Reforestation Field Technician

What You’ll Do
The scale of reforestation loss in the U.S. is currently outpacing natural recovery. With millions of acres impacted by high severity wildfire, disease, and severe weather events, American Forests and the USDA Forest Service have partnered to accelerate reforestation efforts on National Forest System lands. As a field technician, you will be part of a four-person crew dedicated to high priority reforestation projects. 
You will be responsible for the technical, physical work that ensures new forests will grow, from site assessment and monitoring to coordinating complex field logistics. Working under the guidance of an American Forests field manager, with support from regional USFS staff, you will gain direct experience in large scale forest restoration and collaborative partnerships. Successful applicants must be located within 
reasonable distance of priority projects and partnerships and positions will typically travel 60% of throughout the field season. 
Specific responsibilities will include but are not limited to:

Field Forestry Tasks (85%) Field Technicians will participate in the reforestation field crew’s work under the guidance of the field manager and in collaboration with USDA Forest Service staff to implement reforestation projects by 
planning and performing tasks such as, but not limited to:

• Layout of units for planting, site preparation, or fuels management.
• Inspection of planting, site preparation, or fuels management contracts and maintenance of 
  documentation of reforestation activities in appropriate formats and databases.
• Complete on-the-ground reforestation surveys (stocking and survival).
• Use of a tablet to record and interpret spatial data in ESRI Field Maps, Survey 123 and other applications.
• Cone collection: preparation, cone surveys, tree climbing, and/or inspection of cone collection contracts.
• Post-collection maintenance of cone bushels and transport of cones from USFS facilities to seed 
  extractories.
• Perform all tasks in accordance with safety policies including use of company equipment responsibly and respectfully.
• Coordination with research scientists whose studies are being implemented as part of the post-recovery project area.
• Coordinate and/or participate in project-level multi-party surveys and/or monitoring. 

Administration, Work Planning (15%) 

• Attend field safety trainings offered through American Forests and participating National Forest units. 
• Coordinating field crew work schedules and travel logistics. 
• Support Field Managers in tracking and recording reforestation accomplishment data into American Forests and USDA Forest Service databases.

Field Technicians are seasonal positions that will work a variable field-based schedule during the 6–7-month field season, generally from mid April to November. Applicants not available for the full season are welcome and encouraged to apply. The position will focus on work on National Forest lands in Colorado and will require regular travel to various field locations as part of the field crew’s activities. As a field-based position, Field Coordinators will be traveling regularly as part of a seasonal forestry field crew and may have 
office work responsibilities before and after the field season. In the field, the Field Technicians will be expected to stand, walk, or sit for long periods of time and requires lifting materials weighing up to 50 lbs. Field work includes exposure to various risks, including, but not limited to: varying terrain, dense vegetation
(poison oak/ivy, blackberry, etc.), and wildlife risks (bears, mountain lions, snakes, ticks, mosquitos, etc.), hot, wet, and cold conditions. Field Technicians may also be required to work long days and/or drive long distances. Reasonable accommodation may be made to provide access to all individuals along the continuum of human ability and experience.