Forest ownership and management outcomes in the U.S., in global context
Land is of critical importance for provision of wood and nonwood forest products and environmental services. Ownership is a key factor influencing forest land management and protection. Most forests in the world, 86, are in public ownership which accounts for a commensurate share of
forest degradation. U.S. forest land ownership is dominated by private owners, and this has largely worked well for production and for provision of environmental services. International comparisons of forest land ownership and corresponding management outcomes indicate that private forests
provide proportionally more market based goods such as wood, and that their environmental performance in terms of forest management plans, forest certification, and compliance with forest regulations appears to be similar to that of public forests. In fact, private lands have increased environmental
conformance with regulations and adopted forest certification for many high production lands. Both public and private lands should more closely link tenure rights and conservation and management control. Government ownership and incentives must evolve for both private and public lands to produce
forest goods and services more efficiently and equitably.
Keywords: global forest resources; land ownership; private lands; public lands; sustainable forest management
Document Type: Research Article
Affiliations: University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA; North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA; SUNY-ESF, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA and University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
Publication date: 01 March 2010
- The International Forestry Review is a peer-reviewed scholarly journal that publishes original research and review papers on all aspects of forest policy and science, with an emphasis on issues of transnational significance. It is published four times per year, in March, June, September and December. Theme editions are a regular feature and attract a wide audience.
The IFR is part of The Global Forest Information Service - GFIS
International Forestry Review has an Impact Factor of 1.705 - Editorial Board
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