Forester - Neighbor Authority Forester's

Forester 2 – Good Neighbor Authority Forester's

Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation mission: to ensure Montana's land and water resources provide benefits for present and future generations.

• We value and respect each other.
• We create collaborative work environments.
• We build and maintain strong relationships.

We celebrate our successes and take pride in our work.

The majority of work will be on federal lands throughout western Montana. This position involves planning, designing, and implementing field work in support of the Good Neighbor Authority Program administered by the Good Neighbor Bureau headquartered in Missoula.

The position performs advanced professional forest management activities in close coordination with the US Forest Service under the general supervision of the Good Neighbor Authority Supervisory Forester. The incumbent plans, coordinates, and implements various projects to improve forest health, reduce hazardous fuels, and harvest commercial timber from federal lands and across ownership boundaries.

These job functions are essential duties of the position and are not all‑inclusive of all duties that may be assigned.

• Understand Good Neighbor Authority tools and authorizations, NEPA and Farm Bill categorical exclusions, DNRC timber sale and contracting policies, and state involvement in federal land management.
• Collaborate with federal partners, local governments, and stakeholders to plan, manage, and implement federal forest management projects across multiple ownerships.
• Conduct surveys and collect inventory data to determine natural resources present, their condition, and management needs; determine timber distribution and volume estimates; identify hazardous fuels reduction needs; recognize forest insect and disease damage; assess topography, stream side management zones, riparian areas, and other influencing factors.
• Coordinate the design or implementation of silvicultural prescriptions, timber marking guidelines, sale design and logging system specifications, road specifications, sale layout, and timber cruising activities.
• Share information with federal partners to ensure efficient scheduling and achievement of forest management goals.
• Develop initial forest management proposals and work collaboratively with federal agency partners and stakeholders to refine proposals.
• Evaluate project access needs, including road ownership, road systems, construction costs, log hauling feasibility, right‑of‑way issues, and environmental concerns; obtain required permits; assess other access issues relevant to the project area.

• Develop and administer forest management projects and contracts such as timber sales, fuels reduction, stand improvement, and road maintenance, ensuring compliance with state and federal requirements, NEPA, and Forest Plan Standards.
• Prepare all sale‑package documents for Land Office and Good Neighbor Bureau review and distribution, including NEPA Design Features Crosswalk, Timber Sale Contract, Prospectus, Notice of Sale, Summary of Actions, and other timber value summaries, cruise documentation, forest improvement appraisal, road and logging cost specifications.
• Coordinate with Forest Service personnel to ensure projects meet requirements; complete contract inspections and detail project progress, conditions, and compliance in inspection reports; compare observations with expected outcomes.
• Perform timber sale clerical duties such as truck ticket entry and tracking, timber sale billing; create and maintain a complete file of project documentation.
• Participate in public meetings, monitor input from industry, affected groups, and the public; obtain data and recommend strategies or actions.
• Determine and oversee forest restoration treatments on assigned parcels, including thinning, stand improvement, hazard and fuels reduction, weed spraying, road maintenance, and planting after timber sales or as needed.

• Provide program and project expertise and respond to questions from…