The recent development of the Turtle Mountain Landscape Forest Stewardship Plan will provide a unified approach to managing the forest in the Turtle Mountain region of North Dakota, according to the North Dakota Forest Service.

Collaborators on the plan included the North Dakota Forest Service, North Dakota Game and Fish, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, North Dakota State University Extension and various other regional stakeholders. These agencies and individuals were concerned about the decline in the forest due to insufficient management in the region. This decline can be attributed to a decrease in timber harvested for home heating that once effectively maintained the ecological balance over previous generations.

After over a year of collaboration, the Turtle Mountain Landscape Forest Stewardship Plan is complete. The plan establishes the current baseline condition of the forested resource and includes various goals and objectives to promote a healthy forest for future generations while continuing to provide for multiple uses, including recreational opportunities, critical wildlife habitat for ruffed grouse.

This landscape forest stewardship plan is the first of its kind in North Dakota in terms of scope and scale. The Turtle Mountain region is covered in an aspen and birch forest that is unlike anywhere else in North Dakota. This forest system needs regular management to sustain its ecological importance and unique wildlife habitat qualities, which are essential elements of the forest to different stakeholders, the Forest Service stated.