John H. Ohman, Former Deputy Chief of Research and Development
1986-1989
USDA Forest Service
Research & Development Milestones under John Ohman's Leadership
The Forest Ecosystems and Atmospheric Pollution Research Act of 1988 directed an increase in forest inventories that relate to atmospheric pollution and to monitor trends in forest ecosystem health and productivity. This act broadened the activities of Forest Inventory and Analysis.
In 1989, scientist Jerry Franklin published “Toward a New Forestry” in the journal American Forests. This paper and similar research published by Franklin, Chris Maser, and other scientists supported an ecological approach to forest management.
In 1989, the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service formed the Interagency Scientific Committee (ISC), chaired by Forest Service research scientist, and future Forest Service Chief, Jack Ward Thomas. The ISC’s work provided a scientific framework to guide Federal agencies in management efforts to protect the threatened northern spotted owl in the Pacific Northwest.
Forest Service Chief Dale Robertson used the “new forestry” ideas described by Jerry Franklin, Chris Maser, and other scientists as a way to redirect the Forest Service. Robertson began to integrate parts of this evolving Forest Service science and make it a part of a new Forest Service initiative, which eventually became known as “new perspectives.”
