Forestry Technician                                                                                                                           Kalispell, Montana - USA
GS-462-04

USDA, Forest Service                                                                                                       
June, 1997 – August, 1997

DUTIES     
 

• This job required extensive off trail hiking, backpacking and back country camping throughout the wilderness areas of the Custer and Gallatin National forests.  During these hikes great care was taken amongst the three-man team to prevent damage to government scientific equipment.
• Locating field sites - This required the measurement of 1:24,000 maps and aerial photos (with an unknown scale – our 3 person team would calculate this value) to determine azimuths, baselines and photo scale. 
• Responsible for the daily use and care of compass, inclinometer, Trimble GeoExplorer II GPS unit, relaskop and two way radio.

PROJECTS
 

• Forest Inventory Analysis (F.I.A.) of Custer and Gallatin National Forests, Montana – This F.I.A. Project involved the collection of soil and litter depth, percentage and species type of all forbs, gramminoids, shrubs, and trees.  Where trees were concerned the following data was collected; height, species, age, health ratings, crown density and diameter (DBH).  Fallen or dead trees were assessed for their fuel potential, which was based on length, diameter, and level of tree decay.  Wildlife use patterns, habitat type, distance to closest stream, road, and trail were also factors to be documented.