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 Firewise Events

 

The MFC and its partners are sponsoring several Firewise events in your area.

 

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Water Quality and Forestry BMPs

Forested lands are an important natural resource in Mississippi. They help protect and cleanse the water we need for drinking, residential use, irrigation, and industry.  According to the Southern Forest Resource Assessment (USDA Forest Service 2002), forested watersheds consistently yield lower sediment and nutrient contributions to surface waters and improve biological conditions. It is through the wise management of these lands that a multitude of benefits is generated.


Forests make important, positive contributions to the quality of life for Mississippians by providing thousands of jobs, a wealth of forest products, livestock forage areas, open spaces, abundant wildlife habitat, scenic areas, recreational experiences, and other social and economic benefits.


The federal Clean Water Act of 1987 requires proper steps be taken to prevent pollution to sources of drinking water and protect water quality (see Environmental Protection Agency, Source Water Protection for more information). When conducting forestry operations, using Mississippi’s Best Management Practices can satisfy the requirements of the Clean Water Act. Best management practices for forestry, commonly referred to as BMPs, are a group of voluntary practices used to reduce water pollution.


It is the responsibility of the landowner and/or timber owner to ensure that pollution of state waters does not occur from forestry operations. The professional resource manager and the equipment operator working for a landowner also have an ethical responsibility to ensure that practices preformed do not cause pollution under the Water Quality Act and state law. It is in the best interest of all parties involved with managing the forest resource to ensure adherence to water quality standards, thereby maintaining site quality while protecting environmental conditions.


chunky riverThe Mississippi Forestry Commission’s role in water quality is to monitor the use of best management practices.  Findings are report to the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ).  It is estimated that some type of forest activity occurs on nearly 850,000 acres annually in the state.  The Mississippi Forestry Commission works with landowners, forest industry, loggers and others to help ensure that forestry practices do not cause pollution under the Water Quality Act and state laws.


Additional information concerning forest management activities and water quality is available in this brochure: The Forest Landowner and Water Quality.


Forestry Best Management Practices:

Best Management Practices (BMPs) are non-regulatory guidelines for silvicultural practices designed to protect water quality in Mississippi. Every three years, a statewide  monitoring survey is conducted and a report is published.  The purpose of BMP monitoring is to evaluate the use of voluntary BMPs by the forestry community.  By monitoring silvicultural activities, the overall integrity of water quality will improve as well as the restoration and protection of all watersheds. The guidelines set forth in “Silviculture Best Management Practices Implementation Monitoring:  A Framework for State Forestry Agencies” are be used to develop the implementation monitoring.


For more information on Water Quality and Forestry BMPs, check out these items:

 

 

bmp logoBest Management Practices for Forestry in Mississippi.

 

To receive copies of the new fourth edition, please email Richard McInnis at rmcinnis@mfc.state.ms.us and include your name, company name, mailing address and number of copies needed. Click to download a copy of Mississippi's latest BMPs.

 


 

 

For more information on this program, contact:

Richard McInnis

Mississippi Forestry Commission

3139 Hwy 468 West

Pearl, Ms  39208

(601) 420-6024 office

(601) 420-6027 fax

(601) 927-8484 cell

rmcinnis@mfc.state.ms.us