Whether or not you are in the Managed Forest Law (MFL) Certified Group, we recommend adhering to all applicable Forestry Best Management Practices for Water Quality (BMPs) to protect the soil and water resources on your property. During forest management, there are measures we can take to minimize rutting, soil compaction and erosion and protect the value of any water features on the site. Familiarizing yourself with the water features on your property from the BMP perspective will help you ensure that when it comes time to harvest timber or put in a road, you take the necessary measures to protect what is important to you.

As described in Wisconsin’s BMP Field Manual, BMPs are a set of guidelines “intended to provide simple and cost-effective methods for protecting water quality in lakes, streams and wetlands… before, during and after forest management activities”. BMPs are designed to protect water quality, water temperature, nutrient balances, habitat diversity and hydrologic processes.

Continue reading “BMPs and MFL” →

The American Bird Conservancy has teamed up with U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to provide additional funding to help manage oak woods in Southeast Wisconsin. This Regional Conservation Partnership Program is designed to enhance oak ecosystem health while cultivating long-term benefits for Species of Greatest Conservation Need, such as the red-headed woodpecker and cerulean warbler, both commonly found in high-quality oak systems.

Continue reading “Got Oak? Need Funding?” →

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Outreach and Communications, Fitchburg

Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov

For 48 years and counting, Roger Pluedeman has been a logger.

Photo Credit: Roger Pluedeman

And much more.

After starting his career in Rhinelander in 1977, Pluedeman moved to the Eagle River area in 1979 and established Pluedeman Logging. He has owned and operated that business ever since.

The basic roles of a logger have become second nature to Pluedeman: Forge contracts with landowners, make detailed plans, cut down trees and turn them into logs and remove the logs for transport to their destination.

But Pluedeman also excels at the people side of logging: Developing and growing long-term relationships, both with landowners and with the land itself.

“He’s not a ‘look what I did’ guy. He’s known as a guy who gets the work done and helps where he can,” said Henry Schienebeck of the Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association, who has known Pluedeman for decades.

“Roger’s work includes a lot of long-term relationships, and that goes to show that whomever he’s working with, he’s treating them fairly.”

Continue reading “Roger Pluedeman: A Longtime Logger With Long-Term Planning” →

Photo Credit: Julie Church

Julie Church has joined the Tax Law Section as our Tax Law Operations Specialist. Julie oversees the Certified Plan Writer (CPW) program, assists with tax law policy and program management and helps manage the Wisconsin Forest Inventory and Reporting System (WisFIRS). She serves as a key liaison for various stakeholders, including Cooperating Foresters and CPWs. She started her new role in November 2024, and is stationed in Rhinelander at the Forestry Headquarters. Continue reading “Julie Church Joins the Tax Law Section” →

New Managed Forest Law (MFL) enrollments become active at the start of the year to align with the new property tax year. There are 1,370 new enrollments for 2025! Some statistics for the new enrollments include:

Photo Credit: Linda Williams, Wisconsin DNR

• Nearly one-third are new landowners in the MFL program, similar to recent years’ enrollments.
• A total of 88,105 acres were added to the MFL program.
• 1,352 enrollments are individual landowners, and 18 added land to large ownerships with at least 1,000 acres statewide.
• The average size of the new enrollments is 61 acres for individual landowners and 302 acres for large ownerships.
• 10,356 acres are open to the public for hunting, fishing, hiking, sight-seeing and cross-country skiing.
• 43% (4,453 acres) of the open MFL acreage is part of a large ownerships.
• 71% of eligible new enrollments elected to participate in the MFL Certified Group.
• The total number of 2025 enrollments amounts to less than the 1,452 enrollments that expired at the end of 2024, but the total new acreage enrolled in MFL in 2025 is almost 15,000 acres more than the total of the acreage that expired.

Continue reading “2025 New MFL Enrollments” →