Pesticide Use on FSC Certified Lands
As part of Maryland DNR's conformance with the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC) Pesticide Policy (FSC-POL-30-001 V3-0 EN), we have implemented the following Pesticide Use Procedures, when applying any pesticides on our certified lands.
Beginning in 2021, the use of all pesticides on DNR-managed, FSC certified, lands must incorporate guidance found in the Maryland DNR's Environmental and Social Risk Assessments (ESRAs). ESRAs for the several pesticides used for terrestrial invasive species control and vegetation management are available for staff to use in developing management prescriptions or pesticide use approvals. Each ESRA specifies which formulations are available and approved for staff use.
The DNR will be implementing these ESRAs at the "management unit" level. Our FSC management unit includes the following: Potomac State Forest, Garrett State Forest, Savage River State Forest, Green Ridge State Forest, Pocomoke State Forest, and Chesapeake Forest Lands. Excluded are major public utility corridors.
Each ESRA has mitigation strategies to minimize environmental and social risks associated with the use of each pesticide. When working on our certified lands our staff will familiarize themselves with the mitigation strategies for those pesticides they use and follow the strategies in the course of their work.
