Past:                                                         Present:
Timber was plentiful                                   Good timber is becoming very scarce

Supply much greater than demand              World demand exceeds available supply

Stumpage prices were very low & steady    Stumpage prices have climbed 1,000%

Timber management was not profitable       Forest investments are growing quickly

Owners cut any tree that was merchantable Informed owners grow good, large trees

Harvesting was done like there's no future   Future & environmental oriented logging

The old way: cutting just the good trees     Leave the good trees and cut the bad ones

Regeneration of good trees hindered            Desirable trees now perpetuate the forest

Harvested land often left in shambles       Forests thinned for optimum future growth

Sawmills selected the trees to harvest          The forest determines which trees to cut

Logging was very wasteful                          All usable wood is utilized from each tree

Forest owners knew very little about trees  Owners becoming very knowledgeable

Timber buyer and logger had advantage    Forest owner is now in control


Summary: Market conditions have totally changed for forest owners.  Before everything was done to increase the immediate profit of the logger, timber buyer and mill.  Now forest owners are able to have control of their timber harvests.  The future of forestry as a profitable business is an exciting new frontier.  Those that do manage their timber for the future will soon be in extremely high demand. 

Timber harvesting should now be done just the opposite of what has been
Business as Usual.  We must stop the practice of high-grading: taking the good trees, leaving the bad trees, and ignoring the future of the forest.

Now, we take just the bad trees, nurture the good trees to build the forest back up to full productivity, and then periodically harvest just the annual growth - keeping a healthy fully stocked forest throughout the future.

It is much too late to prevent a major timber shortage here in Wisconsin.  Immediate action is needed to minimize the devastating effects this will have on the future economy of our State's second biggest industry.

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