Physical presence, practical absence: Accessibility of timber inventory in the eastern US

Forest resources in the eastern US are located on heterogeneous landscapes with widely varying biophysical, social, and market characteristics. As such, the total inventory is rarely available for harvest within a region. Understanding the distinction between physical timber inventory and accessible inventory is crucial for conducting market analyses, developing forward-looking resource assessments, estimating the extractive (“active”) resource base, and, in general, ensuring the continued, sustainable flow of timber. To this end, we employ a mix of regression and spatial analysis to estimate and visualize timber and carbon accessibility on eastern forest land in the US – and how species-specific estimates vary, in our case, white oak (Quercus alba). The logistic regression shows that all seven biophysical and social characteristics, i.e., site physiography, productivity, slope, road distance, amenity value, ownership, and past harvest experience, significantly explain the lack of harvest/management decisions on forested lands in the eastern US. The subsequent spatial analysis illustrates that the higher timber accessibility spots/timber basins are mostly concentrated in the coastal Atlantic plains, gulf coast of the Southeast, and most of Maine, whereas the lower timber accessibility spots/timber basins are largely concentrated along the mountainous region of the Appalachia, the Ozarks, Ouachita, parts of the upper Midwest, and drier parts of west Texas. Results of this study have important applications and implications for timber supply models, policies, programs, and services that affect eastern forest land, and the benefits accrued from these forests, particularly concerns related to timber accessibility, white oak sustainability, and carbon additionality.