RECENT TRENDS IN FOREST LAND AND TIMBER RESOURCES 



29 



Table 19. — Growing stock and sawtimber inventories on commercial timberlands, by section and softwoods 



and hardwoods, 1970 



GROWING STOCK 



Section 



All species 



Softwoods 



Hardwoods 





Volume 



Pro- 

 portion 



Volume 



Pro- 

 portion 



Volume 



Pro- 

 portion 



North. __. ._ _ . .. -. - 



Billion cu. ft. 



155. 7 



159. 5 



92. 2 



241. 5 



Percent 

 24. 

 24. 6 

 14. 2 

 37.2 



Billion cu. ft. 



39. 1 



78.4 



87. 7 



226. 6 



Percent 



9.0 



18. 2 



20.3 



52.5 



Billion cu. ft. 



116. 6 



81. 1 



4.5 



14. 8 



Percent 

 53. 7 



South .__. --.. 



37. 4 



Rocky Mountains _ 



2. 1 



Pacific Coast ____ _____ 



6.8 







Total _ __ -_. 



648.9 



100.0 



431. 9 



100.0 



217. 



100. 







SAWTIMBER 



North_. . _ __ 



Billion bd. ft. 



331.9 



483.9 



364.4 



1, 240. 6 



Percent 

 13. 7 

 20.0 

 15. 1 

 51.2 



Billion bd. ft. 



80. 1 



275.9 



355. 1 



1, 194. 2 



Percent 



4. 2 



14. 5 



18. 6 



62.7 



Billion bd. ft. 



251. 8 



208. 



9. 3 



46. 4 



Percent 

 48. 8 



South _ __ _ _ . __ . 



40.4 



Rocky Mountains _______ 



1. 8 



Pacific Coast. _ _ _ _ __ 



9. 







Total.. - . - . 



2, 420. 8 



100.0 



1, 905. 3 



100. 



515. 5 



100. 







Note: Data may not add to totals because of rounding. 



such as railroad ties, pallet lumber, and construc- 

 tion timber. 



Only 12 percent of the hardwood growing stock 

 volume in 1970 was in trees 19 inches and larger 

 in diameter at breast height (table 21). This 

 limited supply of larger timber further limits suit- 

 ability of hardwood timber for products where 

 quality is important. 



About 40 percent of the total hardwood inven- 

 tory was between 11 and 19 inches in diameter — 

 trees large enough for the manufacture of common 

 grades of lumber and products such as ties and 

 timbers. Trees 5 to 1 1 inches in diameter made up 

 about half of the total hardwood inventory. 



Ownership of Timber Inventories 



The largest portion of the softwood timber 

 inventory in 1970 was in National Forests, in- 

 cluding some 46 percent of all softwood growing 

 stock and 51 percent of all softwood sawtimber 

 (table 22). Most of these timber volumes were in 

 old-growth stands in the West, with a major part 

 in areas still lacking access roads. Only 8 percent 

 of all hardwood growing stock was in National 

 Forests. 



Farm and miscellaneous private ownerships con- 

 tained the major part of the Nation's inventory of 

 hardwoods — about 71 percent — and a substantial 

 part of all softwood inventories — about 26 percent. 

 Nearly all of this timber is readily accessible from 

 existing road systems and is relatively close to 

 timber markets. 



Forest industries in 1970 held about 17 percent 

 of all softwood inventories, and a somewhat 

 smaller proportion of hardwoods. Wood-using 

 plants in the East thus must look to nonindustrial 

 private ownerships for much of their timber 

 supply, while many western firms must depend 

 on National Forest and other public lands for 

 much of their log requirements. 



Public ownerships other than National Forests 

 held roughly 10 percent of all timber inventories 

 in 1970. These inventories were of particular 

 importance in the Pacific Northwest and the 

 Lake States. 



Trends in Timber Inventories 



Total inventories of softwoods in the United 

 States increased about 1 percent between 1962 

 and 1970, while softwood sawtimber volumes 

 dropped about 3 percent (table 23). Hardwood 

 volumes increased by somewhat larger percentages 

 for both sawtimber and total growing stock. 

 These trends in inventories in part reflect signif- 

 icant success in efforts to protect and improve 

 American forests. 



Inventories rose substantially in the South and 

 in the North for both softwood and hardwood 

 volumes. Inventories decreased in the Pacific 

 Coast and Rocky Mountain sections, as would be 

 expected while old-growth stands are being 

 harvested. 



Inventories increased between 1952 and 1970 

 in all size classes except in the 30-inch and larger 



