Its mission is to sustain America's forests for their public benefits of wood, water, wildlife, and people's wellbeing, in cooperation with landowners and communities.
[7] They promote forest conservation[8][9][10] because it helps mitigate climate change,[11][12][13][14] protects water resources,[15][16][17][18] serves as habitat for wildlife,[19][20] and offers recreational opportunities for those who enjoy the outdoors.
[33] By doing so they created the basis for the ongoing market in forestry-based Carbon Credits that has been facilitating the reduction of net emissions of CO2 since it was enacted.
[34][35] In addition, the Trust developed a streamlined approach to obtaining Safe Harbor Agreements, that ensure landowners are rewarded—rather than penalized—for maximizing conservation of habitat for animals that are in danger of extinction.
[41] Some environmental groups opposed the rules that authorized the production of Carbon Credits from forestland, including the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity and two dozen others.