United States

Department

of Agriculture

Forest Service

Rocky Mountain

Research Station

Resource Bulletin

RMRS-RB-4

December 2004

Idaho’s Forest Products

Industry: A Descriptive

Analysis

Todd A. Morgan

Charles E. Keegan, III

Timothy P. Spoelma

Thale Dillon

A. Lorin Hearst

Francis G. Wagner

Larry T. DeBlander
Abstract _____________________________________

Morgan, Todd A.; Keegan, Charles E., III; Spoelma, Timothy P.; Dillon, Thale; Hearst, A. Lorin;

Wagner, Francis G.; DeBlander, Larry T. Idaho’s forest products industry: a descriptive

analysis. Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture,

Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 31 p.

This report provides a description of the structure, capacity, and condition of Idaho’s primary

forest products industry; traces the flow of Idaho’s 2001 timber harvest through the primary

sectors; and quantifies volumes and uses of wood fiber. The economic contribution of the

forest products industry to the State and historical industry changes are discussed, as well as

trends in timber harvest, production, and sales.

Keywords: Idaho, forest economics, mill residue, primary forest products, timber harvest

Authors ______________________

Todd A. Morgan, Timothy P. Spoelma, and A. Lorin

Hearst are Research Foresters, Charles E. Keegan, III,

is the Director of Forest Industry Research, and Thale

Dillon is a Research Associate, Bureau of Business and

Economic Research, University of Montana, Missoula,

MT 59812.

Francis G. Wagner is Professor, Forest Products Department, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83844.

Larry T. DeBlander is a Forester, U.S. Department of

Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research

Station, Forestry Sciences Laboratory, 507 25th Street,

Ogden, UT 84401.

Report Highlights ______________

• A total of 109 primary forest products plants operated in Idaho in 2001. These plants included 35

sawmills, 22 post, pole, and other roundwood product manufacturers, 21 house log and log home

manufacturers, 17 plants utilizing mill residues to

produce various products including pulp, paper,

particleboard, landscaping bark, and electricity, 10

cedar products manufacturers, and 4 plywood and

veneer plants.

• Total sales value for Idaho’s primary forest products was $1.65 billion in 2001. The majority of

product sales, excluding residue-related products,

were to markets outside of Idaho: Far Western

States (24 percent of all sales), Rocky Mountain

States (23 percent), and North-Central States (20

percent). Idaho’s share was the fourth largest market with 14 percent of sales.

• Three sectors account for over 95 percent of total

sales: sawmills, plywood and veneer, and residueutilizing plants.

• Idaho sawmills processed 89 percent of the timber

harvested in Idaho and produced 1.76 billion board

feet in 2001, with plants producing over 10 MMBF

annually accounting for over 98 percent of total

production.

• Idaho sawmills recovered 1.86 board feet lumber

tally per board foot of Scribner input—the highest

level on record and a 19 percent increase since

1990. Higher recovery is due to advanced milling

technology as well as greater utilization of small

diameter timber.

• Virtually 100 percent of Idaho’s mill residues were

utilized in 2001, the highest degree of utilization in

any census year. Over 98 percent of residues are

used either as raw material by the residue-related

products sector or as hogfuel.

• Idaho’s forest products industry’s annual capacity

to process sawtimber has decreased nearly 25

percent, from over 1,700 MMBF in 1990 to just

under 1,300 MMBF in 2001. In 2002, capacity

slipped to 1,225 MMBF, and to less than 1,150

MMBF in 2003.

• Approximately 17,900 workers, earning over $900

million (2001 dollars), were employed in the forest

products industry in Idaho in 2000. The primary

sectors accounted for approximately 12,700 workers, while the secondary sectors employed the

remaining 5,200.

• Idaho’s 2001 timber harvest was 1,007 MMBF

Scribner, a 40 percent decline from the 1990 harvest level due to an 89 percent decrease in harvest

from National Forests. Harvest volumes from private and other public lands have remained relatively stable, but the proportion of harvest from

private lands has increased substantially.
Contents_________________________________

Page

Introduction ................................................................................................ 1

Forest Industries Data Collection System.............................................. 1

The Operating Environment of Idaho’s Forest Products Industry .......... 1

Structure of Idaho’s Forest Products Industry ............................................ 2

Structure and Location........................................................................... 2

Sales Value of Primary Wood Products................................................. 3

Sawmill Sector ....................................................................................... 5

Residue-Related Products Sector ......................................................... 8

