Master Logger
Purpose
The Master
Logger program in Pennsylvania was born from two
different concepts. In the earliest days of the SFI
Program in PA, training was portrayed as a pyramid.
Employees would attend a minimum number of courses.
Employers would attend additional courses. Some
individuals and business owners who excelled in their
day to day timber harvesting operations, wished to be
recognized for their high standards. The second
concept arose from dissatisfaction with a system that
lumped all loggers together, regardless of practices,
and could not allow a responsible operator any
special privileges. When Martin Melville began
managing the SFI of PA training programs, he started
to receive requests for "good" loggers from
landowners. While he knew who some of the good
loggers were in Pennsylvania, until the development
of the Master Logger program, he had no measurable
way of assuring a landowner that a logger met certain
criteria for performance.
Development
The Master
Logger began only as an idea and a point on a
triangle. The definition of the person and his
practices came next. Loggers, landowners, foresters,
conservation districts and extension folks were asked
to submit their ideas about what a master logger is.
The responses were surprisingly similar. Safety must
be a priority. Legal compliance with OSHA and our
clean streams law is also important. Sustainable
harvesting includes silviculture. Equipment should be
well maintained.
From these basic
ideas, seven general categories were identified as
keys to evaluating a logger's ability to meet the
standards of high quality harvesting. There was also
a recognition by the loggers who serve on the
training committee, that classroom training is no
guarantee of performance. They mandated the idea of
job inspections as a means of establishing the
program's credibility. A job inspection is done on an
active job and a retired job. On the active job, we
look at pre-harvest planning, harvest planning,
felling technique & accuracy, site disturbance,
post-harvest & residual stand, safety & OSHA,
equipment condition & use, and public relations.
As a final step, practices within each of the general
categories were chosen so that the folks doing the
inspection have a uniform set of criteria to assess
performance. The committee will be composed of at
least one Master Logger, a forester, a person from
the local conservation district and a member of the
SFI of PA State Implementation Committee whenever
possible.
Basic
Requirements
In order to be
eligible, a logger must complete the SFI of PA
core-level training. Certificates of business and
vehicle liability, and worker's compensation (if you
have employees) insurance must be furnished. The
operator's OSHA plans will be reviewed the day of the
inspection. We want to see a copy of the contract
with names, dates & amounts blanked out. Finally,
we want to see your ideas about what you think makes
you someone who deserves to be called a master
logger. Additional courses are also required. If you
apply before the end of this year, you will have
until the end of next year to meet the requirements
beyond the core training. Interested individuals
should contact the SFI of PA office, (888) 734-9366
toll free or by e-mail
sfi@penn.com for a Master
Logger Program application.
Benefits
As a master
logger, you will be able to train your own employees.
We expect that the marketplace will respond by
recognizing master loggers through additional
business opportunities. We will maintain a list of
Master Loggers at this website and in our printed
materials.
