The most recent surveys of forests in the 

 South show that net annual timber growth 

 for softwoods and hardwoods, after rising 

 for decades, has begun to decline. There are 

 four major causes of the decline: ( 1 ) lack 

 of adequate regeneration of pine stands after 

 harvest, (2) an increase in mortality and 

 cull trees, (3) a decline in radial growth, and 

 (4) the conversion of timberland to other 

 uses. 



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