Plywood, Veneer, and Oriented Strand Board....................................... 9

Other Primary Manufacturers ................................................................ 9

Plant Capacity .......................................................................................... 10

Definition of Production Capacity......................................................... 10

Capacity in Units of Raw Material for Sawtimber Processors.............. 10

Industry’s Capacity to Process Sawtimber, 1979 through 2001 .......... 10

Sawtimber Capacity and Utilization by Sector ..................................... 11

Markets for Primary Wood Products ........................................................ 12

Market Areas by Finished Product Type.............................................. 14

Mill Residue: Quantity, Type, and Use ..................................................... 14

Supply of Mill Residue ......................................................................... 14

Residues from Other Manufacturers.................................................... 15

Forest Products Industry and the Idaho Economy ................................... 15

Trends in Forest Products Employment and Labor Income ................ 16

Idaho’s Basic Industries and Trends in the State Economy ................ 19

Forest Products Industry and Idaho’s Economic Base ........................ 19

Northern Idaho ..................................................................................... 20

Idaho’s Timber Harvest and Utilization .................................................... 21

Harvest Trends 1947 through 2001 ..................................................... 21

Geographic Source of the Harvest ...................................................... 22

Types of Timber Products Harvested .................................................. 23

Land Ownership and Type of Product Harvested ................................ 25

Species Composition of Timber Harvest ............................................. 25

Species Composition of Product Types ............................................... 26

Movement of Timber ............................................................................ 26

End Uses of Idaho’s Timber ................................................................ 28

References ............................................................................................... 31

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Rocky Mountain Research Station

240 West Prospect Road

Fort Collins, CO 80526
Federal Recycling Program Printed on Recycled Paper
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 1

Introduction ____________________

This report focuses on the results of a Statewide census of

Idaho’s primary forest products industry for calendar year

2001. We also discuss trends since 2001 as well as longer term

historic trends drawn from other sources. Our principal goals

are to determine how Idaho’s timber harvest is utilized, identify the type and number of primary forest products firms

operating in Idaho during 2001, describe the sources of raw

material, and quantify volumes of finished products and sales

values.

Primary forest products manufacturers are firms that process

timber into manufactured products such as lumber, and facilities such as pulp and paper mills and particleboard plants that

use the wood fiber residue directly from timber processors.

The University of Montana’s Bureau of Business and Economic Research (BBER), the University of Idaho’s Forest

Products Department, and the USDA Forest Service, Rocky

Mountain Research Station (Ogden, UT) cooperated in the

analysis and preparation of this report. The BBER in cooperation with the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) programs in

the Rocky Mountain and Pacific Northwest (PNW) Research

Stations have developed a system to collect, compile, and

make available State and County information on the operations

of the forest products industry—the Forest Industries Data

Collection System (FIDACS).

Forest Industries Data Collection System

FIDACS is based on a census of primary forest product

manufacturers located in a given State. Idaho manufacturers

were identified through telephone directories, directories of

the forest products industries (Miller Freeman, Inc. 1984–

1999; Paperloop 2001–2003; Random Lengths 2001–2002),

and with the assistance of the manufacturers themselves.

Through a written questionnaire or phone interview, manufacturers provided the following detailed information for each

plant for a given calendar year:

• plant production capacity and employment

• volume of raw material received, by County and ownership

Idaho’s Forest Products Industry:

A Descriptive Analysis

Todd A. Morgan

Charles E. Keegan, III

Timothy P. Spoelma

Thale Dillon

A. Lorin Hearst

Francis G. Wagner

Larry T. DeBlander

• species of timber received

• finished product volumes, types, sales value, and market

locations

• utilization and marketing of manufacturing residue

Previous FIDACS censuses have collected data in Idaho for

1979, 1980, 1985, 1990, and 1995. The BBER, the University

of Idaho’s Forest Products Department, and/or the Forest

Service Research Stations have conducted similar censuses in

the other Rocky Mountain and Pacific Coast States. The State

of Washington, in cooperation with the PNW Station, reports

on periodic censuses of Washington State’s industry.

Firms that responded to the 2001 Idaho census processed

virtually all of the State’s commercial timber harvest. Using

published sources and data from various land management

agencies, estimates were made for the few nonresponding

firms in an attempt to include all of Idaho’s primary forest

products industry activity for 2001. Volumes and characteristics of Idaho timber processed by out-of-State firms were

determined through surveys of mills in adjacent States.

