THE FOREST POLICY OF THE FUTURE. 89 



or have beeu thinned to a degree which renders clearing and 

 replanting essential. All this refers to coniferous woods. Hard- 

 woods, especially those of oak, have experienced less drastic 

 treatment. Under these circumstances, the existing woods, even 

 under systematic treatment, could not provide the necessary 

 timber to meet periods of national emergency. These woods 

 yielded before the war about 47,000,000 cubic feet annually, or 

 about 15 cubic feet per acre and year, and in their present 

 condition they are not likely to reach, for a considerable period 

 of time, a yield of more than 30 to 40 million cubic feet annually, 

 even under proper management. This small production it is 

 considered advisable to allot to meeting any further increase in 

 the demand for timber, and to leave it out of consideration in 

 calculating the area of new afforestation. 



The average annual imports of wood (timber and pulp-wood 

 calculated as growing crops) during the years 1909 to 1913 which 

 could be grown in Great Britain and Ireland were as follows : — 



Conifers : 



Cubic Feet. Total. 



Unconverted timber . . 175,000,000 



Converted timber . . . 360,000,000 



Pulpwood .... 85,000,000 



620,000,000 



Hardwoods : 



Unconverted Oak and others . 10,000,000 

 Converted .... 8,000,000 



18,000,000 



Grand total. Conifers and Hardwoods. . 638,000,000 



To provide all this wood, the following areas will be required. 

 The Sub-Committee estimated the yield, final cuttings and 

 thinnings, in the case of conifers at 70 cubic feet annually per acre 

 of afforested land, and at 35 cubic feet in the case of hardwoods. 

 Hence, the required areas would be : — 



Acres. 



For Conifers . 620,000,000, divided by 70, equal to 8,857,143 

 For Hardwoods . 18,000,000 „ 35 „ 514,286 



Total area to be afEorested .... 9,371,429 



