Welcome to my website and thank you for taking the time to be here. I am currently a Forester with The Confederated Salish and Kootenai (CSKT) tribal government. My job as a forester has enabled me to gain valuable experience conducting forest health assessments; identifying areas in need of management; identifying and delineating riparian areas and streamside management zones; cruising and marking timber; estimating timber volumes; and writing timber sale contracts and project proposals. In addition, I am also responsible for following best management practices; developing/writing silvicultural prescriptions; marking guidelines; and planning/overseeing harvest operations.

 

Recently, my time as a research and teaching assistant at The University of Montana has concluded, where I was working on the project “Optimizing Forest Management in Mixed Coniferous Forests of the Northern Rocky Mountain Region for Climate Stabilization Ecosystem Services”. This project provided me with valuable field work experiences in the beautiful Kootenai National Forest of northwest Montana, conducting consecutive 7-day hitches completing forest vegetation and fuels surveys as well as collecting samples and data on soil composition. 

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Prior to that, I received a Master of Science degree from the University of New Hampshire in Natural Resources: Forestry, through a research assistantship position. My research, An Assessment of the Invasion Patterns and Impacts of Terrestrial Invasive Plants in New England Riparian Forests, quantified the impacts of terrestrial non-native and invasive plants on ecosystem services, stream physical habitat, and forest structure in riparian forests of New England. In addition, I assessed the effects of restoring native plant communities in riparian forests after a major disturbance, and their ability to increase resistance to invasion from non-native, invasive plants. From this work, I published the article “Planting native trees to restore riparian forests increases biotic resistance to nonnative plant invasions” in the journal Invasive Plant Science and Management

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Before returning to academia, I was living in Western New York all my life. I chose to close my business in Buffalo, NY, and move to the Adirondack Mountains to pursue my love for nature. While in Upstate New York, I received a B.S. in Ecology with a Biology minor from Plattsburgh State and graduated Magna Cum Laude with an overall GPA of 3.87. While at SUNY Plattsburgh I was employed by Lake Champlain Research Institute as a research and field technician for 2 years. I have also worked on research projects such as microplastic bioaccumulation in aquatic organisms, wood duck nesting habitat and management, as well as forest and vegetation surveys at Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge, VT. ​

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My hobbies include getting into nature as much as possible. This includes hiking, camping, kayaking, canoeing. I am also a huge Dave Matthews Band Fan! I have recently developed a love for nature photography; sharing and donating my work whenever possible and trying to show people the beauty in nature. I believe if people see nature more often and feel a connection to it, they may be more motivated stewards.   

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I invite you to explore the social media links below to visit my LinkedIn account, Twitter account, and my photography page on Facebook "Photographs by Chad Hammer" or see the "more" tab! Don't forget to follow me on Twitter and like/follow Photographs by Chad Hammer on Facebook!

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​Please see my Contact Tab under the "More'' option tab or email me at Cfhammer1@gmail.com for additional inquiries. 

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