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Forest and Conservation Workers

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

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.

Related: Farmworkers & Laborers, Crop, Nursery, & Greenhouse Forest & Conservation Technicians Foresters Range Managers Tree Trimmers & Pruners

Industries: Government Farming, Forestry, Fishing, & Hunting

Summary
Details

Spray or inject vegetation with insecticides to kill insects or to protect against disease or with herbicides to reduce competing vegetation.
Operate skidders, bulldozers, or other prime movers to pull a variety of scarification or site preparation equipment over areas to be regenerated.
Check equipment to ensure that it is operating properly.
Confer with other workers to discuss issues, such as safety, cutting heights, or work needs.
Sort tree seedlings, discarding substandard seedlings, according to standard charts or verbal instructions.
Fight forest fires or perform prescribed burning tasks under the direction of fire suppression officers or forestry technicians.
Erect signs or fences, using posthole diggers, shovels, or other hand tools.
Select tree seedlings, prepare the ground, or plant the trees in reforestation areas, using manual planting tools.
Prune or shear tree tops or limbs to control growth, increase density, or improve shape.
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.
Select or cut trees according to markings or sizes, types, or grades.
Identify diseased or undesirable trees and remove them, using power saws or hand saws.
Prune or shear tree tops or limbs to control growth, increase density, or improve shape.
Provide assistance to forest survey crews by clearing site-lines, holding measuring tools, or setting stakes.
Explain or enforce regulations regarding camping, vehicle use, fires, use of buildings, or sanitation.
Maintain campsites or recreational areas, replenishing firewood or other supplies and cleaning kitchens or restrooms.
Perform fire protection or suppression duties, such as constructing fire breaks or disposing of brush.
Thin or space trees, using power thinning saws.
Thin or space trees, using power thinning saws.
Maintain tallies of trees examined and counted during tree marking or measuring efforts.

Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.

Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
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.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
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.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
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.
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.
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.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
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.
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.
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.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
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.
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.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
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.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

43480/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

20.9/hr

Currently Employed

890

Yearly Projected Openings

160

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

Cooperation
Dependability
Adaptability/Flexibility
Integrity
Stress Tolerance
Initiative

Acoustic ear muffs or defenders
Agricultural tractors
All terrain vehicles tracked or wheeled
Backhoes
Claw hammer
Dibblers
Distance meters
Dump trucks
Earthmoving shovels
Forestry saws
Geological compasses
Global positioning system GPS receiver
Hand sprayers
Hard hats
Harvesters
Ladders
Lawnmowers
Mowers
Personal computers
Picks
Planters
Portable data input terminals
Power drills
Power saws
Recreational motorboats
Rescue truck
Saws
Screwdrivers
Secateurs or pruning shears
Spades
Sprayers
Tape measures
Two way radios
Water pumps
Weeders

Data base user interface and query software
Electronic mail software
Geographic information system
Map creation software
Office suite software
Operating system software
Presentation software
Project management software
Spreadsheet software
Word processing software

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