below the general level of the 1960's when estimated 

 consumption averaged about 500 million cubic feet 

 per year, and far below consumption of more than 2 

 billion cubic feet annually in the early 1900's. 



The downward trend in consumption of miscel- 

 laneous industrial roundwood products which began 

 around 1910 appears to have bottomed out in recent 

 years. For this report, it was assumed that demand 

 for these products will rise slowly to 900 million cubic 

 feet by 2010 and remain at that level through 2030. 

 Individual products are likely to show divergent 

 trends as in the past. Much of the increase is expected 

 to come from expanding use of roundwood for struc- 

 tural grades of particleboard. There also may be a 

 significant increase in use for chemicals including the 

 production of methanol for fuel. However, at this 

 time, with the existing technology and the current 

 costs of petroleum and chemicals produced from 

 other materials, the economic potential is quite 

 limited. 



In addition to the roundwood, some 516 million 

 cubic feet of plant byproducts such as sawdust, slabs, 

 and edgings were used in the production of charcoal, 

 chemicals, and various other goods in 1976. Because 

 of the competition from other uses and limitations on 

 supply, little change is expected in the future. 



Fuelwood 



Fuelwood consumption in 1976 was an estimated 

 18 million cords or 1.4 billion cubic feet. This 

 included approximately 330 million cubic feet of 

 roundwood from growing stock trees and 270 million 

 cubic feet of primary plant byproducts. This volume 

 was equivalent to about 21 million tons of dry wood. 

 Additionally, some 10 million tons (dry basis) of bark 

 was consumed for fuel in 1976. 



Fuelwood cut from roundwood was used almost 

 entirely for domestic heating and cooking. Plant by- 

 products were used both for domestic purposes and 

 for industrial fuel, primarily at wood processing 

 plants. 



Residential use of fuelwood. — Roundwood was 

 the major source of energy for the United States until 

 the 1880's. Fuelwood use dropped sharply in the first 

 half of the present century, replaced by fossil fuels 

 and electricity. Difficulties in fossil fuel supply during 

 World War I, The Great Depression, and World War 

 II brought renewed interest in wood, but these epi- 

 sodes did not significantly change the rapid decline in 

 fuelwood consumption. By 1970, less than 2 percent 

 of all households in the United States used wood as 

 their primary fuel for heating and less than 1 percent 

 as their primary cooking fuel. 



The use of wood tor domestic heating has been rising since 1973 in 

 response to rapid increases in the costs of other fuels. 



With the unprecedented rise in fossil fuel prices 

 which has occurred since 1973, an increasing number 

 of households (estimated at 912,000 in 1976) is using 

 wood as a primary source of heating.'' A much greater 

 number is using wood for supplementary heat or for 

 esthetic purposes. In 1976, 58 percent of all new 

 single-family homes built had one or more fireplaces, 

 as compared to 44 percent in 1969.^ Scattered data 

 indicate that the number of wood stoves, not included 

 in the figure for fireplaces, has also risen substan- 

 tially. Thus, it is assumed for this Assessment that 

 residential use of wood fuels, especially from round- 

 wood, will increase steadily from 6 million cords in 

 1976 to approximately 26 million cords in 2030. 

 However, it is conceivable that major alternative 

 sources of oil, such as tar sands and oil shale, and 

 natural gas from geopressurized hot fluids, may 

 become sufficiently developed before then to reverse 

 this trend. 



Industrial and commercial uses of fuelwood. — Of 

 the nearly 800 million cubic feet (1 1 million tons, dry 

 basis) of wood byproducts used as fuel in 1976, about 

 90 percent went to produce steam heat and electricity 

 at wood processing plants. Additionally, pulpmills 

 used about 5 million tons, dry basis, of bark removed 

 from roundwood pulpwood and 61 million tons of 

 spent Uquid soUds for fuel.' Wood processing plants 

 in the future are likely to use as fuel nearly all their 



' U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census. Residential 

 energy uses. Series H-123-77, 8 p. May 1978. 



8 U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census. Current 

 housing reports. Series H-150-76, General housing characteristics 

 for the United States and Regions. 1976; Annual Housing Survey- 

 1976. part A. 1978. 



' American Paper Institute, Raw Materials and Energy Division, 

 U.S. pulp, paper and paperboard industry: estimated fuel and 

 energy use, 1 p. April 10, 1978. 



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