Criterion 6 Indicator 28: Total and Per Capita Consumption of Wood and Wood Products in Roundwood Equivalents

Abstract

Total consumption of wood and paper products and fuelwood, in roundwood equivalents, increased between 1965 and 1988 from 13.3 to 19.6 billion cubic feet per year. Since 1988, it has been about 20 billion cubic feet per year. Total per capita consumption increased between 1965 and 1988, 68 to 80 ft³ per year. Since 1988 through 2011, per capita consumption has declined 42 ft³ per year. Consumption excluding fuelwood increased steadily between 1965 and 1988, from 12.3 to 16.8 billion cubic feet, before flattening out between 1989 and 2007. Per capita consumption, excluding fuelwood, has been declining since 1988. So, in roundwood equivalents, wood has been increasing at roughly the pace of population while paper consumption is moving in the opposite direction. Total consumption has been increasing faster than domestic harvest as net imports of wood and paper products have increased. If consumption continues to increase faster than domestic harvest, then an increasing proportion of the environmental and economic effects of our consumption will be felt in forests in other countries that export products to the United States.

Citation

Howard, James L.; McKeever, David B.; Bilek, E.M. (Ted). 2016. Criterion 6 indicator 28: Total and per capita consumption of wood and wood products in roundwood equivalents. Research Note, FPL-RN-0338. Madison, WI. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory. 22 p.