A NATIONAL PLAN FOB AMERICAN FORESTRY 



1283 



15.6 million acres under protection on lands favorable for forestry; 

 3.8 million acres under protection on lands unfavorable for forestry. 



Table 11 indicates the regional distribution of the 172.1 million 

 acres of present private land apparently destined for public ownership, 

 plus the area now available in public ownership. Public acquisition 

 of this 172.1 million acres would require the following selection of land 

 by kind of management: 24.5 million acres suitable for intensive 

 forestry; 97.8 million acres suitable for extensive forestry; 15.5 

 million acres favorable to forestry for protection; 34.3 million acres 

 unfavorable to forestry for protection. 



TABLE 11. Total area destined for public ownership for timber production 

 [Values given in millions of acres] 



1 Other lands now in public ownership are so located, or lack the kind and amounts of timber stands, that 

 they cannot be considered as a factor in timber production.' 



In determining how far the public must go in acquiring and manag- 

 ing forest land the following facts must be given careful consideration : 



1. The total forest growing stock in the Nation is insufficient to 

 maintain a supply equal to present consumption of timber. 



2. The regions where the most favorable opportunities for private 

 forestry exist have depleted growing stock, and cannot produce a 

 reasonable quota of the Nation's timber needs, unless a combination 

 of intensive and extensive forestry is applied to a large part of the 

 commercial timber areas. 



3. The regions with a considerable surplus in growing stock are those 

 only moderately favorable for private forestry. 



Obviously, if this seriously depleted growing stock is not built up, 

 a progressive reduction in timber supply must be expected. This 

 question has, of course, an important bearing on the amount of forest 

 and abandoned agricultural land that should be placed in public 

 ownership. The public has too much at stake to leave the result to 

 accidental fruition, or to the possibility that a shortage of stumpage 

 and high lumber prices will attract private enterprise to keep pace 

 with national timber needs. The safer and sounder policy, and as a 

 first step, is to place at least the 172.1 million acres in public owner- 

 ship, and under proper management withthe assumption that private 

 owners will handle 202.6 million acres. Even on lands where private 

 forestry can be practiced profitably, but where no private interest for 

 doing it exists, it will be good national economy to extend public 

 forests immediately. 



The evidence indicates strongly that public forestry on an enor- 

 mously increased scale is needed in the Southern, Central, and Lake 



