Comprehensive Statewide Forest Inventory Analysis Study

Transcription

1 Comprehensive Statewide Forest Inventory Analysis Study JIM KARELS, DIRECTOR FLORIDA FOREST SERVICE FLORIDA FORESTRY ASSOCIATION ANNUAL MEETING AND TRADE SHOW SEPTEMBER 3-5, 2013

2 The Comprehensive Statewide Forest Inventory Analysis and Study (CSFIAS) was mandated by the Florida legislature in 2012 (House Bill 7117). The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) entered into contract with Photo Science Geospatial Solutions of St. Petersburg, Florida. The Photo Science teamed up with F4 Tech of Tallahassee and BioResource Management of Gainesville, Florida to conduct the project. How did this project get initiated?

3 Information resulting from this project augments that of the U.S. Forest Service s Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program. The objectives of the project were to identify where and how much timber biomass resources are available statewide and locally. The project determined current timber volumes, growth, and utilization levels, which allowed assessment of local and statewide forest sustainability by comparing timber drain to corresponding timber growth. What is the purpose of this project?

4 Remote sensing techniques plus the latest available, 2011 FIA data were used for inventory and analytical approaches The study mapped forest land cover, identified forest land ownership, and analyzed the distribution and timber demand of primary wood-using mills and their woodsheds. All products and their values are provided for the year 2011, with the exception of timber demand which is estimated for the year How was this project accomplished?

5 This map depicts forest and other land cover classes. Of the state s 8.05 million pine acres, 7.16 million acres (89%) occur in North Florida. South Florida forests are predominantly associated with water. Of South Florida s 5.14 million acres of forest, 3.53 million acres (69%) are mangrove, cypress, or other forested wetlands. Statewide Florida Forest Land Cover layer depicting forest and other land cover classes.

6 FIA Unit 1 (Northeast) contains 37% and Unit 2 (Northwest) 33% of the state s total forest area. Map of Florida with county boundaries and boundaries of the four U.S. Forest Service s FIA Units.

7 Fifty-three (53%) of forest area is softwood, 38% is hardwood, and 9% is mixed hardwoodsoftwood types. The pie chart shows the percentage of area for each forest land cover type across the State of Florida

8 Other important land cover types in the state include agriculture and fruit orchards (20% of terrestrial area), non-forested wetlands (12%), and urban areas (17%). The pie chart shows the percentage of area for each land cover type, forest and non-forest, in Florida.

9 Softwood Timber Stand Age Softwood Timber Stand Age (in 5 and 10 year increments). The pie chart shows the percent distribution of the nine age classes for softwoods in Florida.

10 Hardwood Timber Stand Age Hardwood Timber Stand Age (in 5- and 10-year increments). Two-thirds of Florida hardwood forests are older than 40 years.

11 Timber Origin: One-third of Florida s forests (5.62 million acres) are plantations and 99.5%of plantations are softwoods. Of the total forest plantation area, 5.39 million acres (96%) occurs in north Florida. Softwoods origin map (plantation or natural). Hardwoods Origin Map (plantation or natural).

12 Primary category for forest ownership in Florida, based on the Department of Revenue database. Ownership of the Forests

13 63% of Florida s forests are privately-owned, and most private forests is under non-industrial, non-corporate ownership. 37% of Florida forests are owned by public entities: federal (16.5%), state (17.4%), and local govt (3%). Florida forest ownership, in percent and acreage, for each FIA unit by primary category: private and public (federal, state, local).

14 Private ownership is proportionately greater in north Florida, reaching as much as 76% of all forestland in Northeast Florida. Timber Investment Management Organizations (TIMOs) and Timber Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) own 20% of forestland in Northeast and 13% in Northwest Florida. Map of Private sector forestland ownership.

15 The forest land cover layer, stand age layer, and stand origin layer were overlaid and a list of the various combinations was created. This new layer and corresponding list of class combinations is referred to as biomass-ageplantation classes. For each biomass-ageplantation class, standing timber volume was calculated from the FIA data. Standing Timber

16 There is billion green tons of standing timber biomass across Florida, of which 53% is softwood and 47% is hardwood. Nearly 75% of all the softwood timber is located in North Florida. Standing timber for softwood (5.0 to 8.9 DBH) and hardwood pulpwood (5.0 to 10.9 DBH) aggregated by county.

17 At 349 million green tons softwood sawtimber is the largest fraction of standing timber, followed by 314 million green tons of hardwood sawtimber, 207 million green tons of softwood pulpwood, and 178 million green tons of hardwood pulpwood. Distribution of biomass across the State of Florida

18 There are 65 primary wood-using mills in Florida. The most common are sawmills (21 locations), mulch (13), pulp (6), and chip and saw (4). Other types of mills include oriented strand board, pellet and animal bedding mills. Primary Wood-using Mills in Florida, 2013.

19 The highest concentration of softwood pulpwood demand occurs in the northeast corner of the state largely as a result of three pulp mills located in close proximity to each other. Two of them are coastal resulting in their timber demand being concentrated in a smaller geographic area. Additional significant pine pulpwood demand is contributed by pulp, chip, and pellet mills in nearby Southeast Georgia. Pine pulpwood-using mills, their respective woodshed boundaries, and the resulting statewide distribution of product demand.

