Regional Cost Information for Private Timberland Conversion and Management

Bair, Lucas S.; Alig, Ralph J. 2006. Regional cost information for private timberland conversion and management. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-684. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 26 p. Costs of private timber management practices in the contiguous United States are identified, and their relationship to timber production in general is highlighted. Costs across timber-producing regions and forest types are identified by forest type and timber management practices historically applied in each region. This includes cost estimates for activities such as forest establishment practices such as reforestation and afforestation on crop and pastureland. Establishment costs for reforestation in the Southern United States are less than in other regions, although regional differences in establishment costs are less evident in hardwood than in softwood stands. Also, included in the list of timber management costs are the intermediate management treatments of precommercial thinning, herbicide, and fertilizer application. Intermediate management treatments are less costly in the Southern United States than in other regions. Trends in timber management costs are reported as part of the timber management cost reporting.