Increasing southern pine growth and its implications for regional wood supply

During the past two decades, planted pine area in the South has substantially increased. Newer pine plantations, benefiting from technological advancements, produce timber at higher rates than older plantations. The USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data are used to assess the impact of increases in plantation acres and technological progress on pine timber growth in the region. A comparison of average annual pine growth rates between mid-1980 and mid-1990 indicates that the pine growth increased by 22 percent for 13 southern states combined. During the same period, standing inventory of merchantable timber increased by 4 percent, while annual removals increased by nearly 17 percent. Pine growth increases are correlated with growing area of more intensively managed plantations, which increased from 38 to 47 percent of all pine land. If these trends continue into mid-2000, the annual pine production rate will have increased by 69 million green tons per year, 59 percent more than in mid-1980. Such growth increases will help to exert downward pressures on pine stumpage prices in the future.