General 



observations 



Two general observations can be made as the result of this analysis of forest land stratification 

 on the National Forests. 



(1) Before timber inventory data can be or- 

 ganized to provide clearcut and accur- 

 ate guidelines for management, the 

 plans for land use must be carefully 

 developed. Definitive multiple use plans 

 require a broad base of knowledge 

 about lEind stability, watershed charac- 

 teristics, ecology, and resources. In 

 other words, timber inventories and 

 plans are not and cannot be independent 

 entities but are subordinate aspects of a 

 total multiple use planning process. 

 Anything less than complete and defin- 

 itive multiple use plans results in timber 

 being cut where it shouldn't be cut and 

 roads being built where they shouldn't 

 be built on the one hand, and misguided 

 reservations of timber on the other. 



(2) Some top quality timber lands may not 

 be used for timber production because 

 they have other more important values. 

 However, on lands classified as not suit- 

 able for timber growing (or otherwise 

 withdrawn from such use) the produc- 

 tion of timber is generally lower than on 

 lands that remain part of the timber 

 growing base. Thus, although tightening 

 of timber production standards reduces 

 the actual area of productive forest 

 land, it will not proportionally reduce 

 the timber production capabilities. In 

 fact, any increase in management ex- 

 penditures will likely buy greater in- 

 creases in future timber output if con- 

 centrated on the smaller area of better 

 quality land. 



12 



