Houghton Keweenaw Conservation District has a New Forester

The Houghton Keweenaw Conservation District (HKCD) has hired Joash Pfeiffelman as its new District Forester. Funded by a grant from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD), he will serve as the administrator of the Forestry Assistance Program, serving private landowners across both Houghton and Keweenaw Counties with their forest management and conservation endeavors. 

Joash first came to the Keweenaw in 2018 as a student at Michigan Tech, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Forestry and a Master of Geographic Information Science (GISc). He spent his summers working for various public-serving agencies, including the Michigan DNR and the US Forest Service. After graduating, he spent a year working as a Forester for the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in central-north Minnesota, serving and assisting private landowners with conservation there. When life circumstances shifted and brought him back to the Keweenaw, he worked for a local arborist before finding a place with the HKCD. 

As the Forestry Assistance Program Forester, Joash will assist private landowners with their conservation management through providing free preliminary consultation and guidance on future management activities. Following this, he can provide referrals to various public and private sector entities (also free of charge) who can implement and/or assist with the desired management to achieve the landowner’s goals and objectives. Additionally, as a local MDARD resource, he can provide information/guidance about the Qualified Forest Program (QFP)—a property tax reduction program that incentivizes active and sustainable forest management— along with other locally available land management programs. 

Both Joash and the rest of the HKCD are excited to finally bring this service to this part of the UP and look forward to serving all of the residents of Houghton and Keweenaw counties. If you are curious and want to learn more about the Houghton Keweenaw Conservation District, go to www.hkconserve.com to see all that they have to offer.