Coordinated Resource Offering Protocol (CROP)
In 2006, the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management undertook a series of CROP pilot projects as a means of addressing the growing fuel load problem within major forest systems and the realized potential for fostering catastrophic wildfires within these systems across the United States. Focused on biomass removal (versus biomass inventory), the CROP model was initially developed in 2003 by Oregon-based Mater Engineering targeting unlevelized, uncoordinated, and erratic resource offerings from public forest lands at landscape scale.
The key tenets of CROP projects are to:
- to facilitate coordination of biomass removal between public agencies;
- facilitate the use of long-term multi-agency stewardship contracts to achieve biomass removal;
- increase the certainty of "levelized" biomass supply offerings from public agencies;
- invite investment back into a sustainable forest management landscape; and,
- heighten public trust and support for biomass removal from public lands operating within a transparent process.
CROP pilot project locations.
Since 2006, ten (10) CROP evaluations have been completed on over 30 million acres of public forestlands (see map), and several more are underway. The CROP evaluations were conducted in nine geographic regions where forest restoration and fuel load reduction efforts are a high priority. For each CROP, detailed resource offering maps (ROMs) are provided showing the following biomass removal data for every species to be removed during the next five-year period:
- Volume (by mmbf; green/dry tons; ccf ) with conversions
- Diameter sizes: less than 4-inches, 4- to 7-inches, 7- to 9-inches, 9- to 12-inches, and greater than 12-inches
- Species (every species evaluated for resource flow)
- Harvest "type": fuel load reduction, timber sales, pre-commercial thinning ( PCT), or post and pole
- Location of resource offering
- NEPA phase for each resource offering
- Road accessibility for each resource offering
CROP Results
All regions have signed off on the CROP data and mapping where pilots occurred detailing proposed resource removal over the next 5 years. An overall summary of the CROP projects is found below, followed by specific links for each CROP region that provides you with: a) a PowerPoint summary of the CROP results for a given region; b) a summary of the ROMs for that region; and c) a full ROM report for that region.
- Coordinated Resource Offering Protocol (CROP) Project Summary, October 2007 (PDF, 1.4 MB) - this summary report provides a condensed overview of the results of the ten (10) CROP pilot projects conducted across the US during 2006-2007.
Colorado Region
- Colorado CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Colorado CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.3 MB)
- Colorado CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 1.5 MB)
Mississippi Region
- Mississippi CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Mississippi CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.7 MB)
- Mississippi CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 1.1 MB)
Missouri Region
- Missouri CROP PowerPoint Sumary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Missouri CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.3 MB)
- Missouri CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 0.5 MB)
New Mexico Region
- New Mexico CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.3 MB)
- New Mexico CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.2 MB)
- New Mexico CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 1.0 MB)
Northeastern Region
- Northeastern Revised CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Northeastern CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.3 MB)
- Northeastern CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 1.1 MB)
Oregon Region
- Cow Creek CROP PowerPoint Sumary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Cow Creek CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Cow Creek CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 0.9 MB)
Western Oregon
- Western Oregon CROP PowerPoint Sumary (PDF, 0.5 MB)
- Western Oregon CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Western Oregon CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 1.0 MB)
South Carolina Regions
Investors should be cautious when reviewing the small diameter volume estimate offerings from the National Forests in South Carolina. They are very limited due to: 1. national forests are a small percentage of the land base and forested areas in South Carolina; and, 2. products grow very quickly out of the small diameter class, especially on the coast.
South Carolina 1 Region
- South Carolina 1 CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- South Carolina 1 CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.2 MB)
- South Carolina 1 CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 0.4 MB)
South Carolina 2 Region
- South Carolina 2 CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- South Carolina 2 CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.2 MB)
- South Carolina 2 CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 0.4 MB)
Southeast Alaska Region
- Southeast Alaska CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Southeast Alaska CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Southeast Alaska CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 1.0 MB)
Southern Oregon and Northern California Region
- Southern Oregon - Northern California CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.5 MB)
- Southern Oregon - Northern California CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Southern Oregon - Northern California CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 0.7 MB)
Tahoe Region (California)
- Tahoe Region CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Tahoe Region CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.3 MB)
- Tahoe Region CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 1.9 MB)
Utah Region
- Utah CROP PowerPoint Summary (PDF, 0.5 MB)
- Utah CROP ROMs Summary (PDF, 0.4 MB)
- Utah CROP Full ROMs (PDF, 1.1 MB)