Information collected through FIDACS is stored at the

University of Montana’s BBER. Additional information is

available by request. Individual firm-level data are confidential and will not be released.

The Operating Environment of Idaho’s

Forest Products Industry

The period since the late 1970s has been characterized by

extreme changes in markets and operating conditions.

Driven by a strong U.S. economy, which included annual

housing starts exceeding 2 million units, the late 1970s was a

period of high prices for wood products (WWPA 1964–2002),

as well as a period of relatively abundant timber in Idaho. A

recession began in the last quarter of 1979, and the first few

years of the 1980s saw the most difficult operating conditions

since the Great Depression. Official recessions occurred periodically between 1980 and 1982, with low levels of construction activity, particularly in 1982. From 1983 to 1985, there

were near-record levels of forest products consumption in the

United States, but low prices for lumber (Random Lengths
2 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

1976–2002; WWPA 1964–2002). The low prices were due

primarily to the high value of the U.S. dollar, leading to

declines in exports and increases in imports, channeling

large volumes of foreign wood and paper products into

U.S. markets.

Not until the last half of the 1980s did markets begin to

improve, with prices of wood products increasing due to a

strong economy and a lower U.S. dollar. Because of low

timber harvest during the early 1980s, Idaho timber processors

had substantial volume under contract that yielded a temporary

“abundance of timber” in the late 1980s, and harvest and output

reached record or near-record levels.

Restricted timber availability throughout the Western United

States and global market conditions both have had major

impacts on the forest products industry since the early 1990s.

Declines in harvests from Federal timberland (mainly National

Forest land) in the Western United States led to capacity losses

in the West and spurred expansion in other regions. Most

pertinent to U.S. markets were expansions in Eastern Canada

and the Southeastern United States. The decline in harvest

levels resulted from numerous constraints on harvesting timber on Federal lands, including threatened and endangered

species protection, appeals and litigation of timber sales, and

cumulative impacts of past harvesting on resources such as

wildlife, aesthetics, and fisheries.

As was the case across the West, Idaho’s National Forest

timber harvest fell sharply following 1990, with the average of

the 1999 to 2001 harvest at 17 percent of the 1990 level, and the

total harvest in the State falling 40 percent. Global economic

conditions were also important in the 1990s. A recession

occurred after the first Gulf War due to a variety of factors,

leading to low lumber prices. However, in 1993 and much of

1994 the market was at the other extreme. Lumber prices rose

to near record levels due to high demand, driven by the now

stronger U.S. and global economies and the significant reductions in the Federal timber supply nationwide. Markets weakened modestly in 1995, with slower U.S. and international

economies. Additionally, rising imports of Canadian lumber

became an increasingly contentious issue as consumption

slackened in 1995, and the Canadian dollar continued to

weaken. In 1996, the United States and Canadian governments

agreed to a 5-year quota on Canadian softwood lumber imports

from the major Canadian timber-producing Provinces. This

led to strong lumber prices until mid 1997, the onset of a harsh

economic decline in Japan and other Asian countries.

In 1999, markets improved considerably due to the U.S.

economy’s strong performance and some improvement in the

global economy. However, the situation changed dramatically

again in 2000 as a drop in housing starts in the United States and

Japan, and a strong U.S. dollar lead to low softwood lumber

prices. With a U.S. recession in 2001 (made worse by the

September 11 World Trade Center terrorist attacks), the expiration of the Softwood Lumber Quota Agreement, and a

continuously strengthening dollar, prices for lumber and other

wood and paper products dropped to their lowest level since the

1991 recession.

Low prices persisted despite low interest rates and record

U.S. lumber consumption of over 56 billion board feet in

2002 (Random Lengths 1976–2002; WWPA 1964–2002).

The quota on Canadian softwood lumber expired in 2001 and

was followed by the imposition of a 27 percent duty and

antidumping penalty assessed by the United States on Canadian softwood lumber.

