Foreword 
ODAY, THE NEED for productive forests transcends that of any 
earlier period. The Nation faces the double task of creating a lasting 
prosperity at home, and of working to improve economic conditions 
for people all over the world. Clearly, we shall need abundant resources 
for this task. The war pointed toward the heights of national produc- 
tivity of which we are capable. It also cut deeply into our natural 
resources. We know now that the Nation can no longer be satisfied with 
the best achieved in the past. And it is equally clear that wise use of all 
our resources is vital if we are to reach the new, high goals ahead. 
During 1945 and 1946 the Forest Service made a reappraisal of the 
forest situation in the United States. Its purpose was to bring up to date 
and amplify basic information on our timber resources, to interpret this 
information in relation to the national economy, and to reexamine 
national policies and needs in forest conservation. Previous analyses of a 
similar nature were made in 1938 and 1932. 
Forests contribute to the welfare of the Nation in many ways. They 
are invaluable in the protection of watersheds; they afford recreation 
and sport for people in all walks of life; they are the habitat of many 
forms of wildlife; they provide range forage for millions of livestock. But 
this appraisal dealt mainly with the timber resource. Other aspects of the 
situation were considered primarily in relation to timber use. 
The reappraisal has made use of the large amount of information 
available from the Forest Survey and other activities of the Forest 
Service, and from other agencies. Such information has been brought up 
to date, checked, and supplemented. Much new resource information 
also was obtained to assure an authoritative summary of the quantity, 
quality, distribution, growth, and drain of the timber resources in the 
United States proper. Only incidental attention was given to the forests 
of Alaska and to the world timber situation. Estimates of potential 
requirements for forest products and of unavoidable losses through 
natural causes were supplemented by consideration of margins for new 
uses, export, and national security. 
Especially important new information on the character of forest 
practices and the degree of forest management by ownership classes was 
obtained by a field survey. The volume and character of wood waste and 
the possibilities of using more of it were explored. Problems of the 
timber industries in relation to raw-material supply were reviewed. The 
status and needs of forest protection were reexamined. Special attention 
was given to problems of ownership, because ownership so fundamen- 
tally influences the kind of action needed. 
This report brings together in concise form the over-all findings of 
the reappraisal and restates the principal Federal measures which I 
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