The economic power of working forests

bryanBLOG

A new study commissioned by the National Alliance of Forest Owners quantifies exactly how much private working forests contribute to the economy. While these forests clearly help the states and communities in which they’re located, it’s striking to see just how much — hundreds of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars.

See the study here.

In Washington, one can see the economic impact of working forests on a regular basis. According to The Olympian, ship traffic at the Port of Olympia in 2009 was more than seven times the amount of the previous year because of log exports from Weyerhaeuser.  From 2008 to 2009, the number of vessels docked at the port went from just four to 29.

How have you seen working forests affect the economy in your community?