Persistent low prices for lumber, the major output of Idaho’s

industry, during the 2000 through 2002 period were the result

of high volumes of lumber on the U.S. market brought about

by:

• poor economic conditions through much of the world

• increased wood products manufacturing capacity

worldwide

• a high-valued (although weakening) U.S. dollar through

most of 2002

• increased average mill size and capital intensity with

higher fixed costs (and often debt) in many lumberproducing regions, making managers more reluctant to

curtail production in periods of weak markets

• reported attempts by Canadian sawmills to increase production, lower per unit costs, and avoid the antidumping

charge for selling lumber below their cost of manufacturing (Random Lengths various weeks 2002)

Structure of Idaho’s Forest Products

Industry _______________________

Structure and Location

In 2001, timber-processing facilities operated in 28 of Idaho’s

44 Counties, while timber was harvested in 33 Counties.

Idaho’s 10 northern Counties contain the greatest concentration of the primary forest products industry (fig. 1), which

includes plants that manufacture:

• lumber and other sawn products

• veneer/plywood

• posts, small poles, stakes, and roundwood furniture

• house logs and log homes

• cedar products—shakes, shingles, and split rail fencing

• other products including pulp and paper, particleboard,

log furniture, chips, decorative bark, and energy from

biomass

The 2001 census identified 109 active primary forest products plants (table 1), 53 fewer than the 1995 census and a

decrease of 133 since 1979. While all sectors of Idaho’s

primary forest products industry experienced a decrease in the

number of facilities since 1995, most of the loss occurred in the

sawmill sector, with 27 fewer sawmills operating in the

state in 2001. Since mid-2001, several larger facilities have

closed; these closures are addressed in more detail in the

individual sector discussions. Because the opening and

closing of small primary facilities are not widely reported,

the change in total number of facilities subsequent to 2001

has not been determined.
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 3

Figure 1—Location of Idaho’s active primary forest products manufacturers, 2001.

Sales Value of Primary Wood Products

The periodic censuses of 1979, 1985, 1990, 1995, and 2001

provide the most complete estimates of sales values for Idaho’s

primary forest products industry. Various other sources were

used to estimate sales values for the noncensus years between

1977 and 2002 (Random Lengths 1976–2002; WWPA 1964–

2002). All sales are reported free on board (f.o.b.) the producing mill.

Sales by Idaho’s primary forest products industry totaled

$1.65 billion in 2001 (table 2); estimates for 2002 indicate sales

decreased by about $70 million. Thus, 2002 sales were the

lowest since 1985 ($1.39 billion, in 2001 dollars). Average

annual sales for 1977 through 2002 were approximately $1.72

billion. In 1978, sales totaled slightly less than $2.2 billion,

followed by 1977 at approximately $2.1 billion, and 1993 and

1994 at about $2.0 billion each (fig. 2).

Over 95 percent of primary wood products sales are concentrated in three sectors of the industry: sawmills, structural

panels (plywood and veneer), and residue-related products.

The residue-related products include pulp and paper, particleboard, wood fuel pellets, electricity generation, and chips

converted from roundwood. Sales values for residue-related

products also include Idaho mill residues sold to users within

Idaho and outside the State.
4 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

Table 1—Number of active Idaho primary wood products facilities by County, 2001(source: Keegan and others 1997).

Posts, poles, and ResdiueVeneer/ other roundwood House related

County Sawmills plywood products logs Cedar productsa Total

Ada 1 1 1 3

Adams 1 1 2

Bear Lake 1 1

Benewah 4 1 1 4 1 11

Blaine 1 1

Boise 1 1

Bonner 5 1 5 4 3 18

Bonneville 1 1

Boundary 3 2 1 6

Canyon 1 1 2

Clearwater 2 1 2 5

Custer 1 1 2

Fremont 1 1 2

Gem 1 1 1 1 4

Gooding 1 1 2

Idaho 4 2 1 7

Jefferson 1 1

Kootenai 6 1 4 2 2 15

Latah 3 1 4

Lemhi 1 1 2

Lewis 1 2 1 4

Madison 1 1

Nez Perce 1 5 6

Payette 1 1

Shoshone 1 1

Teton 2 2 4

Twin Falls 1 1

Valley 1 1

2001 Total 35 4 22 21 10 17 109

1995 Totalb 62 6 32 32 15 15 162

1990 Total 80 6 27 22 26 11 172

1985 Total 90 7 26 20 25 6 174

1979 Total 133 8 35 15 44 7 242

a

Residue-related products include a particleboard plant, roundwood/chip conversion facilities, pulp and paper facilities, decorative

bark plants, and biomass/energy facilities. b

Includes six post and pole, four log furniture, and three decorative bark manufacturers not identified in the 1995 census.

Table 2—Sales value of Idaho’s primary wood products, census years 1979 through 2001(source: Keegan and

others 1997).

