1268 A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 



to land abandonment by other forest owners, as in the Lake States 

 and parts of the Pacific region, is indicative of the judgment of land- 

 owners that forest-growing opportunities are poor. General lack of 

 land abandonment, as in New England, on the contrary, expresses 

 general belief by landowners that a fair opportunity exists. 



Then, too, the social tradition to hold land as the primary source of 

 wealth is a powerful factor in New England, whereas the more typical 

 attitude of western owners is to regard land as simply a medium for 

 the immediate exploitation of the wealth it produces. 



Of these factors, and there are many others, some may assume 

 major importance in one broad type and region and may be inconse- 

 quential in another region. Furthermore, what may be a true answer 

 as to a specific factor for a region as a whole, may not be correct for a 

 given forest property in that region. 



BALANCING LOCAL ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES 



The exact value and relative weight of each factor are not readily 

 ascertainable and even if these could be determined, the relative 

 opportunity for private forestry in each region could not be stated 

 with mathematical exactness. Recognizing these inherent difficul- 

 ties, an approximation of the relative opportunities for private 

 forestry has nevertheless been attempted by weighing these factors 

 for each major type and region. Each major forest region contains 

 two or more forest types, and only rarely do all the types in a region 

 bear the same rating as to private opportunity. For example, in the 

 Southern region, the pine type of the coastal plain rates very high, 

 whereas the oak-chestnut-yellow poplar type of the Appalachians in 

 the same region rates relatively low and the oak-pine type of the 

 Piedmont Plateau is intermediate. Similarly in the Pacific region 

 the Douglas fir type of the northwest rates as superior in private 

 opportunity to the ponderosa pine type of the same region. Simply 

 as a matter of convenience in tying the private opportunity ratings 

 to the classification of forest regions which is used throughout this 

 report, an average rating for each region has been estimated, weighed 

 to recognize differences in area of types within regions. 



By this means the several regions may be divided into four broad 

 classes of opportunity for private forestry, as follows : 



Class 1. Most favorable: New England, Middle Atlantic, Central. 



Class 2. Generally favorable : South. 



Class 3. Only locally favorable: Lake, Pacific. 



Class 4. Least favorable: North Rockies, South Rockies. 



This does not, of course, mean that all properties are a favorable 

 chance in the regions at the top of the list, nor all at the bottom an 

 unfavorable chance. Only a detailed rating of each property can 

 determine its individual opportunity. ^ Any attempt to carry the 

 interpretation of the rating beyond its significance as a broad average 

 would be wholly unwarranted. It is a relative, not an absolute 

 rating. Neither should it be interpreted 'by any private owner, 

 regardless of the region in which located, as evidence that he cannot 

 profitably practice forestry. The Pacific region has been placed in 

 the third class, but yet its fine stands of remaining virgin timber, the 

 rapid growth of species, and the high quality of the product combine 

 to present locally some of the most favorable opportunities for private 

 forestry. 



