inventory of hardwoods has increased in every State; 
however, the increases have been relatively small in 
Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. During much of the 
period, in these States, there was extensive hardwood 
clearing along the Mississippi River. The largest increases 
in hardwood inventory have occurred in Virginia, North 
Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. In 1985, the inventory 
of hardwood growing stock still exceeded the inventory of 
softwood by a substantial margin in five of the States: North 
Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. 
Most of the projected increase in hardwood inventory in 
1990 is in Arkansas, Mississippi, Virginia, and Tennessee. 
Beyond 2000, decreases are projected in the inventory of 
hardwood in every State. The largest decreases are 
projected in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, and Arkansas. 
A Qualified View on Projected Changes in Timber 
Resources 
As indicated in various ways in the preceding discussion, 
there are many uncertainties associated with the assumptions 
and basic data used in making projections of changes in the 
timber resource. 
More intensive management or planting large areas of 
marginal cropland and pasture to trees could lead to higher 
levels of timber growth and inventories. On the other hand, 
they could just as well be lower as a result of larger shifts 
in timberland to other uses, more constraints on timber 
management associated with protection of the environment 
and multiple use, or extraordinary mortality losses. On the 
basis of the available information, there seems to be no way 
to determine that the projections are either high or low. 
Thus, in appraising the projections that have been presented 
here, the basic objective of making them should be kept in 
mind. They are designed to show developing timber- 
resource problems, and to do that in time to change policies 
and programs affecting timber productivity if this seems 
desirable to society. 
As stated at the beginning of this chapter, there is no intent 
to predict that the projected changes will actually occur, 
nor that they should. Chapter 4 quantifies the likely impacts 
of projected changes in the resource on stumpage and 
product prices, on income and employment in the forest 
industries, and on State and local governments. The analysis 
in chapter 4, in fact, suggests a need for changing the 
projected trends and moving toward growing a forest that 
will be of greater benefit to the economy and society of the 
South and of the Nation. 
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