Pennsylvania Forests

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Pennsylvania Forests

• April 13, 2005

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Cook Forest
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Forest Ownership in Pennsylvania
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NORTHWEST PA -- REGIONAL FORESTRY CONTEXT

• 1. Crawford County Forest Cover
•        1998 55 forested 315,000 acres
•        1920 26 forested 150,000 acres
• 2. Forest Species Distribution
•        Northern Hardwood Forest Species gt 60
•        Dominant Species Black Cherry, Northern
  Red Oak, Red Maple
• 3. Forest Ownership Patterns
•        gt 95 of forest land privately owned
•        Approximately 10,000 forest landowners
•        Average forest holding 30 acres

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BARRIERS TO SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY IN NORTHWEST PA

• 1. Forest Ownership Patterns
•        Highly dispersed ownership
•        Demographics (aging population, increased
  absenteeism)
•        Short tenure of ownership (average lt 11
  years)
•        Absence of formal management plans (5-10
  have plans regional foresters score private
  forest management practices at 2 on a 1-10
  scale)
• 2. High Deer Populations
•        30-40 deer/sq. mile, 15-20 is more
  optimal

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BARRIERS TO SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY IN NORTHWEST PA
(cont)

• 3. Logging/Harvest Practices
•        Predominance of high-grading and
  diameter-limit cutting
•        15-20 year surge in prices for northern
  hardwoods high and rising demand for these
  species depressed local farm and regional
  economy fierce competition for logs and
  willing (but perhaps unwitting) sellers
•        Rates of logging on private lands appear
  unsustainable. In 1998, 55 sawmills in the
  county processed approximately 90 million board
  foot of lumber. Equivalent to anywhere from
  10,000 to 25,000 acres of forest lands being
  logged, or 3-8 of forested area in the county.
•        Recent moratoria on logging in the
  Allegheny National Forest has likely led to
  increased rates of logging on private lands in
  surrounding counties.

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Price of wood as it moves through the commodity
chain
Retail Outlet2500/Mbf
Forest Landowner
2500
Final Consumer
Cooperative Value-added Processing
2000
450
Flooring or Molding Mill
Consulting Forester
1550
80
Lumber Broker/ Distributor
Logging Contractor
610
1500
Green Sawmill
Log Broker/ Trucker
Lumber Broker/ Distributor
Kiln Operation
660
1000
1050