forest inventory and analysis at the northeastern research station
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Forest Inventory and Analysis At the Northeastern Research Station Tracking the Diverse and Dynamic Forests in the Northeastern States. United States Department Of Agriculture. Forest Service Northeastern Research Station. FIA is the Nation's forest census . . - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Forest Inventory and AnalysisAt the Northeastern Research StationTracking the Diverse and Dynamic Forests in the Northeastern States.
United States Department Of Agriculture
FIA is the Nation's forest census.
• Whether you’re interested in wildlife habitat, evaluating sustainability of forestry practices, or studying global warming and need to estimate the uptake of carbon dioxide by forests, you need good data and information to analyze and make decisions. The FIA project is a response to that need.
• FIA is a National program that, conducts and
maintains comprehensive inventories of the forest resources in the United States.
The Northeast FIA Unit Inventories The Forest In 13 States
90%3327
89%
78%2600
62% 845
78%
60%
59%4839
59% 225
62%5091
45% 80530%4415
41% 1060
30% 208
PERCENTAGE OF LAND IN FORESTAND NUMBER OF FIA PLOTS
967
997
522
Why is FIA Important?• FIA provides objective and scientifically
credible information on key forest ecosystem processes:
• how much forest there is, • what it looks like, • whether the forest area is increasing or
decreasing,• whether we are gaining or losing species, • and how quickly trees are growing, dying,
and being harvested. :
How an inventory is conducted.
• The FIA project does not count every tree in the Northeast. Instead, they use a scientifically designed sampling method. Data’s collected in three phases, with each phase taking a closer look at the forest.
How the inventory is conducted.
• The FIA project does not count every tree in the Northeast. Instead, they use a scientifically designed sampling method. Data’s collected in three phases, with each phase taking a closer look at the forest.
Phase 1 (P1)• Phase 1 (P1) uses satellite imagery to classify
the entire area of a state into forest and nonforest land cover categories. These estimates are used to statistically expand the data collected in phase 2 (P2) to the state or individual county level.
Phase 2
• Phase 2 is a network of ground plots that are visited by trained field crews. This network of permanently established plots is on a grid spaced approximately 3.1 miles apart across the entire country.
Phase Two – Sampling Frame
1 2 4 5 13
3 4 1 2 35
1 2 4 5 13
3 4 1 2 35
Interpenetrating Design Sample Intensity = 1 sample location per 5,933 acres of land Inventory Cycle Length = Five years or 20 percent of the sample locations each year.
Five-Year Panel
Year Three
Year Four
Year Two
Year One
Year Five
Subplot 1
Subplot 2
Subplot 3Subplot 4
120.0 ft
Subplot:24.0 ft radius
Microplot:6.8 ft radius
Annular plot:58.9 ft radius
P2 & P3 Plot Design
On all our field plots, we gather measurements that describe
• General land use• Tree diameter, height,
damage, amount of rotten or missing wood, and tree quality
• Counts of tree regeneration
• General stand characteristics such as forest type, stand age, and disturbance
• Estimates of growth, mortality, and removals (determined by revisiting plots from the previous time period)
Phase 3One out of every 16, P2 plots, is chosen to be a
phase 3 (P3) plot. Phase 3 plots are only measured during the summer
•Crown condition
•Soil condition
•Vegetation diversity and structure
•Down woody debris
•Lichen communities
•Ozone injury
•Tree damage
• Publications
• Accessing data on Web
• Spatial Data Service Center
• Call us with special requests
• Using Mapmaker application on Web
Data Access and Analysis
Major Trends in Forest Resource and Other Interesting Results
0 - 20
20 - 4040 - 60
60 - 8080 - 100
Percent Forest
Percentage of Land in Forest by County
0 - 10
10 - 2020 - 30
30 - 40> 40
Percent Public Ownership
Percentage of Forest Land in Public Ownerships
Change in Forest Land in the Chesapeake Bay watershed by Region
0123456789
10
Ap
pa
lach
ian
Pla
tea
u
Blu
e R
idg
ea
nd
Gre
at
Va
lley
Co
asta
lP
lain
Pie
dm
on
t
Rid
ge
an
dV
alle
y
Mil
lio
ns
of
Ac
res
Previous
Current
+1.3%
+7.5%+1.8% -4.8%
+0.7%
Currently forest land totals 26.5 million acres in the watershed, +0.7% from previous estimates.
Timberland area by stand-size class in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
02468
10121416
Largediameter
Mediumdiameter
Smalldiameter
Nonstocked
Stand size
Mill
ion
s o
f a
cre
s
Previous
Current
The volume of large trees continues to increase.
