[PCA] Opportunity to Comment on the Draft 2010 National Report on Sustainable Forests! Deadline: April 10

[Patricia_DeAngelis at fws.gov]

Hello All!

This is to let you know (or remind you) that the Forest Service is 
accepting comments on the Draft National Report on Sustainable Forests 
until April 10. Below is information I pulled together that gives an 
overview of the Report and how to comment. The "Key Findings" are 
particularly interesting.

Draft National Report on Sustainable Forests: 2010 

About the Report : The report is being prepared as part of the voluntary 
United States commitment to the Montréal Process Working Group on Criteria 
and Indicators for the Conservation and Sustainable Management of 
Temperate and Boreal Forests (http://www.mpci.org). This is the second 
report; the first was published in 2003. A copy of the draft Report is 
available on-line at 
http://www.fs.fed.us/research/sustain/2010SustainabilityReport. 

Highlights: (Taken from Report Highlights)

The Draft National Report on Sustainable Forests - 2010 informs dialogue 
about contemporary forest issues.  Climate change, increasing bio-energy 
and bio-fuels production, and the loss of forests and the ecosystem 
services they provide are three of the most important issues that will 
affect the sustainability of forests in the United States of America in 
the coming years.   Not only are these problems each important in their 
own right, they are inter-related and they involve issues outside as well 
as inside the forest sector.  Consequently, integrated approaches are 
needed to improve forest sustainability?approaches that combine and 
coordinate policies in other sectors with policies in the forest sector as 
well as approaches that simultaneously deal with all three issues. 

This draft is the second report in a series that began in 2003.  New to 
this edition are: fresh data that illustrate changes during the last five 
years and provide more regional detail; new indicators that better reflect 
contemporary concerns; and examples of recent applications using the 
Montreal Process criteria and indicators to foster sustainable forests.

Conditions and trends are reported using the 7 criteria and 64 indicators 
of the Montreal Process.  The report contains 2-page summaries for each of 
the 64 indicators, showing current conditions and recent trends.  The 
report also contains analyses of significant conditions, highlights 
important issues, and describes recent activities at local, State, and 
regional levels for improving sustainable forest management. 

Key Findings

Forest area stands at 751 million acres, up slightly since 2003. Increases 
in forests in the middle of the country offset losses of forests near 
urban areas in both Atlantic and Pacific seaboard States. 
Forest fragmentation continues at a steady pace.  Not only are the fringes 
of towns and cities being adversely affected, so are more rural areas as 
vacation and retirement homes proliferate.
Two-thirds of the timberland in the U.S. (356 million acres) is privately 
owned. These private lands produce 91 percent of the timber harvested in 
the U.S. each year.
Growing stock volume increased 9 percent since 2003 as the total volume 
removed over the past five years was less than net growth.  Current growth 
per acre is about two-thirds of potential.
The area of planted forests is up 11 percent since 2003 to 63 million 
acres.  Growing stock volume on planted forests rose 32 percent since 
2003, indicating that intensive management and superior seedlings are 
having a big impact and that Conservation Reserve Program plantings are 
coming of age.
Each year, U.S. forests sequester 650 million tons of carbon dioxide, 
equal to 11 percent of the total annual carbon emissions from all sources. 