Product 1979 1985 1990 1995 2001

- - - - - - - - - - - - - Million 2001 dollars - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Lumber, timbers, other sawn products 1,153.9 648.1 703.5 800.0 687.6

Plywood and veneer 195.6 122.6 136.2 192.7 69.9

Cedar products 30.0 12.2 18.3 15.7 30.4

House logs and log homes 17.9 5.0 13.2 23.4 25.5

Posts, poles, and other roundwood products 37.8 19.1 34.2 29.3 22.2

Residue-related productsa 556.6 585.5 722.3 772.1 812.6

All products 1,991.7 1,392.6 1,627.8 1,833.1 1,648.1

a

Residue-related products include particleboard, chips, pulp and paper products, bioenergy products, decorative bark,

and mill residues sold within and outside the State.
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 5

Figure 2—Sales value of Idaho’s manufactured primary wood and paper products, 1977

through 2002 (source: WWPA 1977 through 2002; Keegan and others 2002).

High sales values in the late 1970s were due in large part to

strong lumber markets and high (inflation-adjusted) prices.

Lumber sales from Idaho sawmills exceeded $1 billion in

1977, and peaked in 1978 at $1.3 billion. Sales values collapsed in the early 1980s with a severe recession, low production, and weak prices. Driven by 1982 lumber sales of less than

$500 million, sales of all primary products totaled less than

$1.2 billion. In the last half of the 1980s, lumber sales moved

back above $700 million and total sales to more than $1.5

billion.

Even though timber availability in Idaho limited production,

1993 and 1994 marked the first time since the late 1970s that

total sales exceeded $2 billion and lumber sales topped $1

billion. As indicated earlier, 1993 and 1994 also had high wood

product prices due to a strong U.S. economy and constrained

timber availability throughout the Western United States.

Sales value in the remainder of the 1990s fluctuated between

$1.7 and $1.9 billion, primarily as lumber markets fluctuated.

Consistently declining sales since 1999 have been due to lower

per-unit prices as well as curtailments and closures. The

lumber sales value of $688 million in 2001 represents the

lowest since 1985 ($648 million).

Total sales have been buoyed and stabilized to a degree by

the expansion of the residue-utilizing sector. This sector has

shown substantial increases in sales over the past 20 years and

has become an increasingly important sector of Idaho’s forest

products industry. In order to avoid disclosure of firm-level

data, published information was used to estimate a sales value

for Idaho’s residue-utilizing sector (Paperloop 2003; Potlatch

Corporation 2002a,b). Inflation-adjusted sales were $557 million in 1979, versus $813 million in 2001. Sales by residueutilizing manufacturers currently account for about 49 percent

of Idaho’s forest industry sales, versus 28 percent in the late

1970s (fig. 2).

Structural panel sales, on the other hand, have contributed

proportionately less to total sales than lumber. The peak year

for structural panel sales was 1978, at about $225 million.

More recently, high prices brought sales to over $200 million

in 1993 and 1994. Since 1997, plywood and veneer markets

and timber availability have lead to plant closures, and the

2001 sales fell to $70 million, the lowest on record.

Sales by the remaining sectors of Idaho’s primary wood

products industry were approximately $78 million in 2001, up

$10 million since 1995 and the highest for any census year

since the $86 million reported in 1979. Growth in recent years

has been primarily in cedar products and the log home industry.

Sawmill Sector

Sawmills are the major component of Idaho’s forest products industry in terms of value of production, plant numbers,

and timber volume processed. In 2001, Idaho’s 35 active

sawmills used 89 percent of the timber processed in the State

and produced 1.8 billion board feet of lumber and other sawn

products, representing 5.4 percent of the total U.S. production

of softwood lumber and about 3.4 percent of the nation’s

softwood lumber consumption.
6 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

The most commonly used species are true firs (Abies spp.),

Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco), western

hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.) Sarg.), western larch

(Larix occidentalis Nutt.), western red-cedar (Thuja plicata

Donn ex D. Don), ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex

Laws.), lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud.),

western white pine (Pinus monticola Dougl. ex D. Don), and

Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii Parry ex Engelm.).

High quality select and shop grades of lumber are produced,

as are small volumes of structural timbers, but nearly 87

percent of production is dimension and stud lumber used in

construction.

