Wiechmann expands role in forestry

Photo By Melanie Peterson | The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is partnering with the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities with a ew Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit project which will be evaluating tree seedling survival relative to soil water and inundation. USACE representatives along with U.S. Fish and Wildlife and University of Minnesota representatives planted American elm, silver maple, cottonwood and river birch seedlings, at Indian Slough, near Wabasha, Minnesota, on the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge, May 1.  

ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, UNITED STATES

02.10.2025

Story by Renwick Martin 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District

With the recent addition of the forestry job series to the regional planning and environment division north, Lewis Wiechmann’s job description has changed drastically in the two years he’s worked for USACE.

In 2022, armed with a master’s degree in forestry and statistics from Iowa State University, Wiechmann became a forester in the environmental stewardship section. “Department of Defense foresters generally work as stewards of federal lands with a focus on restoration and conservation,” Wiechmann said, adding that this is what interested him in applying to become a member of USACE.

While in the environmental section, Wiechmann performed ‘stand recon’ where he would walk through the woods to determine the best forest managements practices to implement for that specific group of trees or ‘stand.’ These practices included tree planting, invasive species removal and stand thinning, among others. Once a practice was chosen, he would write up a plan that would either be completed in-house or outsourced to a contractor.

Foresters in the environmental section also conduct tree plantings for Upper Mississippi River Restoration projects, manage contracts and assist foresters of other districts with projects. There are also additional opportunities to get involved in research. Noting the operational freedom they are given, Wiechmann called it, “one of the best jobs in the Corps of Engineers.”

After a year of working in operations, Wiechmann transitioned to working in the planning division. Now that he works in an office setting, Wiechmann finds that he mostly becomes involved in projects to conduct environmental compliance or to provide information as a subject matter expert. As a specialist in forestry, he is often relied on for information pertaining to planting, invasive species removal and post-project monitoring. “The planning division has a really good group of subject matter experts who are very knowledgeable in their fields,” Wiechman said. Wiechman said one of the biggest benefits of the transition to planning is the availability of cross district collaboration. RPEDN employees work in St. Paul, Rock Island and St. Louis, allowing them to pull individuals from any of the three districts to support the needs of another. Collaboration also allows for better coordination of environmental compliance and projects across the districts. Wiechmann regards his recent work on the Fargo-Moorhead Flood Risk Management project as the highlight of his career. The purpose of the “The planning division has a really good group of subject matter experts who are very knowledgeable in their fields,” Wiechman said.

Wiechman said one of the biggest benefits of the transition to planning is the availability of cross district collaboration. RPEDN employees work in St. Paul, Rock Island and St. Louis, allowing them to pull individuals from any of the three districts to support the needs of another. Collaboration also allows for better coordination of environmental compliance and projects across the districts.

Wiechmann regards his recent work on the Fargo-Moorhead Flood Risk Management project project is to reduce flood risk, flood damages and f lood protection costs related to flooding in the Fargo-Moorhead metropolitan area. Wiechmann helped create and write forest management plans and contracts for floodplain forest planting and restoration in the Fargo-Moorhead area. These are part of the Corps environmental mitigation responsibilities.

Within the next four to five years, USACE expects to plant and restore over 300 acres of new and existing forest to mitigate for forest loss due to the construction of the project.

Wiechmann lives in Woodbury with his partner and their 120-pound Great Pyrenees dog. He enjoys fishing, video games and model building.

• Date Taken: 02.10.2025
• Date Posted: 02.13.2025 15:09
• Story ID: 490763
• Location: ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, US