There have been substantial increases in biotic disturbances?insect 
infestations and disease outbreaks?since the 1997-2002 baseline period. 37 
million acres of forest were affected the past 5 years compared to 11 
million acres in the baseline period. 
Droughts, fires, and suburban sprawl are the leading abiotic disturbances. 
 In the 2003-2007 time period, 40 million acres burned, compared to 25 
million acres during 1997-2002.
Converting forests to non-forest uses, particular suburban development, is 
leading to declines in the ecosystem services that forests provide to 
society.  In 2000, suburban areas with tree cover were 31 million acres 
and exurban areas were 226 million acres.  These areas encroaching on 
forests are increasing at the rate of 1.6 percent per year?outpacing 
population growth by 25 percent.
An estimated $553 million in payments were made to landowners in 2007 for 
the ecosystem services their forests provide; up 38 percent in the past 3 
years.
Annual production of wood energy is 2 quadrillion BTUs?2 percent of the 
Nation?s annual energy output.  Burning wood offsets between 100 and 200 
million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels.
Total consumption of wood and paper products remained steady at 63 cubic 
feet per person per year.  So total national consumption is increasing at 
the population growth rate (0.88 percent per year).  Imports provide 29 
percent of domestic consumption
Recycling paper offsets the harvest of 700,000 acres annually.
Annual capital investment in the wood and paper industries increased 34 
percent between 2004 and 2006, in contrast to a 40 percent decline between 
1997 and 2004.
Employment in the forest sector fell 15 percent in the past decade to 1.29 
million employees.  The drop was concentrated in the pulp and paper sector 
where fewer workers are now needed to produce the same outputs as a decade 
ago. 
Only 15 percent of privately owned forest is open for public recreation. 
Decreased access in the East, particularly near cities, is a growing 
problem.

Beyond the Data

Since 2003, the C&I have been used as a framework to broaden and deepen 
the dialogue about sustainable forests at local, State, and national 
levels.  Today, the Montreal Process C&I are being used to conceptualize 
or characterize forest sustainability, for visioning and planning at 
county and State levels; for assessing forest conditions as programs are 
implemented; for monitoring, assessing, and reporting on forest conditions 
and trends from local to national levels;  and for communicating with the 
public about the importance of forests. 

Broader and deeper dialogue is needed both inside the forest sector and 
outside the forest sector about the future of our Nation?s forests and the 
forest policies and management actions that are needed to promote 
sustainable forest management.  The forest community will need to engage 
with a broader and more diverse group of interests outside the forest 
sector?in the climate policy arena; in the energy development policy 
arena; and in the finance, marketing, emissions trading, and carbon 
offsets arenas.  The Forest Service cannot do this alone.  The combined 
efforts of public forest agencies, non-governmental organizations, 
landowners, and the public are needed to conserve and sustainably manage 
the Nation?s forests in the presence of these issues. 

Public review of the draft report is encouraged and comments are welcomed. 
 The comment period closes April 10, 2009.  The draft report is at 
http://www.fs.fed.us/research/sustain/2010SustainabilityReport. 
Instructions on how to provide comments are contained in the front of the 
report. 
The Criteria: The report focuses on the state of the forests in the United 
States of America based on 7 criteria. 
Criterion 1?Conservation of biological diversity 
Criterion 2--Maintenance of Productive Capacity of Forest Ecosystems 
Criterion 3--Maintenance of Forest Ecosystem Health and Vitality 
Criterion 4--Conservation and Maintenance of Soil and Water Resources 
Criterion 5--Maintenance of Forest Contribution of Global Carbon Cycles 
Criterion 6--Maintenance and Enhancement of Long-term Multiple 
Socioeconomic Benefits to Meet the Needs of Societies 
Criterion 7--Legal, Institutional and Economic Framework for Forest 
Conservation and Sustainable Management
Each criterion is accompanied by a list of indicators to gauge national 
progress toward sustainable forest management.

Comments: To submit comments, go to http://www.fs.fed.us/research/sustain/
and click on "Comment on 2010 Sustainability Report on the left side of 
the screen. 

Deadline: April 10, 2009

Thank you,
Patricia

Patricia S. De Angelis, Ph.D.
Botanist - Division of Scientific Authority
Chair - Plant Conservation Alliance - Medicinal Plant Working Group
US Fish & Wildlife Service
4401 N. Fairfax Dr., Suite 110
Arlington, VA  22203
703-358-1708 x1753
FAX: 703-358-2276
Working for the conservation and sustainable use of our green natural 
resources.
<www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal>


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