timber products utilization which today generates more than $25 bil- 

 lion a year of the gross national product. It will directly benefit the 

 National Forest timber management and sales program, under which 

 the annual harvest from these Federal lands will reach 13 billion board 

 feet, with $200 million income by fiscal year 1972. 

 The proposed program will : 



1. Accelerate basic research on the chemical composition of wood 

 and the development of conversion processes to yield a wide array 

 of industrial chemicals, especially from low-quality or little-used 

 species. 



2. Develop better processes for making usable pulp from timber, 

 especially the species not now used commercially, and from res- 

 idues of harvesting and milling operations. Develop new uses 

 for fiber and fiber products in structural materials and packaging. 



3. Intensify research on the chemistry of lignin (which makes up 

 about one-third of wood substance), its separation from wood in 

 unmodified form, and its utilization in plastics and other 

 products. 



4. Accelerate basic research on properties of wood such as its density 

 and the length and angle of fibers, and on their relation to en- 

 vironment and heredity to guide the production of timber having 

 desirable qualities. 



5. Expand knowledge of the structural and related properties of 

 commercial timber species to establish working stresses as the 

 basis for further improvements in design criteria needed for 

 beams, laminated arches, rigid frames, stressed shapes, and 

 stressed-skin units. 



6. Develop improved methods for converting trees and logs into 

 lumber, veneer, plywood, and other solid wood products, with 



emphasis on little-used species and small trees from thinnings; 

 develop new composite products of wood combined with metals, 

 plastics, fiberboards, or other materials. 



7. Devise log and tree quality grades and standards as the basis for 

 improved utilization and marketing of timber. 



8. Improve the processes for extending the life and usefulness of 

 wood and wood products by means of preservative applications or 

 other techniques that eliminate or reduce attack by fungi, insects, 

 and marine borers. Expand research on fire retardants and 

 finishes for wood. 



9. Intensify basic research on bark and wood extractions, includind 

 wood resins for naval stores products. 



Forest Engineering. — The application of sound engineering prin- 

 ciples to timber production will require research into organizing the 

 flow of operational steps required in managing, harvesting, and re- 

 newing forests and the mechanization of each phase. General objec- 

 tives will be to reduce costs and increase the efficiency of timber 

 growing. Research on problems of concern to the small timberland 

 owner will be accelerated substantially by emphasizing studies of 

 logging equipment designed for small operations, logging methods, 

 log handling processes, and methods of processing to upgrade the 

 quality of products. Research will : 



1. Develop well-engineered systems of timber production leading to 

 efficient organization and ready mechanization of seed collection 



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