United States Department of Agriculture Forests of Vermont and New Hampshire 2012 Forest Service Northern Resource Bulletin Publication Date Research Station NRS-95 July 2015 Abstract The first full remeasurement of the annual inventory of the forests of Vermont and New Hampshire was completed in 2012 and covers nearly 9.5 million acres of forest land, with an average volume of nearly 2,300 cubic feet per acre. The data in this report are based on visits to 1,100 plots located across Vermont and 1,091 plots located across New Hampshire. Forest land is dominated by the maple/beech/birch forest-type group, which occupies 60 percent of total forest land area. Of the forest land, 64 percent consists of large diameter trees, 27 percent contains medium diameter trees, and 9 percent contains small diameter trees. The volume of growing stock on timberland has continued to increase since the 1980s and currently totals nearly 19 billion cubic feet. The average annual net growth of growing stock on timberland from 2007 to 2012 is approximately 380 million cubic feet per year. Important species compositional changes include increases in the number of red maple trees and American beech saplings which coincide with decreases in the number of eastern white pine and sugar maple trees as well as eastern white pine and northern red oak saplings. Additional information is presented on forest attributes, land use change, carbon, timber products, species composition, regeneration, and forest health. Detailed information on forest inventory methods and data quality estimates is included on the DVD accompanying this report. Tables of population estimates and a glossary are also included. Acknowledgments The authors would like to thank inventory crew members from Vermont and New Hampshire for their help: Aaron Clark, Robert Gregory, John Higham, Paul Kelley, Katherine Locke, Jason Morrison, Joyce Quinn, Ann Quinion, Keith Raymond, Jennifer Thompson, Bryan Tirrell, and Ashley Zickefoose. Thanks also to Karen Bennett, Jeff Briggs, George Frame, Paul Frederick, and Barbara Schultz for serving as reviewers and providing insightful, constructive comments. Cover photo: Fishing the headwaters of the Connecticut River. Photo by New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands, used with permission. Manuscript received for publication November 2014. Published by: For additional copies: U.S. FOREST SERVICE U.S. Forest Service 11 CAMPUS BLVD SUITE 200 Publications Distribution NEWTOWN SQUARE PA 19073-3294 359 Main Road Delaware, OH 43015-8640 July 2015 Visit our homepage at: http://www.nrs.fs.fed.us Printed on recycled paper Forests of Vermont and New Hampshire 2012 Randall S. Morin, Chuck J. Barnett, Brett J. Butler, Susan J. Crocker, Grant M. Domke, Mark H. Hansen, Mark A. Hatfield, Jonathan Horton, Cassandra M. Kurtz, Tonya W. Lister, Patrick D. Miles, Mark D. Nelson, Ronald J. Piva, Sandy Wilmot, Richard H. Widmann, Christopher W. Woodall, and Robert Zaino Contact Author: Randall S. Morin, [email protected] 610-557-4054 About the Authors Randall S. Morin and Tonya W. Brett J. Butler is a research Sandy Wilmot is a forest health Lister are research foresters forester with the FIA program, specialist with the Vermont with the Forest Inventory and Northern Research Station, Department of Forests, Parks Analysis (FIA) program, Northern Amherst, MA. and Recreation, Essex, VT. Research Station, Newtown Square, PA. Mark H. Hansen is a research Robert Zaino is a land ecologist associate with the University of with the Vermont Department of Chuck J. Barnett and Richard H. Minnesota, St. Paul, MN. Forests, Parks and Recreation, Widmann are foresters with the Barre, VT. FIA program, Northern Research Mark A. Hatfield, Cassandra M. Station, Newtown Square, PA. Kurtz, and Ronald J. Piva are foresters with the FIA program, Susan J. Crocker, Grant M. Northern Research Station, Domke, Patrick D. Miles, Mark St. Paul, MN. D. Nelson, and Christopher W. Woodall are research foresters Jonathan Horton is a forest with the FIA program, Northern resource analyst with the Research Station, St. Paul, MN. New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands, Concord, NH. Foreword The landscapes of Vermont and New Hampshire have experienced many changes during our histories. One of the constants has been a working forest landscape that provides goods and services through stewardship, management, and conservation. We depend upon the forest for timber, maple syrup, firewood, along with values and services such as watershed protection, wildlife habitats, carbon sequestration, outdoor recreation opportunities, and scenic beauty. With forests dominating the landscapes of Vermont and New Hampshire, decisions and actions we make today need to be informed by accurate and timely