Changes in lumber production—The period from 1947 to

1960 showed steady growth in lumber production driven by

strong markets and increasing timber harvest. Harvest levels in

Idaho prior to World War II on both public and private lands

were relatively low in relation to timber inventories (Wilson

and Spencer 1967). After World War II, public policy encouraged increased harvest on Federal lands to meet the strong

national demand for building products, and improved markets

also increased harvest on private lands (Flowers and others

1993). From 1947 to 1960, the volume of timber harvested

from Idaho timberlands increased from under 1 billion board

feet to nearly 1.5 billion, and virtually all of that timber was

processed by sawmills (Setzer and Wilson 1970).

During the 1960s, lumber production showed little year-toyear variation, ranging from 1.6 to 1.7 billion board feet.

Market conditions during that period were relatively stable

with a strong U.S. economy and no recessions between 1960

and 1970. Relatively stable lumber production occurred despite a 10-fold increase in timber use by Idaho’s plywood

industry, which used timber that could have been processed

into lumber. Harvest increase was the major factor allowing

sustained lumber production concurrent with the development

and expansion of Idaho’s plywood industry. The total harvest

in Idaho increased from 1.6 billion board feet at the beginning

of the decade to over 1.8 billion board feet in the late 1960s.

After reaching almost 2 billion board feet annually during

the strong market years of the late 1970s, lumber production

declined sharply through the double-dip recession of the early

1980s (fig. 3). Lumber production actually reached its highest

annual level—more than 2.1 billion board feet—in 1989, even

though lumber markets were not as strong as in the late 1970s.

Contributing to this high lumber production in the late 1980s

was a 16 percent increase in lumber recovery per unit of timber

processed between 1979 and 1990.

Limited timber availability caused lumber production to fall

in the early 1990s. In the strong market years of 1993 and 1994,

Idaho’s timber harvest fell by nearly 15 percent, and lumber

production was down nearly 10 percent from just over 2 billion

board feet in 1990. Prices in 1995 fell from the high levels of

the previous 2 years, and production fell to 1.67 billion board

feet. With higher lumber prices in 1996, production increased

to 1.8 billion board feet. Prices continued to increase throughout the late 1990s, resulting in production of 1.86 billion board

feet in 1999. Declining prices and further reductions in National Forest timber offerings led to decreased production in

2000 and 2001, with 2001 annual production totaling 1.8

billion board feet, the lowest since 1996 (fig. 3).

Figure 3—Idaho lumber production, 1947 through 2001 (source: WWPA 1964 through 2002).
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 7

In examining timber harvest and lumber production changes

in Idaho, it is clear that timber harvest in the State between 1990

and 2001 declined more than lumber production (40 percent

versus 14 percent). A number of factors have impacted lumber

production from Idaho’s mills including:

• fluctuating markets

• timber availability

• increased recovery of lumber per board foot of log input

• management decisions by the industry to process less

timber into other products such as plywood instead of

lumber

• log flows

As discussed, timber availability and markets have exerted

a substantial impact on lumber production. Between 1990 and

2001, increased lumber production per unit of log input has

reduced the impact of lower harvest levels on lumber output.

Large scale declines in plywood manufacturing have made a

greater portion of Idaho’s harvest available to the sawmill

sector, and—in contrast to previous years when Idaho was a net

exporter of logs—in 2001 Idaho was a net importer.

Changes in overrun—Between the 1979 and the 1990

census, the volume of lumber recovered from 1 board foot

Scribner of log volume (overrun) increased from 1.34 to 1.56

board feet lumber tally. Lumber recovery in Idaho has since

increased to 1.86 board feet in 2001. Increases in overrun are

due primarily to advances in technology and to decreased log

diameter. As log diameter decreases, the Scribner Decimal C

log rule, which is used in Idaho, underestimates by an increasing amount the lumber that can be recovered, thus giving a

higher lumber recovery per board foot of timber. Advances in

production technology increase lumber recovery through computerized log scanning capabilities that identify optimum

sawing patterns. Likewise, using thinner kerf saws and scanning equipment to edge and trim lumber have reduced the

portion of the log that becomes sawdust.

Lumber production by geographic area—Information

on lumber production at the sub-State level is currently

available only through the ongoing censuses of Idaho’s

industry conducted by BBER. Lumber output by County and

region is discussed for census years, with an emphasis on

recent changes, particularly since 1990. Idaho lumber production in 2001 was up 5 percent from the previous census in

1995 but has declined nearly 15 percent since 1990 (table 3).

