The Forest Service, Soil Conservation Service,
Agricultural Stabilization Service, and Extension
Service.
NM.
' Stewardship Coordinator, New Mexico State Forestry, Chama,
The landowner must own a minimum of 10 NlPF acres. There
is no maximum Eligible rural landowners must a p e to abide
by a written Forest Stewardship Plan that is developed, for a 10
year lifespan, by a resource professional for the land. The
landowner's plan must i d e w and describe the actions that will
be taken to protect, manage, and improve the forest resource
consistent with the landowner's objectives. The landowner must
sign a pledge of intent to abide by the multiresource
management.
LANDOWNER PLAN REQUIREMENTS
Landowner plans may only be developed by State Forestry,
the Soil Conservation Service, or by private forestry consultants.
The following resource values are to be addressed: Fish and
Wildlife Habitat Enhancement, Threatened and Endangered
Species, Soil and Water, Wetlands, Recreation and Aesthetics,
Forest Management and Timber Harvesting.
The above information pertains to the Forest Stewardship
Program. In order to encourage private landowners to follow the
above program, a cost share incentive program has been
developed. This program is called the Stewardship Incentive
Program (SIP).
STEWARDSHIP INCENTIVES PROGRAM
(SIP)
BACKGROUND
The purpose of the Stewardship Incentive Program is to
encourage private landowners to manage their forest lands for
economic, environmental, and social benefits; complement and
expand upon existing forestry and conservation assistance
programs; and to give priority to tree planting, tree maintenance,
and tree improvement.
A landowner shall own a minimum of 10 but not more than
1,000 NIPF acres in New Mexico. The landowner must agree
to manage lands under a Forest Stewardship Plan and to
. .
mamtam stewardship pmctices for 10 yem.
Landowners interested in cost share under SIP apply at the
local ASCS office. A paperwork s h d e occurs between
agencies, and in the end, the ASCS will arrange for
reimbursement payments to be made to the landowners. The
entire application procedure for SIP is very similar to the other
cost share pmgrams-especially ACP.
SIP--3: Forest and Agroforest Improvement
SIP--4: Windbreak & Hedgerow Establishment and
Maintenance
SIP--5: Soil & Water Protection & Improvement
SIP--6: Riparian & Wetland Protection &
Improvement
SIP--7: Fisheries Habitat Improvement
SIP--8: Wildlife Habitat Improvement
SIP--9: Forest Recreation Enhancement
New Mexico will cost share SIP 1 at 75%, while all other
practices will be cost shared at a 65% rate. The maximum
reimbursement is $10,000 per landowner per Federal Fiscal Year.
PROGRESS REPORT
Thus far, New Mexico's landowners have been very
enthusiastic abobt this cost share progmn In fad, out of the
$207,200 allocated to the state for Fiscal Year 1993, there are
approximately only $6,000 in funds remaining. A priority system
has been developed to determine which applications will receive
these remaining funds. The order of priorities will be SIP 1, 2,
3,6,8,4,7,5,andSIP9.
New Mexico has approved approximately the following
fundslpractice:
SIP 1--2,000 or 1% of total funds
SIP 2--7,000 or 4% of total funds
SIP 3--13,500 or 7% of total funds
SIP 4--157,000 or 83% of total funds
SIP 5--0 or 0% of total funds
SIP 6--0 or 0% of total funds
SIP 7--4,000 or 2% of total funds
SIP 8--7,000 or 4% of total funds
SIP 9-0 or 0% of total funds
WHAT'S AVAILABLE TO COST SHARE
Information on the state's SIP fbnding for Fiscal Year 1994
will not be received until December 1993 or January 1994.
However, future funding is based on accomplishments. We have
done well.
New Mexico is offering all nine stewardship practices, which
are
SIP-- 1 : Landowner Forest Stewardship Plan
Development
SIP--2: Reforestation and Afforestation
For further information regardug Forest S t e w d h i p and the
Stewardship Incentive Program (SIP) please contact Lone
Stoller, Stewardship Coordinator, New Mexico State Forestry,
Rt. 1, Box 100, Chama, NM, 87520, or call (505) 588-7831.
Thank you.