WATERSHED AND OTHER SERVICES AND PRODUCTS 

 OF THE FORESTS 



The discussion of our forest land resource brought out the concept 

 of the forest as a complex biological unit serving a wide range of highly 

 important economic and social functions. Wood production has, 

 until recently at least, usually been considered the primary forest use. 

 In many cases, however, other functions actually take precedence, 

 and in the aggregate, for the entire country, may outweigh in im- 

 portance timber production. With some exceptions these uses are 

 not conflicting and several or all may, with proper correlation, be 

 served at the same time. It is the purpose of the following sections to 

 appraise the various uses and to correlate them with each other. 



The discussion of watershed and the clearly related forest influences 

 analyzes the manner in which these influences are exerted and their 

 extent, and presents a survey of the 17 principal watersheds into 

 which, for this purpose, the United States is divided. Succeeding 

 sections evaluate the recreational services of forests and the area that 

 may need eventually to be reserved with this as the primary use; 

 outline the scope, importance, and outstanding problems pertaining 

 to the forage and wild-life resources of the forest; and describe a num- 

 ber of the secondary by-products. 



The discussions in this third main part of the report complete the 

 presentation of our forest resources. 

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