An analysis of the land base situation in the United States: 1989-2040

Abstract

In 1987, 1.5 billion acres, about 63% of the total land and inland water area of the United States, was in forest and rangeland. Forest totals 32% and rangeland totals 34% of the land area. Most of the Nation's forest and rangeland are in nonfederal ownership.In 1987, about 1 billion acres or 67% of the total were owned by nonfederal public agencies, forest industry, farmers and ranchers, and other private individuals. The nonfederal forest lands are concentrated in the East, and private rangelands are concentrated in the West. The federal lands are administered primarily by two agencies - the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management.Most of the Nation's high productivity forest lands are located west of the Cascade Mountains in the Pacific Northwest Region and in the South Central Region. The largest areas of highly productive sites are covered by coastal Douglas-fir and hemlock-Sitka spruce types in the West, and loblolly-shortleaf pine and oak-gum-cypress types in the East.

Citation

USDA Forest Service. 1989. An analysis of the land base situation in the United States: 1989-2040. Gen. Tech. Rep. RM-GTR-181. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. 76 p.