Pennsylvania Sustainable Forestry Initiative Implementation Committee

10/10/2025

Yesterday the Pennsylvania Implementation Committee partnered with Cameron, Elk, McKean, Potter, and Tioga County Conservation Districts and Generations Forestry Inc. to offer an Erosion Control in our Forests workshop in Wilcox, PA. We had a great group of participants, thoughtful discussions on how to protect our soil and water resources during timber harvesting, and wonderful weather for looking at practical examples of best management practices (BMPs) in the field. 🌎💧🌳

10/04/2025

October is here, and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative of Pennsylvania has the calendar full of training courses for this month and into November. From Game of Logging events to timber harvesting, wildlife, storm cleanup, wildfire prevention, and first aid workshops, there are many opportunities happening across the state over the next several weeks to register for! 🪵 Take a look at the full schedule here: https://sfiofpa.org/courses-list/

10/04/2025

Guided Walk In Penn’s Woods events are happening this weekend to help visitors learn about Pennsylvania’s forests.

Learn more or find a walk near you: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dcnr/newsroom/shapiro-administration-organizes-walk-in-penn-s-woods-events-in-

09/29/2025

Many people know timber harvests as a forest management tool, but a wide range of additional practices—such as invasive species control, forest thinning, tree planting, fencing, and site preparation—are also essential to keeping forests healthy and resilient. These services, known as forest contracting, represent a growing enterprise with significant need across Pennsylvania’s 16.6 million acres of forests in all 67 counties. With too few professionals available to meet the demand, thousands of acres go unmanaged while entrepreneurs and job seekers miss valuable opportunities to establish and expand forest contracting businesses.

09/12/2025

One of the first priorities for the Pennsylvania Implementation Committee when it was formed in 1995 was to find an organizational sponsor that could administratively house the fledgling Committee. The Pennsylvania Forest Products Association (then the Hardwood Lumber Manufacturers Association of Pennsylvania) answered that call. We recently had the pleasure of recounting some of that history and celebrating 30 years of good work in partnership with PFPA at their annual meeting on Tuesday in State College. While we are now an independent non-profit organization, our history and success remains inseparably linked to PFPA.

1995–2025 | 30 Years of SFI in Pennsylvania 🌳

09/10/2025

On the left is a photo of Pennsylvania logger John “Bob” Zwald, featured in an article published in the March 1985 National Geographic magazine. At that time, personal protective equipment was rarely used and felling techniques often kept loggers dangerously close to the tree as it fell. Bob’s running stance with a still-spinning saw and the look on his face say it all. That was the reality of the job back then.

Fast forward to 2025. On the right is Bob’s son, Paul Zwald. Paul is wearing proper protective gear and using the controlled bore cutting technique taught through Game of Logging, a core part of Pennsylvania’s SFI Professional Timber Harvester Training Program. As an SFI Qualified Logging Professional, Paul credits this training with helping him work safer and smarter in the woods.

For 30 years, the Pennsylvania SFI Implementation Committee has been working to improve logger safety, professionalism, and sustainability. We’re proud to celebrate this milestone and the difference training continues to make for timber harvesters across the state.

1995–2025 | 30 Years of SFI in Pennsylvania 🌳

08/20/2025

🌲🥾🍂 Walk in Penn’s Woods will be coming up before we know it! Are you interested in hosting a walk for 2025? Registration to host is now open: https://forms.gle/H4n4VPXbCvowTEes7

And click here to get more details on this event: https://paforestry.org/walk-in-penns-woods

08/19/2025

From diseases to pests, trees in our region are being attacked on multiple fronts — and the consequences could be deadly.

See what’s putting Pennsylvania and New Jersey forests at risk, and what’s being done to save them.

08/07/2025

ATTENTION LOGGER TRAINING PARTICIPANTS: Registration is now open.

07/24/2025

Click on the link below to learn about the "Green Illusion" and how an untrained eye can sometimes deceive us when we consider the health of our forests just by looking at them.

Lush green vegetation does not always mean a forest is healthy or bode well for the forest’s future.CHAPTERS:00:00 – What’s the Green Illusion?00:48 – Native...

06/24/2025

Pennsylvania Implementation Committee staff have been in Lancaster attending the Association of Consulting Foresters 2025 National Conference this week. SFI proudly sponsored and awarded the 2025 Chapter of the Year Awards last evening. We appreciate all that ACF does to support the professional foresters that help landowners across Pennsylvania, and beyond, sustainably manage their forests lands.

06/24/2025

Check out our Agricultural Air Pressure Calculator, designed to provide an indicative cold inflation working air pressure recommendation based on specific parameters entered.