The North East State Foresters Association (NEFA) and the VT Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation have released a report detailing The Economic Importance of Vermont’s Forest-based Economy. The report highlights the various sectors of Vermont’s economy that depend on wood, forests, and trees. The total economic value of Vermont’s forest economy is pegged at over $3.4 billion dollars for 2012. Among other findings: total forestry related jobs have slipped since a peak in 2008; more than a third of harvested cords are exported and nearly as many are imported into Vermont; total harvest levels are significantly less than they were in 1997; and residential heating is still a vital part of the timber industry.
‘Forest-based manufacturing and forest-related recreation and tourism are significant drivers for our economy,’ says Vermont State Forester Steven Sinclair. Sinclair lists some products and services we enjoy: firewood, lumber, fine furniture, maple syrup and Christmas trees are chief among the products. Forests also yield ‘ecosystem services’ such as providing clean water, carbon storage, and wildlife habitat. Vermont’s forests are the vital backdrop to recreation and tourism here.
The NEFA report shows that nearly 21,000 jobs in all sectors are directly impacted by Vermont’s forests. While manufacturing jobs in Vermont’s wood products businesses have declined over the past decade, the harvest of timber from Vermont has stayed relatively stable.
Sinclair points out that most of Vermont’s wood is coming from family forests. ‘About 80% of Vermont’s forested lands are owned by individuals and families. So, when you buy Vermont wood, you really are buying local. The NEFA report supports the Vermont’s Working Lands Enterprise Initiative to stimulate a concerted economic development effort on behalf of Vermont’s agriculture and forest product sectors.’
Executive Summary
The Economic Importance of Vermont’s Forest-Based Economy Timber harvests contribute tremendous value to all of the forest industry sectors in Vermont. Approximately6,636 workers (full-time equivalents) are employed in the forest products, maple, and Christmas tree sectors,and their efforts generate over $861 million in annual sales. Those numbers underestimate the true value, and an economic model known as IMPLAN provides multipliers that help take into account the rippling effect this industry has on the other parts of the economy. This model estimates that the forest products industry employs10,555 people and has $1.4 billion in economic output.
Most of the wood harvested in Vermont is processed within its borders, but Vermont is part of a larger regional economy within which wood flows freely. Figures from 2011 illustrate this flow. In that year for all products, 914,000 cords of wood were harvested and 860,000 cords were processed in Vermont; 379,000 cords left the state (mostly to Canada) and 324,000 cords were trucked into the state.
It’s important to note that the economic output and number of jobs in the forest products sector have been reduced since it reached its peaks in the 1990s and early 2000s. This has mirrored similar trends in other manufacturing sectors in the U.S. as more and more manufacturing has moved to other parts of the world.
Vermont’s Use Value Appraisal program reduces the property tax for more than 14,000 landowners of 1.8 million acres of forestland enrolled in the program. The program requires enrolled parcels to be actively managed, which means that approximately 39% of the private forest land base is periodically contributing to the forest-based economy.
One other side of the forest economy ‘ the forest-based recreation economy ‘ also plays an important role, contributing nearly as many jobs and generating even more revenue than the wood-based economy.
Recreation provides 10,050 jobs and generates annual revenues of $1.9 billion.
The NEFA report can be found at http://www.vtfpr.org/htm/forestry.cfm under the ‘Latest News’ header.
Source: Vermont Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation