Will forestry workers be replaced by AI?
Updated
Forestry workers score 11 of 100 for AI exposure. 95% of their task time still needs a person. AI speeds up the other 5%.
- 5% AI helps
- 95% Needs a person
Low exposure
Lower than 95% of the 923 occupations we scored.
Task by task
We graded 17 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can't do any of them end to end yet. It speeds up 1 and leaves 16 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Maintain tallies of trees examined and counted during tree marking or measuring efforts. Counting is manual; AI can digitize and summarize the tallies. | 35% AI helps |
| Explain or enforce regulations regarding camping, vehicle use, fires, use of buildings, or sanitation. Enforcement with visitors needs human authority; AI can answer rule questions. | 15% Needs a person |
| Sort tree seedlings, discarding substandard seedlings, according to standard charts or verbal instructions. Visually grading seedlings is physical; AI adds little for sorting. | 11% Needs a person |
| Check equipment to ensure that it is operating properly. Physical equipment inspection needs a person on site with tools. | 10% Needs a person |
| Confer with other workers to discuss issues, such as safety, cutting heights, or work needs. Live discussion with crews on safety and work needs stays human. | 10% Needs a person |
| Identify diseased or undesirable trees and remove them, using power saws or hand saws. Identifying diseased trees may use photo AI, but felling stays physical. | 9% Needs a person |
| Spray or inject vegetation with insecticides to kill insects or to protect against disease or with herbicides to reduce competing vegetation. Field spraying is physical, though AI can help plan treatments. | 8% Needs a person |
| Maintain campsites or recreational areas, replenishing firewood or other supplies and cleaning kitchens or restrooms. Cleaning restrooms and restocking campsites is physical labor. | 6% Needs a person |
| Provide assistance to forest survey crews by clearing site-lines, holding measuring tools, or setting stakes. Clearing sight lines and holding survey gear is physical support. | 6% Needs a person |
| Perform fire protection or suppression duties, such as constructing fire breaks or disposing of brush. Building fire breaks and clearing brush is physical outdoor work. | 5% Needs a person |
Show the other 7 tasks
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Select or cut trees according to markings or sizes, types, or grades. Cutting trees to marked specifications is physical field work. | 5% Needs a person |
| Fight forest fires or perform prescribed burning tasks under the direction of fire suppression officers or forestry technicians. Live firefighting is dangerous, physical, and directed by officers in person. | 4% Needs a person |
| Prune or shear tree tops or limbs to control growth, increase density, or improve shape. Pruning tree limbs requires physical skill and on site judgement. | 4% Needs a person |
| Select tree seedlings, prepare the ground, or plant the trees in reforestation areas, using manual planting tools. Replaced 'manually' with 'with hands'. | 4% Needs a person |
| Operate skidders, bulldozers, or other prime movers to pull a variety of scarification or site preparation equipment over areas to be regenerated. Driving heavy machinery over rough terrain requires skilled physical operation. | 3% Needs a person |
| Thin or space trees, using power thinning saws. Power saw thinning is physical, dangerous work in forests. | 3% Needs a person |
| Erect signs or fences, using posthole diggers, shovels, or other hand tools. Digging postholes and erecting fences is heavy physical labor. | 3% Needs a person |
How forestry workers compare
All occupations (923)
Farming, fishing and forestry (12)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $43,680 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 6,050 in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- -1.5% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Run power thinning saws safely on reforestation sites
- Plant seedlings manually on uneven ground
- Map tree marking plots in ESRI ArcGIS
- Check equipment condition in the field before each shift
- Keep tree tallies and checks in Microsoft Excel
- Brief crews on cutting heights and safety
Questions about forestry workers and AI
Will AI replace forestry workers?
Partly. About 1 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly tree tallies and questions about camping, fire, and vehicle rules. Planting, thinning, pruning, and firefighting stay with people because they need a body on rough ground and a person on site.
Which forestry tasks is AI taking over?
Tree tallies carry the highest exposure score at 35, since AI can digitize and summarize the counts taken during tree marking. Answers about camping, vehicle use, fires, and sanitation rules score 15, since AI can answer rule questions while enforcement with visitors stays with the worker.
Which forestry tasks stay human?
Operating skidders, thinning with power saws, erecting fences, and pruning limbs all score between 3 and 4 on exposure. Each needs physical skill on uneven ground, and the worker has to judge the cut, the post, or the planting spot in person.
How can forestry workers stay valuable?
Learn to read and build plot maps in ESRI ArcGIS so tree marking lines up with field boundaries. Keep tallies in Microsoft Excel and check the AI output against the counts you record. Build skill on power thinning saws and hand planting, the tasks with the lowest exposure.
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