Chris Carney named new area forester

A native of Shelbyville, Carney is a 2004 graduate of the University of Tennessee School of Forestry and has been working as a forester for a consulting firm in Virginia since that time.

?We?re very pleased to have Chris as a part of our forestry staff,? said district forester Rick Merinar. ?We feel the experience he brings to the position will be a definite asset to our organization and to the citizens we serve.?

Recognizing that sound multiple-use management of forest lands requires good long-term planning, the Division of Forestry offers technical assistance to private, non-industrial landowners. This assistance includes tree planting, timber stand improvement, timber sale preparation, prescribed burning, wildlife habitat improvement and assistance with cost-share programs, to name just a few.

The division promotes and endorses the use of best management practices before, during and after timber harvests and routinely works with loggers and landowners to ensure soil and water values are not compromised during the harvesting process.

The Division of Forestry is also charged with the responsibility of providing wildland fire control, prevention and enforcement of fire laws under its jurisdiction, as well as forest insect and disease monitoring and control.

Carney can be contacted for any type of forest management assistance. He can be reached at his office at the Viola fire tower near Morrison at (931) 635-2757.