In Pennsylvania the Hardwood Timber is growing 2.44 times faster than it is being harvested.
Ratio of Hardwood
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There are 82% more hardwoods today than 40 years ago.
There are 13.2 million acres of old growth in the U.S.. Over half, 8 million acres, is preserved in national parks, wilderness and other set-asides. If you put these 8 million acres together, they would form a band five miles wide stretching from New York City to San Francisco.

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Annual
Net growth and removal of hardwood sawtimber
for several hardwood lumber-producing states
the last two Forest Service surveys. |
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| State | Year | Growth | Removal | Ratio |
| NY | 1992 | 1519 | 519 | 2.93 |
| PA | 1988 | 2186 | 894 | 2.44 |
| WV | 1989 | 1857 | 411 | 4.52 |
Hardwoods come back naturally. Harvesting
large, mature trees in a hardwood forest lets enough sunlight reach the forest
floor to stimulate new growth.
Our forest and our trees are
renewable natural resources. Wood
products come from a resource that grows, matures and is being replanted for
future generations.
Every year, six additional trees are planted for every one that is harvested.
We still have 70% of the forests that were here in 1600 - 737 million acres of forests in the U.S.
In 1991, over 1.7 billion trees were planted in the U.S. That averages four and one-half million each day-or more than six trees for every man, woman and child in America.
Today, the U. S. has about the
same amount of forestland (or a little more) as it had in 1920, despite a 143
per cent increase in population.
While trees are renewable, each ton of iron ore, coal and limestone are gone forever.
Scientists have discovered than
when forests become old and overcrowded, trees begin to use more oxygen than
they produce. Young, well-managed
forest tend to be the most efficient at absorbing carbon dioxide and producing
oxygen.
Wood is recyclable, biodegradable and durable—sometimes lasting for centuries. When it is no longer needed, it can be returned to the
earth.
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These two cross Sections, each grown 40 years in the same environment show the difference in size between a well-managed forest (top) and one that is not (bottom) |
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The top cross section removed 3 times the Carbon Dioxide from our atmosphere. |
490 million acres are called timberlands, forests that can produce more than 20 cubic feet of wood per acre annually. They're growing more trees today than 40 years ago.
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Millions of Cubic Feet |
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| 1952 | 1992 | % Gain | |
| Hardwoods | 184,090 | 335,722 | 82% |
247 million acres are reserved from harvest by law or are slow-growing woodlands unsuitable for timber production.
In the U.S. most hardwoods grow east of the Mississippi River.
Forest Resources of the United States, 1992, shows that in the U.S., we are growing far more hardwoods each year than are harvested and lost to fire, insect and disease.
This represents 7% of the U.S. manufacturing sector's contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
In the U.S., 53,000 forest products companies employ 1.7 million people in logging, sawmills, furniture and cabinet plants, and paper mills.
They produce $200 billion in forest products each year.
Forrest products companies rank among the top ten employers in 40 out 50 states with an annual payroll of $44 billion.
The forest products industry is a traditional industry in both the U.S. and Canada. It provides the roofs over our heads, the floors beneath our feet and the chairs we rest our weary bones on.
Trees regenerate naturally through seeding or root sprouting, or are replanted by people.
Most softwoods do not sprout from the root so they are most often replanted after harvest.
More than 80% of the trees planted in 1991 were planted by forest products companies and private timberland owners. The rest were planted by federal and state agencies and individuals.
Trees, like human beings, have a natural lifespan. Once they reach maturity, which varies depending on the species, growth slows down, decay sets in and they eventually die.
They're also used to
make flooring, firewood, musical electric guitars and pianos, baseball bats,
hockey sticks and bowling pins.
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Little
Arnot Regeneration Plot / Cherry-Maple Type |
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1927-1928 During |
![]() Note the post for a reference point on each picture. |
1927-1928 After |
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1938 10
years |
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1948 20
years |
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1958 30
years |
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1968 40
years |
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1978 50
years |
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1988 60
years |