340 



the United States can count on much more lumber 

 from Canada 25 and 50 yeai-s hence than was 

 imported in 1952. 



MEXICO'S TIMBER SITUATION 



Mexico's timber resources and timber trade are 

 small in comparison with those of the United 

 States and Canada. Nevertheless, the United 

 States does obtain pine lumber and other forest 

 products from Mexico. Consequently, the possi- 

 bility of continuing these imports warrants 

 consideration. 



Forest Area Is Relatively Small 



The forest area of Mexico is estimated to be 64 

 million acres, roughly 13 percent of the total land 

 area. This contrasts strikingly with a correspond- 

 ing 34 percent in the United States. The following 

 breakdown of this forest area may be roughlj' 

 indicative of the general forest situation: 



Area 



Million 



Commercial forests: »"es Percent 



Tropical 27 42 



Temperate 22 35 



Total 49 77 



Noncommercial forests 15 23 



AUforests 64 100 



Roughly 75 percent of the commercial forest 

 area, both tropical and temperate, is considered 

 to be accessible. The tropical commercial forests, 

 all hardwood, consist of some 12 million acres in 

 the Yucatan Peninsula and 15 million acres in the 

 remainder of tropical Mexico (fig. 106). The tem- 

 perate commercial forests are mixed hardwood and 

 softwood, and include approximately 10 million 

 acres of virgin and moderately exploited areas and 

 12 million acres of heavy cutovers. The relative 

 abundance of softwood and hardwood species is 

 uncertain, but probably softwoods predominate on 

 one-third of the commercial forest area and hard- 

 woods on two-thirds. The noncommercial forest 

 land is brushland and grazing land \\'ith scattered 

 trees. 



The pine and pine-oak forests are the most 

 important forest types in Mex-ico, both in area and 

 economic value. They contain about 30 species of 

 pine, most of which are of commercial significance, 

 and more than a hundred species of oak. Among 

 the pines, the following species are believed to be 

 the most important: Slexican white pine {Pinun 

 ayacahuite) , Apache pine (P. engelmannii) , Monte- 

 zuma pine (P. 7nonYe2M?«ae), Aztec pine (P.teocote), 

 P. leiophylla, and P. oocarpa. 



Pine predominates in the mountains at eleva- 

 tions ranging between 5,000 and 13,000 feet. 

 Ordinarily the pine is gradually replaced by the 



TIMBER RESIOURCES FOR AMERICA'S ITJTURE 



oak at altitudes below this range. Most of the 

 commercial pine timber is either in the Sierra 

 Madre Occidental range, which extends from the 

 Arizona border southward through the western 

 half of the country, or is in the south coastal 

 Sierra Madre del Sur. In east central Mexico, the 

 Sierra Madre Oriental contains some pine at the 

 higher elevations, but rough topography and hght 

 stocking practically disqualify it as a commercial 

 source of timber. Even in the other mountain 

 areas, much of the timber on high and rough 

 terrain is at present out of economic reach. The 

 development of railroad and road transportation 

 appears to be needed to open up these softwood 

 stands. In some instances, at least, it is question- 

 able if the timber values on present markets are 

 worth the investment and operating risks that 

 would be involved. 



The Mexican rain forest, prominent in the Yuca- 

 tan Peninsula and westward in the Isthmus of 

 Tehuantepec, occurs in the low, humid, tropical 

 areas of heavy rainfall. Although several hundred 

 commercial tree species are found within this t^'pe. 

 it is chiefly prized for the scattered occurrence of 

 three particularly^ valuable species: mahoganv 

 {Swieteriia macrophyUa), chicle {Achras zapota), 

 and ramon {Brosiinum alicastrum) . In many 

 areas, the forest cover is broken or reduced to 

 secondary scrub because of shifting cultivation or 

 heavy exploitation. 



For the Nation as a whole, the forest land is 

 owned about as follows: 



Percen t 



Federal . 5 



Communal 20 



Private 75 



This ownership pattern generallj- approximates 

 that of the continental United States, where 74 

 percent of the commercial forest area is privateh' 

 owned. The communal forests are of special signi- 

 ficance because they are concentrated in the 

 heavily populated and agriculturalh- important 

 central plateau region. In 1949, about 2 mUlion 

 acres of federally owned forests were in national 

 parks and 1.6 million acres were in forest reserves. 



Timber Volume Is Small 



No reliable estimates of Mexico's total timber 

 volume exist. Recent approximations of average 

 timber volume per acre range from 700 cubic feet 

 for all forests to 2,000 cubic feet for accessible com- 

 mercial forests. Assummg an average of 1,200 

 cubic feet per acre of commercial forest, the com- 

 mercial timber volume would total about 59 billion 

 cubic feet. The total timber volume on com- 

 mercial forest land in the United States is 498 

 billion cubic feet. There is no basis for breaking 

 down this 59 billion cubic feet by species, geo- 

 graphic area, or quality'. 



