The report showed that privately held forests in the US "are under substantial stress from development and fragmentation and that increased housing density in forests will exacerbate other threats to forests from wildfire, insects, pathogens and pollution." Privately held forests "make up 56 percent of all forested lands" in the US.
The report's finding include: that housing density will increase on more than 57 million acres of private forests between 2000 and 2030; private forests "play a critical role in supplying our nation with clean water resources, and the timber "needed to build communities will be threatened"; species "including the already-endangered Florida panther and the grizzly bear are also expected to be put at risk because of loss of forested land." Additionally, "as houses encroach on forests, the risks to human life and property from fire increase as do the costs of fire management and suppression."
To read the USDA press release, click here.
For the full text of the "Private Forests, Public Benefits" report, click here.
Posted: 08/12/2010
