16 U.S.C. § 1641 — Findings and purpose
submitted 48 years ago by Pub. L. 95-307 to r/title-16-CONSERVATION · 499 words · no verdicts yet
Congress finds that forests and rangelands are economically and ecologically important and that private owners and Federal research both matter to their continued productivity. The section authorizes expanded research on international forestry and global natural-resource issues.
(a) Findings. (1) Forests, rangelands, and their resources are strategically important to the United States economically and ecologically, and the Federal Government has an important role in keeping them healthy, productive, and sustainable. (2) More than 75% of productive commercial forest land is privately owned; about 60% belongs to small nonindustrial private owners. The 10 million such owners provide commodity and noncommodity values to the public. (3) The National Forest System manages only 17% of commercial timberland, although it contains more than half of standing softwood inventory. Federal policy changes in the early 1990s sharply reduced management of that resource and shifted timber supply toward private land. About 60% of United States wood production now comes from private forests in the South. (4) As pressure grows to remove more land from commercial production, the Federal Government is reducing forest and rangeland productivity research needed to manage remaining timber and forage for all species. (5) Uncertain timber supplies, more regulation, and less Federal research support are causing domestic wood and paper producers to seek supplies abroad, worsening the trade balance, costing jobs and infrastructure investment, and increasing the risk of imported pests and diseases. (6) United States producers also face tropical-country competition, where trees grow faster. To stay competitive on a shrinking forest base, production per acre must quadruple from 1996 levels. (7) More frequent and better forest inventories and analysis are needed to identify research needs and give managers current data for timely decisions. (b) Relation to other law. This subchapter supplements the policies and direction of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974. (c) Purpose. The purpose is to authorize the Secretary to expand research to international forestry and global natural-resource issues.
Congress finds the following:
Forests and rangeland, and the resources of forests and rangeland, are of strategic economic and ecological importance to the United States, and the Federal Government has an important and substantial role in ensuring the continued health, productivity, and sustainability of the forests and rangeland of the United States.
Over 75 percent of the productive commercial forest land in the United States is privately owned, with some 60 percent owned by small nonindustrial private owners. These 10,000,000 nonindustrial private owners are critical to providing both commodity and noncommodity values to the citizens of the United States.
The National Forest System manages only 17 percent of the commercial timberland of the United States, with over half of the standing softwoods inventory located on that land. Dramatic changes in Federal agency policy during the early 1990’s have significantly curtailed the management of this vast timber resource, causing abrupt shifts in the supply of timber from public to private ownership. As a result of these shifts in supply, some 60 percent of total wood production in the United States is now coming from private forest land in the southern United States.
At the same time that pressures are building for the removal of even more land from commercial production, the Federal Government is significantly reducing its commitment to productivity-related research regarding forests and rangeland, which is critically needed by the private sector for the sustained management of remaining available timber and forage resources for the benefit of all species.
Uncertainty over the availability of the United States timber supply, increasing regulatory burdens, and the lack of Federal Government support for research is causing domestic wood and paper producers to move outside the United States to find reliable sources of wood supplies, which in turn results in a worsening of the United States trade balance, the loss of employment and infrastructure investments, and an increased risk of infestations of exotic pests and diseases from imported wood products.
Wood and paper producers in the United States are being challenged not only by shifts in Federal Government policy, but also by international competition from tropical countries where growth rates of trees far exceed those in the United States. Wood production per acre will need to quadruple from 1996 levels for the United States forestry sector to remain internationally competitive on an ever decreasing forest land base.
Better and more frequent forest inventorying and analysis is necessary to identify productivity-related forestry research needs and to provide forest managers with the current data necessary to make timely and effective management decisions.
This subchapter shall be deemed to complement the policies and direction set forth in the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 [16 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.].
It is the purpose of this subchapter to authorize the Secretary to expand research activities to encompass international forestry and natural resource issues on a global scale.
Source credit: (Pub. L. 95–307, § 2, June 30, 1978, 92 Stat. 353; Pub. L. 101–513, title VI, § 611(a)(1), formerly § 607(a)(1), Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 2072, renumbered § 611(a)(1), Pub. L. 102–574, § 2(a)(1), Oct. 29, 1992, 106 Stat. 4593; Pub. L. 105–185, title II, § 253(a), June 23, 1998, 112 Stat. 558.)
- 1978Enacted · Pub. L. 95-307 · 92 Stat. 353
- 1990Amended · Pub. L. 101-513 · 104 Stat. 2072
- 1998Amended · Pub. L. 105-185 · 112 Stat. 558
A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 95-307 on 1978-06-30.
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