TIMBER PRODUCTION 



The timber -producing capacity of Montana's 15,727,000 

 acres of commercial forest land is one of the most important 

 assets of the State. Forest products rank third in 

 production of gross income in the State, with agriculture 

 first, and mining second. Although the wood products 

 industry has shown a substantial increase in income and 

 employment over the past twenty-five years, there still 

 exists many opportunities to expand further and to improve 

 this industry. 



Fifty-eight percent of the forest area lies in the 

 one-sixth of the State west of the Continental Divide. 

 In fact, 80 percent of the land west of the Continental 

 Divide is classified as forest. This is considered 

 to be some of the best timberland in the Rocky Mountains. 



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