Nova Scotia Woodlot Owners and Operators Association

Take a Look at Our New Website!

Visit the Nova Scotia Woodlot Owners and Operators Association's new website at nswooa.ca. You'll find one of the most comprehensive resources available for information on the sustainable management of the Acadian Forest.

You can learn more about Acadian Forest restoration and alternatives to clear-cutting on our Sustainable Forestry page, see good forestry up close at the Otter Ponds Demonstration Forest, and read the latest forest-related news and research. If you share our passion for sustainable forestry, you'll also find an application for membership in NSWOOA.

Mission Statement

NSWOOA is an independent organization of woodlot owners and operators achieving prosperity, stewardship, and solidarity through the practice of ecologically, socially, and economically sustainable forestry.

Truly sustainable forest management means that all values of our woodlands -- ecological, social, cultural and economic -- must be preserved for future generations.

The NSWOOA supports woodlot owners and operators in sustainable forestry through education, demonstration, marketing, and cooperation

Latest developments in natural resources policy planning

Voluntary Planning is an agency of the Nova Scotia provincial government that has been preparing recommendations on natural resources policy for the province. Voluntary Planning's Citizen Engagement Committee released its report on the first phase of this project, "The Future of Nova Scotia's Natural Resources: Our Common Ground" on April 17, 2009. Click here to view this report.

The NSWOOA has participated in this process and continues to monitor it. Our presentation to Voluntary Planning may be viewed here.

Appointments to the panels of expertise that will help guide natural resources strategy in the province were announced in late July.

For information on Phase 2 of the Natural Resources project, please visit the Voluntary Planning website.

Do you want to grow high-value trees?

In 2008, the NSWOOA completed an exciting education and outreach project designed to educate Nova Scotia woodlot owners and contractors about how to grow high-value trees. This approach is an alternative to clearcutting because trees are harvested individually or in small groups once they have reached their full potential.

We have finished distributing educational materials by mail and holding educational programs for woodlot owners. However, educational materials are still available online. (See below.)

This project was administered by the Association for Sustainable Forestry and funded by the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources. The NSWOOA delivered services in partnership with Picea Forestry Consulting and Wild Words Editorial Services.

Funding assistance

Financial assistance for woodlot owners practicing selection management, crop tree release, or crop tree pruning (silviculture treatments used to grow high-value trees) may be available through a provincial program for qualifying woodlots (the Category 7 Quality Silviculture Improvement Program). For information, please contact Association for Sustainable Forestry Coordinator Rebecca Aggas at (902) 895-1179 or rjaggas@asforestry.com

This excellent funding program has been renewed for 2009-2010.

How to get information

An information package on how to grow high-value trees and apply for Category 7 funding is available for viewing or download at http://www.asforestry.com/PDFs/outreach/UnevenAgedManagementInfo.pdf

A list of references, many of which are available free or at low cost, can be viewed or downloaded at http://www.asforestry.com/PDFs/outreach/UnevenAgedManagementReferenceList.pdf

Application forms and technical criteria for Category 7 funding may be downloaded from the ASF website, http://www.asforestry.com/ The ASF will also send you these materials in the mail.

See below for a list of additional materials available on the Internet, with links.