Assessing the viability and adaptability of forest-dependent communities in the United States.

Abstract

The work responds to the need to assess progress toward sustainable forest management as established by the Montréal Process of Criteria and Indicators. The focus is on a single indicator (commonly referred to as Indicator 46), which addresses the “viability and adaptability to changing economic conditions, of forest-dependent communities, including indigenous communities.” From county-level data, a composite measure was developed that combined population density, lifestyle diversity, and economic resiliency. There are 837 counties assigned a low rating representing 36 percent of the area of the United States but that contain less than 3 percent of the U.S. population. The rest of the population is roughly divided among the 2,064 counties assigned medium ratings and the 209 counties assigned high ratings. Of the forest-dependent communities, there are 742 counties with a high proportion of forest land, but only 14 percent are classified as having low viability and adaptability.

Citation

Haynes, Richard W. 2003. Assessing the viability and adaptability of forest-dependent communities in the United States. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-567. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 33 p