The first full annual inventory of West Virginia's forests reports 12.0 million acres of forest land or 78 percent of the State's land area. The area of forest land has changed little since 2000. Of this land, 7.2 million acres (60 percent) are held by family forest owners. The current growing-stock inventory is 25 billion cubic feet-12 percent more than in 2000-and averages 2,136 cubic feet per acre. Yellow-poplar continues to lead in volume followed by white and chestnut oaks. Since 2000, the saw log portion of growing-stock volume has increased by 23 percent to 88 billion board feet. In the latest inventory, net growth exceeded removals for all major species. Detailed information on forest inventory methods and data quality estimates is included in a DVD at the back of this report. Tables of population estimates and a glossary are also included. AcknowledgmentsThe authors would like to thank West Virginia's inventory crew members over the 2004-2008 inventory cycle:

A statistical report on the fifth forest inventory of West Virginia conducted in 2000 by the Forest Inventory and Analysis Unit of the Northeastern Research Station. Statistics for forest area, numbers of trees, tree biomass, timber volume, growth, and change are displayed at the state and, where appropriate, the county level. The current inventory indicates that there are approximately 22 billion cubic feet of growing-stock volume on 12 million acres of timberland in West Virginia. Area of timberland by forest-type group Loblolly/shortleaf* 1 .5% Oak/hickory 71.4% *Includes pitch pine, Virginia pine, table mountain pine, and eastern redcedar forest types Numbers of Trees Growing on Timberland The total number of growing-stock trees at least 5 inches in diameter at breast height on timberland has decreased by 3 percent since 1989. The number of trees in the 6-, 8-, and 10-inch diameter classes deceased while there were increases the numbers of trees in all diameter classes above 1 inches. Red maple was the most numerous species in the 6-, 8-, and 10-inch classes and yellowpoplar was the most numerous species in all diameter classes above 10 inches. The average number of trees per acre decreased from 138 to 134 between inventories. Number of growing-stock trees at each inventory 600 500 H 9 400a) i_ c 300o | 200-100-6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 Diameter class (inches at breast height) Volume The total volume of growing-stock trees increased by 6.5 percent to 22.4 billion cubic feet. The average volume per acre increased from 1,763 cubic feet in 1989 to 1,895 cubic feet in 2000. Yellow-poplar continued to have the greatest volume, accounting for 14.8 percent of total volume. Red maple and sugar maple had the largest volume increases, each increasing by 27 percent. Change in growing-stock volume, top 10 species Yellow-poplar White oak Red maple Other white oaks Northern red oak Other red oaks Hickory Sugar maple American beech Black cherry 12 3 Millions of cubic feet The volume in trees large enough to produce sawlogs increased by 14.4 percent to 71.4 billion board feet. Yellow-poplar has the most board-foot volume.

Foreword Forests at a tipping pointOhio's forests are a critical component of the state's natural resources. Covering nearly 8 million acres, or 30 percent of the state, these diverse forests support important biological communities and create habitat for wildlife, forest products, clean water, and opportunities for recreation. Essential to making sound decisions about Ohio's forests is credible information. Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data help fill this need. Such data tell us where we are and where we are going, and they provide the basis for making informed decisions about how we can sustain our forests for future generations.The fifth inventory of Ohio's forests suggests that we are at a tipping point. Ohio's forests hold more wood, provide more wildlife habitat, and store more carbon than 15 years ago. Yet, for the first time since the 1940s, the acreage of Ohio's forest land has not increased, and some parts of the state have seen large losses in forest cover. More Ohioans than ever own forest land and enjoy the many benefits that forests provide. But, as Ohio's forest lands are subdivided and fragmented, the ability of these forests to provide timber, wildlife habitat, recreation, and solitude is reduced. Oak-hickory forests make up over one-half of the state's forests. Oaks as seedlings and saplings, however, have declined in abundance, and oaks will likely play a smaller role in Ohio's future forests. The quality and value of our timber has increased during the past 15 years, and landowners intend to harvest trees on onefifth of Ohio's forested acres in the next 5 years. However, only 4 percent of forest landowners have a formal management plan for their forests, and fewer than one in seven seeks any sort of advice before making decisions that will affect them and their forests for decades.John F. Kennedy said: "It is our task in our time and in our generation, to hand down undiminished to those who come after us, as was handed down to us by those who went before, the natural wealth and beauty which is ours." The data presented in this report clearly highlight the challenges our forests face: fragmentation, uninformed management, loss of oak, invasive species, and a host of other concerns. How we address these concerns, how we balance forest conservation and sustainable use, will determine the forests that future generations experience and the benefits they receive. Doubtless, the FIA reports of tomorrow will document the successes, or the failures, of the choices we make today. IntroductionThis is the fifth inventory of Ohio's forests, the first using a new annualized inventory system. Previous inventories were completed for 1952 (Hutchison and Morgan 1956), 1968(Kingsley and Mayer 1970), 1979(Dennis and Birch 1981), and 1991(Griffith et al. 1993. These inventories provided a snapshot of the forest for specific periods in time after which no new information was available until the next full inventory of the State. Henceforth, inventory data for the State will be updated annually and full rem...

The first full remeasurement of the annual inventory of the forests of Vermont and New Hampshire was completed in 2012 and covers nearly 9.5 million acres of forest land, with an average volume of nearly 2,300 cubic feet per acre. The data in this report are based on visits to 1,100 plots located across Vermont and 1,091 plots located across New Hampshire. Forest land is dominated by the maple/beech/birch forest-type group, which occupies 60 percent of total forest land area. Of the forest land, 64 percent consists of large diameter trees, 27 percent contains medium diameter trees, and 9 percent contains small diameter trees. The volume of growing stock on timberland has continued to increase since the 1980s and currently totals nearly 19 billion cubic feet. The average annual net growth of growing stock on timberland from 2007 to 2012 is approximately 380 million cubic feet per year. Important species compositional changes include increases in the number of red maple trees and American beech saplings which coincide with decreases in the number of eastern white pine and sugar maple trees as well as eastern white pine and northern red oak saplings. Additional information is presented on forest attributes, land use change, carbon, timber products, species composition, regeneration, and forest health. Detailed information on forest inventory methods and data quality estimates is included on the DVD accompanying this report. Tables of population estimates and a glossary are also included. AcknowledgmentsThe authors would like to thank inventory crew members from Vermont and New Hampshire for their help:

The annual inventory of West Virginia's forests, completed in 2013, covers nearly 12.2 million acres of forest land with an average volume of more than 2,300 cubic feet per acre. This report is based data collected from 2,808 plots located across the State. Forest land is dominated by the oak/hickory forest-type group, which occupies 74 percent of total forest land area. Seventyeight percent of forest land area consists of a plurality of large diameter trees, 15 percent contains medium diameter trees, and 7 percent contains small diameter trees. The volume of growing stock on timberland has been rising since the 1950s and currently totals over 25 billion cubic feet. The average annual net growth of growing-stock trees on timberland from 2008 to 2013 is approximately 519 million cubic feet per year. Important species compositional changes include increases in sapling numbers of yellow-poplar, American beech, and noncommercial species, which coincide with decreases in numbers of trees and saplings of oak species. Additional information is presented on forest attributes, land use change, carbon, timber products, species composition, regeneration, and forest health. Detailed information on forest inventory methods, data quality estimates, and summary tables of population estimates, are available at http://dx.