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Forest and Conservation Workers
Under supervision, perform manual labor necessary to develop, maintain, or protect areas such as forests, forested areas, woodlands, wetlands, and rangelands through such activities as raising and transporting seedlings; combating insects, pests, and diseases harmful to plant life; and building structures to control water, erosion, and leaching of soil. Includes forester aides, seedling pullers, tree planters, and gatherers of nontimber forestry products such as pine straw.
Also Known As:
Christmas Tree Farmer
Conservation Officer
Field Laborer
Forest Ranger
Forest Resource Specialist
Forestry Support Specialist
Park Maintainer
Reforestation Worker
Tree Farmer
Tree Planter
Wages
Annual wages for Forest and Conservation Workers in United States
Job Outlook
Below Average
New job opportunities are less likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
10,500
-4% Change From 2023
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Spray or inject vegetation with insecticides to kill insects or to protect against disease or with herbicides to reduce competing vegetation.
- Perform fire protection or suppression duties, such as constructing fire breaks or disposing of brush.
- Thin or space trees, using power thinning saws.
- Maintain campsites or recreational areas, replenishing firewood or other supplies and cleaning kitchens or restrooms.
- Maintain tallies of trees examined and counted during tree marking or measuring efforts.
- Confer with other workers to discuss issues, such as safety, cutting heights, or work needs.
- Identify diseased or undesirable trees and remove them, using power saws or hand saws.
- Select or cut trees according to markings or sizes, types, or grades.
- Sort tree seedlings, discarding substandard seedlings, according to standard charts or verbal instructions.
- Erect signs or fences, using posthole diggers, shovels, or other hand tools.
- Fight forest fires or perform prescribed burning tasks under the direction of fire suppression officers or forestry technicians.
- Thin or space trees, using power thinning saws.
- Prune or shear tree tops or limbs to control growth, increase density, or improve shape.
- Operate skidders, bulldozers, or other prime movers to pull a variety of scarification or site preparation equipment over areas to be regenerated.
- Provide assistance to forest survey crews by clearing site-lines, holding measuring tools, or setting stakes.
- Identify diseased or undesirable trees and remove them, using power saws or hand saws.
- Select tree seedlings, prepare the ground, or plant the trees in reforestation areas, using manual planting tools.
- Check equipment to ensure that it is operating properly.
- Prune or shear tree tops or limbs to control growth, increase density, or improve shape.
- Explain or enforce regulations regarding camping, vehicle use, fires, use of buildings, or sanitation.
- Select or cut trees according to markings or sizes, types, or grades.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")