North Central Research Station - Forest Productivity

"Trees are the answer," a wise bumper sticker once said. Trees are renewable and therefore an eco-logic-ally smart choice for today's paper, structural, and manufacturing needs. The question is, what about tomorrow? Will our forests continue to be productive enough for future generations?
 
The demand for wood products is climbing at twice the rate of population growth. While the region's forests account for only 11 percent of the Nation's forest lands, they contain 20 percent of the Nation's forest industry lands and hardwood growing stock. A steady demand for Midwest timber comes from 1,500 wood-using firms that employ more than 400,000 people.

On the supply side, changes in land-use patterns and social preferences mean that fewer lands in the Midwest wood basket are available for timber harvest. Actively managed lands are feeling the pressure, and on some ownerships, aspen harvest already exceeds net aspen growth-an unsustainable pattern. A history of high grade harvesting and a lack of management planning means that many forests, laden with cull timber and less than desirable species, are not as productive as they could be.
We're headed into a funnel formed by these demand-supply trend lines, and we believe that research is one way to ensure we come out the other end with the productive capacity of our forests and our forest-based economy intact. What's needed? In our estimation, significantly more wood must become available on public and private lands, and those increases will require (1) improved genetic material; (2) improved, cost-effective silvicultural systems; (3) more efficient, environmentally friendly harvesting systems; and (4) socially acceptable implementation of high-yield forestry.

We're also aware that one silvicultural system will not fit all. This region is characterized by a diversity of ownerships, a continuum of management intensities (from plantation to natural stands), and a diversity of forest types (from aspen and jack pine to fine hardwoods). The challenge is to meet wood supply and sustainability goals in ways that are as diverse as the landscape. We believe "research is the answer," but it will require new thinking and a far more active integration of disciplines than we've ever attempted.