GEORGIA FORES TRY CO MM ISSIO N 
 
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Forest Inventory & Analysis 2004 
 
Forestland Area 
 
Area by Land Class (million acres) 
 
Georgia contains the largest area of forest cover in the South with 24.7 million acres or 67% of the State.T his is an increase of about 3 14,000 acres since the previous forest inventory in 1997. Ninety-eight percent of the forestland is considered available for timber production and known as timberland.The remaining forestland area is reserved forestland where timber removals are prohibited by law or unproductive forestland (produces < 20 cubic feet/acre/year). 
 
l..lnd class 
 
1936 1953 1961 19n 1982 1989 1997 2004 
 
Timberland Other/reserved 
 
2 1.'I 24.0 25.8 21.8 0. 1 0. 1 0.4 
 
23.7 23.6 23.8 21.2 0 .6 0 .5 0 .6 0 .6 
 
Total forestland Nonforestland 
T otal land area 
 
21.1 21. 1 25.8 25.3 21. 31 24 . 1 24.4 24. 7 16.2 13.6 11.8 12. 1 12.9 13.0 12.7 12.3 37.6 37.7 37.7 37.4 37.2 37. 1 37. 1 37. 1 
 
Percent forested 
 
57% 64% 69% 68% 65% 65% 66% 67% 
 
Tomls may not sum due to rounding. 
Tocal l:lnd .are;a estJmnes c.h:inged slighdy o.,,e,. time due to improvements In 
measurement techniques and refinements In cl.usific:adon or small bodies of w.ater 
a nd stre.1ms. 
 
Forest Distribution 
 
Ownership of the Timberland 
 
Of the 159 counties, 131 are > 50% forested and account for 91 % of the forestland area and 90% of the growing-stock volume.As expected, the less forested areas are around the Atlanta metropolitan area and in the farmland area in the Southwest region of the State. 
 
Private landowners control 22.3 million forested acres (92%). The remaining 8% is publicly owned including other federal lands, State, and local lands. Family forest ownership is still the dominant landowner with 14.2 million acres. 
 
Percentage of Land in Forest by County 
 
Ownership ofTimberland 
 
< 25 2.5 - 50 
 so- 1s 
 
- 
 
> 75 
 
Forest 
industry 18% 
 
Other corporate 
16% 
 
Other public 5% 
National forests 
3% 
 
 Forest-Type Group Composition 
 
Forest Disturbance 
 
Loblolly-shortleaf and longleaf-slash pine groups comprise more than 99% of almost I I million ac res of softwood forest types. Hardwood types and oak-pine forest type account for 54% of the timberland area totaling 13 million acres.The oak-gum-cypress and elm-ash-cottonwood groups make up the bottomland hardwood area.Almost 6.5 million acres are planted pine and represents 60% of softwood forest types or 27% of all timberland. 
 
On the average each year, about 6% of the timberland area experiences some form of disturbance. Harvesting occurs on about 3% of the timberland area and accounts for 56% of the disturbance area.About 44% is caused by all the other disturbances. Fire, weather, insects, and disease account for almost 30% of total disturbance each year. 
Average AnnualTimberland Disturbance Types 
 
Area ofTimberland by Forest-Type Group 
 
Loblolly-shortleaf and longleaf-slash pine 45% 
 
~00 
359 
..e~ 
u 300 
 
"'O C: 
; 200 
 
176 
 
Oakpine 13% 
 
0 
:. 
: 100 
< 0 
 
 9763 
 
Nonstocked 
 
1% 
 
Bottom land hardwood 
15% 
 
Growing-Stock TreeVolume(~ 5.0 inches d.b.h.) - 1972 to 2004 
 
Growing-stock trees-since 1972. volume has increased by 7.9 billion cubic feet or 31 %. Softwood-has increased 2.6 billion cubic feet or 18%. Hardwood-has increased 5.3 billion cubic feet or 50%. 
 
Softwood 
 
Growing-Stock Tree Volume on Timberland by Diameter Class 
 
1 1972 
 
1!1 1982 
 
0 1989 
 
 1997 
 
1 2004 
 
Hardwood 
J.5 ., J.O 
.S! 2.5 
a:ii 2.0  1.s 
,Q 1.0 
a5 0.5 
o.o-- 6 
 
1 1972 
 
Diameter class (inches) 
 
11 1982 
 
0 1989 
 
a 1997 
 
1 2004 
 
8 
 
10 
 
12 
 
14 
 
16 
 
18 
 
20 
 
22+ 
 
Diameter class (inches)