GROWING-STOCK VOLUME OF TREES IN PENSYLVANIA BY INVENTORY YEAR
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
5.0-6.9 7.0-8.9 9.0-10.9 11.0-12.9 13.0-14.9 15.0-16.9 17.0-18.9 19.0-20.9
Diameter Class (inches at breast height)
Bill
ion
s o
f C
ub
ic F
ee
t 196519781989 2003
YEAR
Portion of Total Growing-stock Volume Composed of Oak Species, Current and Previous Inventories
19%
51%
23%
38%
48%
34%
17%
51%
22%
34%
47%
31%
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
AppalachianPlateau
Blue Ridgeand Great
Valley
CoastalPlain
Piedmont Ridge andValley
WatershedAverage
Previous* Current
*The number of years betw een current and previous inventories ranges from a high of 14 years in the Pennsylvania portion of the w atershed to a low of 9 years in the Virginia portion.
Oaks are an important species for wildlife and lumber in Pennsylvania
Recent inventories show a decline in the number of small oaks and an increase in large diameter oaks.
NUMBER OF OAK TREES IN PENNSYLVANIA BY DIAMETER CLASS
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
5.0-6.9
7.0-8.9
9.0-10.9
11.0-12.9
13.0-14.9
15.0-16.9
17.0-18.9
19.0-20.9
21.0-28.9
29.0+
Diameter class (inches at breast height)
Mill
ion
s o
f tr
ees
2003 inventory
1989 inventory
Percentage of Oak Stems by Diameter Class in the
Chesapeake Watershed
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
21.-2
8.9
29.0
+
Diameter Class (inches at breast height)
Pe
rce
nta
ge
of t
ota
l ste
ms
in c
lass
< 1500
1500 - 20002000 - 2500
2500 - 3000> 3000
Volume per acre(Cubic feet)
Average Volume of Trees Per Acre of Timberland
The Survey Instrument• Woodland
characteristics• Ownership objectives• Forest management
and education• Concerns and issues• Future intentions• Demographics
Number of family forest owners in the Chesapeake Bay watershed by size of ownership, 2003
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
1-9 10-49 50-99 100-499 500-999 1000+
Parcel Size (acres)
Num
bers
of O
wne
rs
(tho
usan
ds)
Acres of family forest owners in the Chesapeake Bay watershed by size of ownership, 2003
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
1-9 10-49 50-99 100-499 500-999 1000+
Parcel Size (Acres)
Acr
es (m
illio
ns)
Percentage of numbers of owners and acreage by size of ownerships for family owned forests in the Chesapeake watershed, 2003
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
1-9 10-49 50-99 100-499
500-999
1000-4999
5000+
Parcel Size (acres)
Per
cen
tag
e o
f R
esp
on
den
ts Acres
Number
Area and number of family owned forests in the Chesapeake Bay watershed with written management plan, 2003
4.0
16.7
0
10
20
Owners Acres
Per
cent
Land tenure of family forests in the Chesapeake Bay watershed by years of ownership, 2003
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
<10 10-24 25-49 50+ No
Answer
Years of Ownership
Per
cen
t o
f A
crea
ge
Age of family forest owners in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, 2003
1%
8%
18%
26% 26%
15%
6%
0%
10%
16%
24%
18%
4%
27%
0%
10%
20%
30%
<35 35-44 45-54 55-64 65-74 75+ NoAnswer
Area Owners
Age of Owner (Years)
Per
cen
t o
f R
esp
on
den
ts
REASONS RATED AS IMPORTANT FOR OWNING FOREST LAND, 2003
0% 25% 50% 75%
Aestethics
Biodiversty
Land investment
Home or farm
Privacy
Family legacy
NonTimberProd.
Firewood
Timber
Hunting
Other Recreation
Percent
AcresOwners
141.8
-36.5
1.6
106.8
24.1
-82.7-100
-50
0
50
100
150
200
Gross
Growth
Mor tal i ty Change In
Cul l
Net Growth Removals Net Change
63% due to harvest
28% due to land use changed to noncommercial
9% due to land use changed to nonforest
COMPONENTS OF VOLUME CHANGE, 1987-99, MARYLAND
Gross Growth – Mortality +/- Change in cull = Net Growth Net Growth – Removals = Net Change
State Last periodic Annual inventory
Delaware 1999 1 of 7 subcycles completed
Maryland 1999 1 of 7 subcycles completed
West Virginia 2000 1 of 7 subcycles completed
New York 1993 2 of 6 subcycles completed
Pennsylvania 1989 5 of 5 subcycles completed
Virginia 1992 5 of 5 subcycles completed
Status of FIA Data
Rich Widmann
USDA Forest Service
Forest Inventory & Analysis
11 Campus Boulevard, Suite 200
Newtown Square, PA 19073
E-mail [email protected]
Office 610-557-4051