70 



• Because of this, the average timber volume per acre in U.S. forests has in- 

 creased by more than one-third since 1952. In the eastern United States, the aver- 

 age timber volume per acre has almost doubled since 1952. 



• In the 1980s, tree planting was at record levels. In recent years over 400 trees 

 have been planted annually for every child born in the United States. 



It is one measure of the public perception problem we face today that few people 

 recognize the conservation gains that have been made since the 1930's. Fewer still 

 are aware of the role the Forest Service played in realizing those gains. This reflects 

 the nature of both media and interest groups, which both tend to focus on the real 

 or perceived problem or "crisis du jour." 



Yet a broader perspective is also important, since it gives the public important 

 insights about U.S. forests. One partial answer to building public confidence in our 

 ability to address resource problems is to provide clear information on the condition 

 and trends of natural resources in a broad context. Seeking to frame contemporary 

 resource issues in such a broader context should in no way diminish our commit- 

 ment to address the many and serious resource problems that confront us today. 

 However, such insights are important to providing a contextual framework within 

 which to understand today's challenges. 



National Forest Management 



Most of the controversy surrounding Forest Service activities focuses on the na- 

 tional forests. This controversy began in the late 1960's and has been generally 

 growing since then. It reflects the growing demands that an increasingly vocal 

 public is placing on the Nation's public lands. It also reflects the nature of the 

 broad, multiple purpose mandate that Congress has given the National Forest 

 System. That broad spectrum of available management choices tends to intensify 

 the public debate. 



Until after World War II, management of national forest lands was essentially 

 custodial in nature. Recreational use was very low. Commodity production included 

 livestock grazing and modest timber sale levels (averaging less than 2 billion board 

 feet annually prior to 1940). 



All this changed after 1950. In response to the increased housing needs of return- 

 ing GI's and their growing families, national forest timber sale levels increased from 

 3.4 billion board feet in 1950 to 12.2 billion in 1960, and remained in the 10 to 12 

 billion range until 1988. This was a definite policy choice of the Nation (and Con- 

 gress), which recognized that half the large softwood timber remained on the nation- 

 al forests (primarily in the West), and that many private forest lands had been 

 heavily impacted to meet the war effort and needed an opportunity to recover. It 

 was considered sound public policy to seek to rapidly liquidate existing slow growing 

 stands of old-growth national forest timber and replace them with thrifty young 

 stands. The national forests provided over a fifth of the softwood sawtimber harvest- 

 ed in the United States during this period. 



Recreational use also exploded after World War II, as an increasingly affluent 

 and mobile public discovered the national forests and other public lands. This set 

 the stage for conflicts that began to grow in the 1960's. Such conflicts began to be 

 manifested in controversies over timber harvesting practices, especially clearcutting, 

 in various parts of the country (e.g., the Monongahela and Bitterroot National For- 

 ests). 



Reflecting the increasingly intense, and often conflicting, public demands on the 

 national forests, Congress passed the Multiple Use-Sustained Yield Act in 1960 and, 

 shortly thereafter in 1964, the Wilderness Act. This set the stage for the land alloca- 

 tion battles that continue today. In 1976, Congress passed the National Forest Man- 

 agement Act (NFMA), which, among other things, set forth guidelines for timber 

 harvesting and provided for increased public participation in national forest deci- 

 sionmaking. 



Unfortunately, NFMA did not reduce the public conflicts. In fact there are many 

 issues at the center of attention today which were given little or no mention by the 

 environmental community in 1976 when NFMA was passed. Examples include the 

 need to protect remaining old-growth forests and the northern spotted owl, and eco- 

 system management. This indicates the dynamic nature of national forest issues. 



The Forest Service has responded to these issues in a proactive manner. We 

 adopted a position statement in 1989 that affirmed the many values and uses of old- 

 growth forests and set forth general guidance for their inventory and management. 

 Old-growth definitions based on ecological characteristics are being developed in col- 

 laboration with research scientists and user groups such as the Nature Conservan- 

 cy. These will be used to obtain more reliable information on the extent and loca- 

 tion of old growth. The forest plans completed during the 1980's and early 1990's 