20 Softwood pulpwood is in the highest demand among timber products at 8.7 million green tons annually. Softwood sawtimber is next highest, with annual timber demand of 3.9 million green tons. Timber demand for hardwood pulpwood is 0.6 million tons and hardwood sawtimber 0.08 million green tons annually. Annual net demand for four timber products, in green tons, in Florida.

21 There is a net annual growth of 27.3 million green tons of timber over the whole of Florida, with 19.0 million green tons in softwoods, and 8.3 million green tons in hardwood growth occurring mostly in North Florida. Annual net growth, in tons and percent, by timber products for the State of Florida.

22 Forest sustainability index is defined as the ratio of net timber growth to timber demand where a value > 1 indicates that there is more growth than removal and therefore the area is sustainable. A value < 1 indicates that there is more removal than growth. This situation is not sustainable since the resource will eventually be depleted if the issue is not addressed. Forest Sustainability Index

23 For softwood pulpwood sustainability indices include 47 counties with values above 1.0, and 18 counties with sustainability indices below 1.0. In North Florida, unsustainable values are largely due to high levels of industrial timber demand for pine pulpwood. In Central Florida, low sustainability indices result from low net growth combined with low timber demand. Sustainability index for softwood pulpwood (5.0 to 8.9 DBH) aggregated by county.

24 For hardwood pulpwood all counties demonstrate a sustainability index value of 1.4 or higher. Sustainability index for hardwood pulpwood (5.0 to 10.9 DBH) aggregated by county.

25 For softwood chip-nsaw and sawtimber, most northern Florida counties have sustainability indices of 1.4 or higher, and no counties have a sustainability index of less than 1.0. Several central Florida counties have softwood chip-n-saw and sawtimber sustainability indices of less than 1.0 due to very low net growth. Sustainability index for softwood chip and saw and sawtimber ( 9.0 DBH) aggregated by county.

26 For hardwood sawtimber, no county in Florida has a sustainability index less than 3.0 because hardwood sawtimber demand throughout Florida is very low, and timber net growth exceeds demand by significant margins. Sustainability index for hardwood sawtimber ( 11.0 DBH) aggregated by county.

27 Florida Counties with a Low Sustainability Index Eight Florida counties with a low sustainability index for softwood pulpwood as a result of high timber demand by the existing forest products industry and low reforestation. Ten Florida counties with a low sustainability index for softwood pulpwood caused by low timber net growth, despite low timber utilization rates. County Sustainability index < 1.00 Clay 0.73 Duval 0.30 Jackson 0.92 Leon 0.86 Nassau 0.85 Okaloosa 0.66 St. Johns 0.70 Walton 0.96 County Sustainability Index < 1.00 Desoto 0.20 Hardee 0.42 Highlands 0.94 Hillsborough 0.66 Manatee 0.67 Orange 0.98 Pinellas 0.78 Sarasota 0.95 Seminole 0.33 Sumter 0.71

28 Overall, Florida s forests are sustainable across species and timber products with a statewide sustainability index of 2.1. Sustainability index for all softwood and hardwood timber products aggregated by county.

29 Timber Availability The timber availability is calculated by subtracting the timber demand for a timber product from the amount of that product s net timber growth. If the number is positive, then there is sufficient product to meet timber demand. If the number is negative, there is insufficient net timber growth to meet timber demand. The size of the positive or negative value relates to the size of the surplus or deficit for timber products.

30 While statewide softwood pulpwood availability over the current demand is 2.1 million green tons, on a local level, pulpwood demand exceeds net growth in the same 18 counties for which sustainability indices are less than 1.0 and for the same reasons as stated above. Timber availability for softwood pulpwood (5.0 to 8.9 DBH) aggregated by county

31 Hardwood pulpwood availability over the current demand is 4.5 million green tons statewide, and availability is not in a deficit condition in any Florida county. Timber availability for hardwood pulpwood (5.0 to 10.9 DBH) aggregated by county.

32 Softwood chip-n-saw and sawtimber availability over the current demand totals 4.3 million green tons statewide. All northern Florida counties have positive availability for softwood chip-n-saw and sawtimber, while nine (9) central Florida counties show negative availability due to very low net timber growth. Timber availability for softwood chip-n-saw and sawtimber ( 9.0 DBH) aggregated by county.

33 Hardwood sawtimber availability over the current demand totals 3.1 million green tons statewide and is positive for all counties. Timber availability for hardwood sawtimber ( 11.0 DBH) aggregated by county.

34 Overall Conclusions Florida s forests are sustainable overall with a sustainability index of 2.1 across forest types and timber products. The highest pressure is on softwood pulpwood with 8 counties in North Florida and 10 counties in Central Florida experiencing deficits. The softwood chip-n-saw and sawtimber resource in north Florida appears relatively stable. Mixed sustainability index results in central and south Florida are generally a product of low net growth. Sustainability indices and timber availability for both hardwood pulpwood and sawtimber indicate relatively little pressure on the resource.

35 Additional Contact Information at the Florida Forest Service Project Questions GIS Data/ Map Requests Jarek Nowak, Ph.D. Forest Utilization Specialist (850) Karen Cummins GIS Analyst Comprehensive Statewide Forest Inventory Analysis Study Webpage: