Forests, Wildfire & Rural Communities

Improving Resilience: Forests, Wildfires and Communities

As in many countries, wildfires in the U.S. 是否变得更糟，过度茂密的森林是问题的一部分. 对木材产品的健康需求为土地所有者提供了一种财政激励，鼓励他们进行森林间伐和其他景观恢复工作，以减少火灾风险. In particular, 大量的木材为用直径相对较小的树木和受昆虫影响的树木制造大型结构元素创造了机会, disease, and fire. It also offers a way to strengthen rural economies. Mass timber products require sophisticated manufacturing, planning, and other plant positions—in other words, 在需要经济刺激的社区提供高薪工作. So, 建造城市木结构建筑与我们自然环境的健康和农村城镇的成功有着非常现实的联系.

Overly Dense Forests

In the U.S., forests occupy about one-third of the land base. Over the past 100 years, 西部森林景观的构成已经从有天然防火屏障的拼凑模式转变为密度大得多的森林. Combined with a changing climate—including warmer, 干燥多风的天气——这些过于茂密的森林为越来越大的灾难性野火创造了有利条件.¹

想了解更多关于森林密度影响的信息，请观看Ted演讲， 为什么野火越来越严重，我们能做些什么 美国农业部林务局和华盛顿大学/俄勒冈州立大学的保罗·赫斯伯格.

Is North America running out of forests?

Forest area in the U.S. 100多年来一直保持稳定，尽管人口急剧增长. By conservative estimates, the U.S. 1900年的人口是7600万，而今天的人口是3.3亿. And yet, as shown in the graphic below, 我们现在的森林面积和上个世纪初差不多. 

除了总体上稳定的林地数量外，美国的森林覆盖率也在不断提高.S. 经历了其林地(也被称为“工作森林”)树木数量的增加.“这些是可用于木材采伐的土地，不包括国家公园或荒野地区. An increase means net growth of tree stock, while a decrease would mean an overall loss of tree stock. 该数据考虑了所有损失，包括自然死亡、野火和收获. Since 1953, the volume of timber on these lands has increased by 60%, as illustrated in the graphic below.² Less than 2% of working forests are harvested each year.³

Forest growth vs. removals is another measure. The graphic below shows growth and removals on U.S. timberlands. Again, it can be seen that growth outpaces removals.

Does specifying wood contribute to deforestation?

Let’s consider the definition. 毁林是指将林地永久转为非林地用途. 在世界范围内，农业扩张是森林砍伐的主要驱动力，但在美国这里.S.几十年来，美国的森林砍伐率几乎为零.⁴ 在下面的照片中，你可以看到一个区域被清理干净，处于再生的早期阶段. 前景中的植被可能代表了收获后10年左右的生长.

That isn’t to say we don’t have concerns for the future. Wildfire, draught, outbreaks of insects and disease, and conversion of forested land for development, 农业和其他用途都是真正的问题——强劲的木材市场正在帮助解决这些问题.

In the U.S., 58% of the total forest land is privately owned. More than 10 million individuals, family landowners, and tribes account for 38% of this total, while corporations own the remaining 20%.³  While forest ownership in the U.S. 私有制和公有制是否平均分配, private lands account for 89% of all timber harvested.²

是什么促使这些团体和个人保持他们的土地森林? Economic value is a major factor. If landowners don’t derive enough value from their forests, they’re far more likely to convert them to other uses. Likewise, 实行可持续林业的财政激励就越多, 更多的私人土地所有者将投资于旨在长期森林健康的做法. For example, 通过减少对水和养分的竞争，对过于密集的地区进行间伐有助于改善剩余树木的健康状况. 健康的树木能够更好地应对干旱条件, 在虫害和疾病爆发中有更好的存活率, and recover better from small or moderately intense fires.

While focused on public forests, 美国农业部林务局正在帮助在全美建立强大的木材产品市场.S., which will benefit both public and private lands. A priority focus of the U.S. 林业局木材创新资助计划是大量木材, 哪些树木可以利用直径较小的树木和受昆虫影响的树木, disease and fire, while bringing well-paying jobs to forest communities. 它是支持长期可持续森林管理的一种手段， reduce greenhouse gas emissions并将美国农村置于新兴产业的前沿.⁵

欲了解更多关于美国森林所有权、管理和趋势的信息.S., check out these resources:

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Forest Service. (2017). Forest Resources of the United States, 2017. 

Congressional Research Service. (2021). In Focus: U.S. Forest Ownership and Management.

林产品国际贸易中心(CINTRAFOR), Natural Resource Spatial Informatics Group (NRSIG). (2023). Increasing Mass Timber Consumption in the U.S. and Sustainable Timber Supply.

Think Wood. (2015). The Impact of Wood Use on North American Forests.

¹ Hessburg, P. USDA U.S. Forest Service, University of Washington-Oregon State University. (2020). Changing Wildfire and Climatic Regimes in the 21^st Century Western U.S.

² USDA U.S. Forest Service. (2019). Forest Resources of the United States, 2017.

³ Working Forests Initiative.

⁴ World Wildlife Fund. Deforestation: A threat to people and nature.

⁵ USDA U.S. Forest Service. Wood Innovations Program.