Summary

What has a forest done for you lately? What happens to the animals in an area once it has been timbered? Why is wood considered a renewable resource? What happens in an area once it has been timbered? These questions at first seem easy enough to answer, however on reflection they are really not so clear.

For instance, what has a forest done for you lately? Have you ever taken aspirin for a headache, or had a glass of OJ or mug of coffee? What about that bowl of cinnamony cereal you ate for breakfast? Maybe you are taking notes with pencil and paper. Those products and many more that you use in your daily life come from trees. Your house most likely has wood in it from a tree, perhaps even one harvested near you! Maybe you know someone who works for a timber company or in a sawmill or lumberyard.

As the human population grows, so does the demand for products from the forests. Around the globe forested areas are in decline. As the demand for forest products grows in proportion to human population growth, forest managers must strive to ensure that the remaining forested areas provide a sustainable harvest in addition to meeting the demands of the other organisms that rely on forests for their livelihood.

World Deforestation Map

The fact of the matter is, forests do a lot for us. A properly managed forest can provide excellent habitat for animals, recreation for humans, and a long standing source of income for the landowner. Additionally, forests are tremendous carbon sinks, taking in a great deal of CO2 associated with global climate change. Over the course of the following activities, we will explore these and other topics as we learn about managing forest resources with Sustainable Forestry practices.

Lets see what you know before we get started.

Pre-assessment