Virginia

KEEP FOREST AS FOREST; PROMOTE A LARGER, CONNECTED FOREST LANDSCAPE; AND ENSURE THE SUSTAINABLE USE OF FOREST RESOURCES

Since 2007, VDOF has worked to address the growing threat of conversion and fragmentation of Virginia’s forestland through its conservation program. The VDOF program focuses on three areas:

• Accepting and/or purchasing open-space easements and acquisitions, including those supported by the USFS Forest Legacy Program.
• Supporting outreach efforts for intergenerational forestland transfer, including the Generation NEXT program.
• Managing the Virginia Century Forest Program, which recognizes families whose managed forestlands have been in the same family for over 100 years.

Sustainability of Virginia’s forest resource is a continuing priority. The Virginia Hardwood Initiative was rolled out in 2020 to promote working hardwood forests and to support associated service providers and markets. Pine sustainability improvement, focused in south-central and southeast Virginia, has been successfully implemented though dedicated staff, emphasis of good silviculture, deployment of the best genetics, and strong funding support from the Virginia Reforestation of Timberlands program.

PROTECT FORESTLAND and WOODLAND HOME COMMUNITIES FROM FIRE; PROTECT FORESTS FROM FOREST HEALTH THREATS and INVASIVE SPECIES; AND CONSERVE and RESTORE DIMINISHED SPECIES

The protection of lives, property, and resources from wildfire continues to be a foundational issue for Virginia. Ninety-six percent of wildfires in Virginia are caused by humans. To improve VDOF response to wildfires, the agency developed FiResponse – an entirely online platform to manage VDOF wildfire response that tracks resources and provides real-time fire situation reporting.

Native and invasive forest health threats are present across the Commonwealth, affecting every type of forest, from urban to rural lands. The VDOF forest health program focuses on native and established invasive pests like southern pine beetle, emerald ash borer, hemlock woolly adelgid, and gypsy moth; established non-native invasive plants like tree-of-heaven; and new invasive threats like spotted lanternfly.

A diverse group of landowners continue to collaborate on the conservation and restoration of diminished tree species and connected habitats. The primary focus on these efforts is restoration of American chestnut, shortleaf pine, and longleaf pine.

ENHANCE WATER QUALITY and QUANTITY; SUPPORT THE FOREST ECONOMY and DIVERSIFIED MARKETS; AND EXPAND and IMPROVE URBAN and COMMUNITY FORESTS

Virginia’s forests are critical in efforts to improve and maintain water quality. VDOF’s timber harvest inspection program, Best Management Practices for Water Quality, and Silvicultural Water Quality Law are used to protect waterways from sedimentation during harvest operations.

Virginia further protects water quality through conserving forested watersheds, planting trees, and increasing urban forest canopies. These watershed protection efforts go hand in hand with VDOF urban and community forestry and coastal resilience efforts to protect trees and community forests as urban expansion continues to occur.

Virginia’s forestry industry spans all product areas with more than 170 forest product mills, generating more than $21 billion annually. However, markets and contractors are not uniformly available across the state, leading to poor management and degradation of the resource. VDOF and partners are

working to increase access to certified wood markets, provide markets for low valued trees, utilize urban wood, and develop ecosystem services markets.