The increased production since 1995 has not been a Statewide trend, as production from mills in southern Idaho

decreased 55 percent, from 229 MMBF in 1995 to 102

MMBF in 2001. In contrast, Idaho’s 10 northern Counties

produced nearly 1.7 billion board feet of lumber in 2001, up

from 1.4 billion in 1995.

Exact County-level lumber production data are withheld for

individual Counties to avoid disclosure of firm-level information. Bonner County and Kootenai County continued to be the

top lumber-producing Counties in Idaho in 2001, with both

Counties producing over 350 MMBF of lumber. Other topproducing Counties were Benewah, Boundary, Idaho, and Nez

Perce, each with over 125 MMBF.

Although timber harvest in northern Idaho decreased by 200

MMBF, lumber production has increased by nearly 300 MMBF

since 1995 as the result of a number of factors. Lumber

recovery from Idaho sawmills increased. The decline of Idaho’s

plywood industry has increased the proportion of timber available to the sawmill sector. Additionally, in 2001, Idaho was a

net importer of timber from other States and Canada, in

contrast to previous census years when Idaho was a net

exporter of timber.

Continuing a trend that started in the last half of the 1980s,

the sawmill industry in southern Idaho experienced a number

of closures, resulting in sharply decreased production. Production in southern Idaho fell 55 percent from 1995 to 2001, and

71 percent since 1990. Mills in southern Idaho, which received

more than 75 percent of their timber from National Forests in

1990 and over 50 percent in 1995 (Keegan and others 1992,

1997), were more vulnerable to sharp declines in National

Forest timber availability. Since 2001, lumber production in

southern Idaho has continued to decline. Boise Cascade permanently closed its timber processing facilities during 2001,

citing declines in Federal timber availability as the primary

reason for the closures (Boise 2001).

Table 3—Idaho lumber production by geographic area, census years 1979 through 2001(source: Keegan and

others 1997).

County group 1979 1985 1990 1995 2001

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - MBFa , lumber tally - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Bonner, Boundary 462,481 358,064 552,426 408,988 661,509

Benewah, Kootenai, Shoshone 467,965 490,866 629,129 613,014 563,482

Latah, Lewis, Nez Perce 360,847 198,633 262,148 213,610 274,990

Clearwater, Idaho 248,917 228,792 255,336 209,176 156,298

Northern Idaho 1,540,210 1,276,355 1,699,039 1,444,788 1,656,279

Southern Idaho 391,791 389,020 355,511 228,571 102,471

Idaho Total 1,932,001 1,665,375 2,054,550 1,673,359 1,758,750

a

MBF = thousand board feet.
8 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

Number and size of mills—Over the past 45 years the

number of sawmills in Idaho has declined, and production has

been concentrated into fewer but larger mills. Average lumber output per mill has increased nearly 10-fold since 1956,

with the 2001 average annual output per mill at just over 50

MMBF. The ongoing concentration of production in larger

mills is further illustrated by the near doubling of average

annual output per plant between 1995 (27 MMBF) and 2001

(50 MMBF). At the height of the post-World War II housing

boom, there were more than 300, mostly small, sawmills in

Idaho. Since then, the total number of mills has consistently

declined—the 2001 census identified 35 active sawmills

(table 1).

The decline in number of sawmills occurred primarily

among the smaller facilities, with the number of mills producing less than 10 MMBF of lumber annually decreasing

from 274 in 1956 to 12 in 2001 (table 4). In addition to the

reduced number of small sawmills, the 2001 census identified 23 mills producing more than 10 MMBF annually—the

fewest in the last 45 years.

Since the late 1950s, lumber output has become increasingly

concentrated in larger mills. In 1956, 73 percent of lumber

production was from mills producing more than 10 MMBF

annually. By 1979, mills producing more than 10 MMBF

annually accounted for 93 percent of the State’s lumber output,

with 14 mills producing over 50 MMBF each, for a total of 49

percent of Idaho’s lumber. In 2001, 23 mills accounted for 99

percent of Idaho’s lumber production, with 14 mills producing

over 50 MMBF each, for a total of 85 percent of Idaho’s lumber

(table 5).

Residue-Related Products Sector

In addition to products such as lumber and plywood, the

processing of timber generates substantial volumes of wood

fiber by-products. These by-products, referred to as mill residue, are the raw material source for the residue-related products sector. The 2001 Idaho census identified a pulp and paper

mill, an associated tissue plant, a particleboard plant, two wood

fuel pellet producers, one roundwood chipping facility, four

facilities generating electricity for sale, and seven facilities

Table 4—Number of Idaho sawmills by annual production, selected years 1956

through 2001 (source: Setzer and Wilson 1970; Godfrey and others

1980; Keegan and others 1997).