data. The Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, and New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands are pleased to partner with the U.S. Forest Service in the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) of Vermont and New Hampshire. The more we know and understand of the resources of our forests, the better we can sustain our forests. Sustainable forests begin with healthy forests, and we encourage you to become familiar with information contained in this publication. Steven J. Sinclair Brad W. Simpkins Vermont State Forester New Hampshire State Forester Contents Highlights ................................................................1 Background...............................................................3 Forest Features............................................................7 Ecosystem Indicators and Services ..........................................41 Projections for the Future ..................................................65 Literature Cited...........................................................69 Statistics, Methods and Quality Assurance..................................DVD Highlights On the Plus Side • Many of the wood-processing facilities in Vermont and New Hampshire are sawmills processing primarily • Vermont is the fourth most forested state and New saw logs. Hampshire is the second most forested state in the United States. • Vermont and New Hampshire both contain an abundance of large forest blocks of maple/beech/ • The small amount of forest land lost over the last 5 birch, spruce/fir, and aspen/birch forests which provide years has been offset by the forest land gained. wildlife habitat. • Participation in Vermont’s use value appraisal program • The growth-to-removals ratio remains slightly below and New Hampshire’s current use taxation has 2.0:1.0 in both States. increased, which may influence the amount of forest land converted to other uses. Areas of Concern • Changes in stand stocking suggest that forest management practices over the past three decades • The anticipated transfer of 1.8 million acres of forest have improved the general stocking condition across land foreshadowed by the advanced age (65+) of many both States. owners is an important trend to monitor as the fate of forests is most likely to change when forest land is • Most forest carbon in the region is found in passed to the next generation of owners. moderately-aged stands dominated by relatively long- lived species, suggesting that forest carbon stocks will • Timber volume in both Vermont and New Hampshire continue to increase as stands mature and accumulate has increased to record levels, but the rate of growth carbon in aboveground and belowground components. has leveled off as the forest matures, a trend that is likely to continue into the future. • Timber resources in Vermont and New Hampshire are at record levels since inventories began in 1948. • The presence of nonnative invasive plant species is increasing and appears to be correlated with reduced • The total value of sawtimber has increased because densities of desirable seedling species. of an overall increase in the board-foot volume of sawtimber material in both States. • The dominance of beech, ash, and noncommercial tree species in the sapling size class in Vermont forests • The mortality rate (0.8 percent) in both States for and beech and noncommercial tree species in New the 2012 inventory is slightly lower than what was Hampshire forests raises concerns about the future reported for the 2007 inventory. forest resource in both States. • Tree crowns are generally healthy and stable across both States. Hikers overlooking fall color in Vermont. Photo by Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, used with permission. 1 Issues to Watch • Invasive insect pests that are likely to impact abundant tree species in Vermont and New Hampshire in the • Commercial and residential development of forest future include hemlock woolly adelgid, emerald ash land, particularly in the Champlain Valley of Vermont borer, and Asian longhorned beetle. and southern part of New Hampshire, could cause reductions in forest cover. • The risk of catastrophic economic and ecological loss of forest resources could increase due to forest maturity • The small parcels held by many landowners and the and more extreme weather-related events including trend toward more landowners with smaller parcels hurricanes, droughts, and floods caused by a changing complicate the economics of forest management and climatic regime. the delivery of government programs. • The two most valuable commercial species, white pine • The trend toward more area of large diameter and less and red oak, are nearly absent in the smaller size classes area of small and medium diameter trees in both States in Vermont