Will AI replace Forest and Conservation Workers?
Estimated risk score: 12 out of 100
Very low replacement risk
Estimate from published task research, not reviewed by a person · how we estimate
Within about 19 points for 4 in 5 of the jobs we checked (0 to 31).
For the occupation as a whole, from ratings of its 21 O*NET tasks published in 2023 and calibrated to our hand scores. A specialty inside it can sit higher or lower.
O*NET-SOC 45-4011.00 · Farming, Fishing, and Forestry
Tasks rated in 2023 as ones AI could do or speed up
Tasks a GPT-4-class model could do, or do in half the time or less: 1 of its 21 rated tasks. In O*NET’s words.
- Maintain tallies of trees examined and counted during tree marking or measuring efforts.
Tasks rated in 2023 as not sped up by AI
Tasks such a model was rated as not speeding up or taking over: 20 of its 21 rated tasks; the first 6 are shown. In O*NET’s words.
- Check equipment to ensure that it is operating properly.
- Confer with other workers to discuss issues, such as safety, cutting heights, or work needs.
- Erect signs or fences, using posthole diggers, shovels, or other hand tools.
- Fight forest fires or perform prescribed burning tasks under the direction of fire suppression officers or forestry technicians.
- Identify diseased or undesirable trees and remove them, using power saws or hand saws.
- Maintain campsites or recreational areas, replenishing firewood or other supplies and cleaning kitchens or restrooms.
What the job is
Under supervision, perform manual labor necessary to develop, maintain, or protect areas such as forests, forested areas, woodlands, wetlands, and rangelands through such activities as raising and transporting seedlings; combating insects, pests, and diseases harmful to plant life; and building structures to control water, erosion, and leaching of soil. Includes forester aides, seedling pullers, tree planters, and gatherers of nontimber forestry products such as pine straw.
Also called: Tree Farmer, Tree Planter, Forest Ranger, Forestry Support Specialist, Woodsman, Box Cutter, Gum Dipper, Range Aide.
Source. This site includes information from the O*NET 30.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. (O*NET, CC BY 4.0.) Task ratings: Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin and Rock (2023), “GPTs are GPTs: An Early Look at the Labor Market Impact Potential of Large Language Models”, data used under the MIT licence (licence texts). Our change: we averaged the ratings over this occupation’s tasks and calibrated them to our 0–100 scale. It is not a prediction about any one person and not career advice. Disagree? Write to hello@yourstopwashit.com. How we estimate