Abstract:There are an estimated 10.7 million family forest ownerships across the United States who collectively control 36% or 290 million acres of the nation's forestland. The US Department of Agriculture Forest Service National Woodland Owner Survey (NWOS) provides information on the characteristics, attitudes, and behaviors of these ownerships. Between 2011 and 2013, 8,576 randomly selected family forest ownerships with at least 10 acres of forestland participated in the NWOS. Results show: amenity values are the d… Show more
“…, Butler et al. ). Landowner decision‐making has significant reach as 80% of forest land in the northeastern United States is in private ownership (Thompson et al.…”
Harvesting is the leading cause of adult tree mortality in forests of the northeastern United States. While current rates of timber harvest are generally sustainable, there is considerable pressure to increase the contribution of forest biomass to meet renewable energy goals. We estimated current harvest regimes for different forest types and regions across the U.S. states of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine using data from the U.S. Forest Inventory and Analysis Program. We implemented the harvest regimes in SORTIE‐ND, an individual‐based model of forest dynamics, and simulated the effects of current harvest regimes and five additional harvest scenarios that varied by harvest frequency and intensity over 150 yr. The best statistical model for the harvest regime described the annual probability of harvest as a function of forest type/region, total plot basal area, and distance to the nearest improved road. Forests were predicted to increase in adult aboveground biomass in all harvest scenarios in all forest type and region combinations. The magnitude of the increase, however, varied dramatically—increasing from 3% to 120% above current landscape averages as harvest frequency and intensity decreased. The variation can be largely explained by the disproportionately high harvest rates estimated for Maine as compared with the rest of the region. Despite steady biomass accumulation across the landscape, stands that exhibited old‐growth characteristics (defined as ≥300 metric tons of biomass/hectare) were rare (8% or less of stands). Intensified harvest regimes had little effect on species composition due to widespread partial harvesting in all scenarios, resulting in dominance by late‐successional species over time. Our analyses indicate that forest biomass can represent a sustainable, if small, component of renewable energy portfolios in the region, although there are tradeoffs between carbon sequestration in forest biomass and sustainable feedstock supply. Integrating harvest regimes into a disturbance theory framework is critical to understanding the dynamics of forested landscapes, especially given the predominance of logging as a disturbance agent and the increasing pressure to meet renewable energy needs.
“…, Butler et al. ). Landowner decision‐making has significant reach as 80% of forest land in the northeastern United States is in private ownership (Thompson et al.…”
Harvesting is the leading cause of adult tree mortality in forests of the northeastern United States. While current rates of timber harvest are generally sustainable, there is considerable pressure to increase the contribution of forest biomass to meet renewable energy goals. We estimated current harvest regimes for different forest types and regions across the U.S. states of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine using data from the U.S. Forest Inventory and Analysis Program. We implemented the harvest regimes in SORTIE‐ND, an individual‐based model of forest dynamics, and simulated the effects of current harvest regimes and five additional harvest scenarios that varied by harvest frequency and intensity over 150 yr. The best statistical model for the harvest regime described the annual probability of harvest as a function of forest type/region, total plot basal area, and distance to the nearest improved road. Forests were predicted to increase in adult aboveground biomass in all harvest scenarios in all forest type and region combinations. The magnitude of the increase, however, varied dramatically—increasing from 3% to 120% above current landscape averages as harvest frequency and intensity decreased. The variation can be largely explained by the disproportionately high harvest rates estimated for Maine as compared with the rest of the region. Despite steady biomass accumulation across the landscape, stands that exhibited old‐growth characteristics (defined as ≥300 metric tons of biomass/hectare) were rare (8% or less of stands). Intensified harvest regimes had little effect on species composition due to widespread partial harvesting in all scenarios, resulting in dominance by late‐successional species over time. Our analyses indicate that forest biomass can represent a sustainable, if small, component of renewable energy portfolios in the region, although there are tradeoffs between carbon sequestration in forest biomass and sustainable feedstock supply. Integrating harvest regimes into a disturbance theory framework is critical to understanding the dynamics of forested landscapes, especially given the predominance of logging as a disturbance agent and the increasing pressure to meet renewable energy needs.
“…0596-0078). Additional information on the 2011-2013 NWOS methods (including estimation) and non-response bias assessment are available in Butler et al [2,15]. Tables containing the complete set of estimated data used in this article have been published and are freely available as Butler et al [1].…”
Section: Methodsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Analyses of NWOS data have tended to exclude FFOs owning less than 4 ha because smaller parcels commonly consist of wooded residential lots and are rarely suitable for traditional forestry activities or programs [2]. We acknowledge, however, that small parcels may provide important cultural, regulating, and supporting services (as well as, for that matter, some provisioning services).…”
Section: Methodsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…The NWOS does not include any questions that specifically address the production of non-recreational cultural services. However, FFOs acknowledge a number of additional cultural services as important reasons for why they own forested land, services such as aesthetics (beauty/scenery) and privacy; these reasons are consistently identified as being of greater importance than timber production or revenue generation [2]. Consequently, policies and programs intended to improve flows of provisioning (e.g., wood production), regulating (e.g., carbon sequestration, watershed protection), and supporting services (e.g., wildlife habitat) may result in unintended (and unmeasured) tradeoffs between cultural services and other types of benefits.…”
Individuals and families collectively own more than 118 million ha of forestland in the USA. Using data from the USDA Forest Service's National Woodland Owners Survey (NWOS), we characterize ecosystem services being produced on family forests as well as the beneficiaries who enjoy them. Approximately half of family forest owners provide one or more provisioning services. With the exception of logs, the provisioning services provided by the majority of owners are enjoyed directly by owners or their close associates (i.e., family, friends, and neighbors). Similarly, while more than half of family forest owners have provided recreational opportunities, a cultural service, to their close associates, fewer than 6% of owners have sold or provided recreational services to the general public. Regulating and supporting services are linked to the maintenance of long-term forest cover. Greater than 80% of family forest owners desire to maintain the forested condition of their land, whereas a much smaller percentage of these owners have entered into conservation easements or have collected money for conservation purposes. In addition, many owners have engaged in activities expected to increase the future capacity of their land to provide multiple ecosystem services, both excludable and non-excludable.
“…It focuses on the diverse and dynamic group of owners that is the least understood-families, individuals, and other unincorporated groups, collectively referred to as "family forest owners. " The NWOS data reported here are based on the responses from 190 family forest owners from Delaware that participated between 2011 and 2013 (Butler et al 2015). …”
This report summarizes the 2013 results of the annualized inventory of Delaware's forests conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis program. Results are based on data collected from 389 plots located across the State. There are an estimated 362,000 acres of forest land in Delaware with a total live-tree volume of 936 million cubic feet. There has been no change in the area of forest land since 2008, however, live-tree volume in Delaware has been increasing. Forest land is dominated by the oak/hickory forest-type group, which occupies 53 percent of total forest land area. Seventy-four percent of the forest land area is in large diameter stands, 12 percent in medium diameter stands, and 13 percent in small diameter stands. The volume of growing stock on timberland has been rising since the 1950s and currently totals 811 million cubic feet. Between 2008 and 2013, the average annual net growth of growing-stock trees on timberland was approximately 16 million cubic feet per year. Additional information is presented on forest attributes, ownership, 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 online at https://doi
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