Sept. 8, 2009
The Department of Natural Resources will host an open house Wednesday, Sept. 16, to provide information and receive public comment on proposed forest management treatments for 2011 in the Escanaba Management Unit. The open house will be held from 5-7 p.m. (Central Standard Time) at the Menominee County Annex Building, S718 US Hwy. 41 in Stephenson.
Each year, DNR personnel inventory and evaluate one-tenth of the state forest. Information gathered includes the health, quality and quantity of all vegetation; wildlife and fisheries habitat and needs; archeological sites; minerals; recreational use; wildfire potential and social factors, including proximity to roads and neighborhoods; and use on adjacent lands, public and private. Proposed treatments, which may include timber harvesting, replanting and other management activities, then are designed to ensure the sustainability of the resources and ecosystems.
"This open house is an opportunity for the public to review proposed treatments on the forest and to provide their input toward the final decisions," said DNR Escanaba Unit Manager Eric Thompson. "This is also a chance for members of the public to talk with DNR foresters and biologists about issues they have an interest in."
Maps and information regarding the proposed treatments will be available at the open house, and can be accessed at www.michigan.gov/dnr, under Forests, Land & Water.
Each management unit is divided into smaller units, known as compartments, to facilitate better administration of the resources. The Escanaba Management Unit open house and compartment review will focus on compartments in Delta and Menominee counties. Townships with compartments in Delta County include Bark River, Ford River, Maple Ridge and Baldwin. The townships with compartments in Menominee County include Holmes, Daggett, Nadeau, Lake, Cedarville, Ingallston and Faithorn.
The formal compartment review to decide on prescriptions for these areas is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time) on Wednesday, Oct. 7, at the DNR's Pocket Park, located at the U.P. State Fair Grounds in Escanaba.
Persons with disabilities needing accommodations for the Escanaba open house or compartment review should contact Eric Thompson at (906) 786-2354, ext. 142, a minimum of five business days before the meeting. Requests made less than five business days before this event may not be accommodated.
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