190 



TIMBER RESOURCES FOR AMERICA'S FUTURE 



Table 114. — Growth impact resulting from 1952 damage on commercial forest land in the United States and 



Coastal Alaska, by cause and section 



GROWING STOCK 



Cause 



Section of United States 



Total, 

 United 

 States 



Coastal 

 Alaska 



Total, United 

 States and 



- 



North 



South 



West 



Coastal Alaska 



Fire — . . ... . ... . . .. 



Million 

 cu. ft. 

 193 

 2, 199 

 398 

 245 

 869 

 401 



Million 



cu. ft. 



1,378 



1,847 



363 



149 



39 



223 



Million 

 cu. ft. 

 Ii5 

 850 

 976 

 540 

 101 

 105 



Million 



cu. ft. 



1,686 



4, 896 



1,737 



934 



1,009 



729 



Million 



cu. ft. 



2 



152 



41 



23 



Million 

 cu. ft. 



1, 688 



Disease . 



5,048 



Insects _- _ . _ -__ 



1, 778 



Weather 



957 



Animals _ ______ 



1,009 



Miscellaneous ..__.- 



729 









Gross impact _. 



4,305 

 150 



3,999 

 238 



2,687 

 381 



10, 991 

 769 



218 



11, 209 



Salvage ' _ . _ _ . 



769 









Net impact . . _ __ _ 



4, 155 



3,761 



2,306 



10, 222 



218 



10, 440 







SAWTIMBER 



Fire 



Disease 



Insects 



Weather 



Animals 



Miscellaneous 



Gross impact 

 Salvage ' 



Net impact- . 



Million 



bd.-ft. 



886 



7,983 



1,414 



597 



2,451 



505 



13, 836 

 280 



13, 556 



Million 



bd.-ft. 



5," 802 



6,953 



1,461 



575 



87 



558 



15, 436 

 615 



14, 821 



Million 



bd.-ft. 



"680 



4,323 



5, 569 



2, 609 



184 



295 



13, 660 

 2, 194 



11,466 



Million 

 bd.-ft. 

 7,' 368 

 19, 259 

 8,444 

 3,781 

 2,722 

 1,358 



42, 932 

 3,089 



39, 843 



Million 

 bd.-ft. 

 4 

 630 

 173 



895 



895 



Million 

 bd.-ft. 



7,372 

 19, 889 

 8,617 

 3,869 

 2,722 

 1,358 



43, 827 

 3,089 



40, 738 



' Utilized from dead trees in 1952. 



tional fire or the unusually bad fire situation. The 

 impact to the timber resource wUl continue to 

 result largely from this characteristic pattern of 

 fire damage. 



This is not to say that fire is always detrimental 

 to forest management. A carefidly controlled 

 burn can be useful in specific circumstances. Con- 

 trolled fires, often called prescribed burns, create 

 a favorable seedbeed for many species. A pre- 

 scribed burn can sometimes be used to eliminate 

 or check hardwoods or brush, reduce disease, or 

 increase the browse or forage. Controlled fire is 

 usually the most effective and practical means of 

 eliminating logging debris on clear-cut areas so as 

 to create conditions favorable for forest manage- 

 ment and for the prevention of wildfire. However, 

 except when used under rigid control, fu'e is abso- 

 lutely incompatible with timber production — not 

 to mention other forest values. 



Timber Losses Due to Fire 

 Total Impact on Growth Is Substantial 



The mortality caused by fire and the growth 

 losses constitute a substantial growth impact on 

 the timber resource. For example, the impact 

 resulting from 1952 fires amounted to 1,688 mil- 

 lion cubic feet of growing stock, including 7,372 

 million board-feet of sawtimber. But because the 

 severity of fire seasons fluctuates widely from year 

 to year and place to place, the importance of 

 growth impact can best be judged from annual 

 averages. Table 117 shows that, for the country 

 as a whole, losses resulting from the average year 

 of the period 1948 to 1952 were somewhat higher 

 than those resulting from 1952 fires. 



Normally the South suffers about four-fifths of 

 the losses, both to growing stock and sawtimber, 

 and 1952 was no exception. In the North, how- 



