History Of State Forest Program

The reforestation of New York has helped develop an environment which has many natural resources that can be utilized for economic, recreational and scientific activities. The effects of farming on the state would be much more evident if not for the efforts of the various agencies that have had taken on the responsibility of restoring this natural resource. Reforestation has occurred as a result of changes in land use which have lead to the abandonment of farmland through much of the 20th century as well as conscious efforts to return once cleared land to forest. These efforts encompass replanting projects and natural forest succession on acquired lands as well as private tracts of land throughout the state. The net effect has been profound; the state has gone from about 20% to 25% forest cover in 1890 to about 62% today.

The reforestation of New York has some of its roots in the development of the railroad systems and the Canal system that crosses to the Great Lakes, as well as the profound impact the Great Depression had on socioeconomic conditions in the state. The "exodus" of farmers began as development of these two major transportation routes created an easier way for them to travel from the hilltop farms of central New York to the vast prairie lands in the Midwest of the country. As the word of the opportunity spread, a mass exodus began from the worn out, hardscrabble farms that could barely produce a living. In addition, the development of machines such as tractors and mowing machines that could only be fully utilized on the lowlands also helped to. As tenants left, they usually cleared all the removable forest products before leaving. The Great Depression forced the rest of these farmers off their land, and in search of some way to survive.

As more and more farms were abandoned, it was obvious that there was a serious problem in New York. The Forest Preserves had been gradually reforested, but the remainder of the state was not faring as well. Private owners were reforesting at a rate of about 18% of the abandonment rate at this time, and it was obvious that something needed to be done. As a result, in 1928 the State Reforestation Commission¹ was formed, and they quickly produced enough information to justify a reforestation project². A year later, the State Reforestation Law³ was passed, and this authorized the beginning of the Enlarged Reforestation Program. Ten years later, the program was modified⁴ so that the range of the program was extended to portions of the Forest Preserve counties that were not a part of the Adirondack and Catskill Parks.

The main objectives of the law and its amendment was to retire farmland from agricultural use permanently, and reforest these regions, providing a wide range of resources from timber to public recreational areas. The program mainly attempted to acquire lands that were at least 50% cleared, and suitable for reforestation. The initial planting of new land began in the fall of 1929 in Otsego, Chenango and Cortland counties. Planting of these areas proceeded as fast as titles were cleared and closed, and trees were made available.

The State Reforestation Law of 1929 and the Hewitt Amendment of 1931 set forth the legislation which authorized the Conservation Department to acquire land by gift or purchase for reforestation areas. These Reforestation Areas, consisting of not less than 500 acres of contiguous land, were to be forever devoted to "reforestation and the establishment and maintenance thereon of forests for watershed protection, the production of timber, and for recreation and kindred purposes". These Reforestation areas became the nucleus of our present day State Forest systems. This broad program is presently authorized under Article 9, Title 5 of the Environmental Conservation Law. In 1930, Forest Districts were established and the tasks of land acquisition and reforestation were started. In 1933 the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was begun in response to the economic distress of the Great Depression⁵. Thousands of young men were assigned to plant millions of trees on the newly acquired State Forests. In addition to tree planting, these men were engaged in road and trail building, campground and park construction, erosion control, watershed restoration, forest protection and other projects. During World War II, very little was accomplished on the reforestation areas. Plans for further planting, construction, facility maintenance and similar tasks had to be curtailed. However, through the postwar funding, conservation projects once again received needed attention.

The Park and Recreation Land Acquisition Act of 1960, and the Environmental Quality Bond Acts of 1972 and 1986 contained provisions for the acquisition of lands to be managed for multiple uses and added to the State Forest system. The recent Clean Water Clean Air Bond has provided funding which has continued the expansion of the State Forest system. These lands would serve multiple purposes involving the conservation and development of natural resources, including the preservation of scenic areas, watershed protection, forestry and recreation. Today there are over 700,000 acres of State Forests,(Reforestation Areas, Multiple Use Areas and Unique Areas) throughout the State. The use of these lands for a variety of purposes such as timber production, hiking, skiing, fishing, trapping and hunting is of tremendous importance economically and to the health and well-being of the people of the State.

Footnotes:

Chapter 241 of the Laws of 1928 called for the formation of this Commission.
Survey that indicated over 1 million acres of land abandoned farmland could be acquired in areas of over 500 acres or more at a price that would justify reforestation, introduced and passed The State Reforestation Law, Chapter 195 of the Laws of 1929, introduced and passed the "Hewitt Amendment" (Amendment, Section 16 of Article VII of the State Constitution) in 1931.
Amendment, Section 16 of Article VII of the State Constitution, which mandated a graduated annual schedule of appropriations for acquisition and reforestation by the State, with land purchases of a million or more acres of idle land within 15 years, at a total cost of not more than $20 million.
Amendment of Section 16 of Article VII of the State Constitution, which became Section 3 of article XIV. It was modified to remove the graduated schedule of appropriations and extended the scope of the program.
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was created by an act of Congress on June 28th, 1937 (50 Stat. 319), as successor to the Emergency Conservation Work (ECW). Under the authority of an emergency employment act of March 31st, 1933(48 Stat. 22), President Franklin Delano Roosevelt established the ECW by Executive Order 6101 on April 5th, 1933. The President's Reorganization Plan No. 1, April 25th, 1939 (53 Stat. 1424), placed the CCC under the newly created Federal Security Agency.