Under 10 10 to 50 Over 50 Total number

Year MMBF MMBF MMBF Unknown of mills

1956 274 37 a — 311

1962 151 42 a — 193

1966 123 45 a — 168

1973 67 39 6 10 122

1979 88 31 14 — 133

1985 52 24 14 — 90

1990 40 22 18 — 80

1995 29 17 16 — 62

2001 12 9 14 — 35

a

Mills with lumber production in excess of 50 million board feet (MMBF) were included in

the 10 to 50 MMBF category for these years.

Table 5—Number of active Idaho sawmills by production size class and average annual lumber

production, 2001.

Number of Percentage of Average production

Production size class mills Production total production per mill

MBFa MBFa

1 MMBF or less 7 1,992 0.1 285

Over 1 to 10 MMBF 5 18,987 1.1 3,797

Over 10 to 50 MMBF 9 244,340 13.9 27,149

Over 50 to 100 MMBF 7 499,197 28.4 71,314

Over 100 MMBF 7 994,234 56.5 142,033

Total 35 1,758,750 100.0 50,250

a

Production volume in thousand board feet (MBF) lumber tally.
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 9

producing bark-related products such as decorative and landscape bark. The residue-utilizing sector is a significant revenue

source for Idaho’s lumber and plywood producers. In 2001, 94

percent of residue sales were from sawmills and veneer plants

to residue-utilizing manufacturers.

As indicated earlier, this sector accounted for approximately

49 percent of Idaho’s primary forest products sales in 2001, up

slightly from 42 percent in 1995 but up dramatically from 28

percent in the late 1970s. Sales from the residue-utilizing

sector have increased in each census year since 1979 (table 2).

Idaho has one particleboard plant and one pulp and paper

mill, which produces Kraft pulp, paperboard, and tissue. Published information was used to report production at these

facilities. The particleboard plant produced about 67 million

square feet (MMSF, 3⁄4-inch basis) in 2001, versus 68 MMSF

in 1995 and 60 MMSF in 1990 (Keegan and others 1992;

Miller Freeman, Inc. 1984–1999; Potlatch 2002a). Production

of paperboard and tissue in Idaho was 533,000 tons in 2001, up

from 424,000 tons in 1995 and 411,000 tons in 1990 (Keegan

and others 1992; Miller Freeman, Inc. 1984–1999; Potlatch

2002a).

Several Idaho firms operate plants producing electricity for

sale through the burning of wood residue. These plants are

associated with timber processing facilities and historically

produced steam energy for in-house use. Many of these plants

began to produce electricity for sale to outside markets in the

early 1980s. There are other firms in Idaho that produce wood

fuel pellets and bark products from the residues generated by

timber processing facilities. Most of this activity also began in

the early to mid 1980s, and some expansion has occurred since

then.

Plywood, Veneer, and Oriented Strand

Board

In 2001, four plants in Idaho produced plywood and/or

veneer. These four plants shipped 254 MMSF (3⁄8-inch basis)

of plywood and veneer for total sales of $69.9 million.

During the late 1950s and early 1960s, two plants producing

plywood and veneer operated in Idaho with combined total

production of less than 50 MMSF annually. The industry

began to expand dramatically in the mid-1960s, with the

construction of four new plants. Production reached 603 MMSF

in 1967, which remained the highest level of production until

the late 1980s. Slight expansion continued throughout the

1970s, and industry output remained between 500 and 600

MMSF annually. By 1979, eight plants producing structural

panels or veneer were operating in Idaho.

Production of structural panels decreased 200 MMSF during

the recession years of the early 1980s, and by 1985 two

plywood plants and one plystran plant had closed. However, in

1984 an oriented strand board (OSB) plant was opened, raising

the number of active plants in Idaho to six. The industry

rebounded quickly from the recession. Production increased to

prerecession levels by 1985, and peak production occurred in

1988 at 639 MMSF.

The period from 1985 to 1995 was marked by stability in

both the number of plants operating and production levels. All

six plants operating in 1985 were still operating in 1995, and

production remained stable at approximately 600 MMSF per

year. In 1995, production approached the peak levels of 1988

at 637 MMSF.

In the late 1990s, the structural panel sector began a period

of significant decline. The OSB plant closed in 1997, and a

plywood plant closed in 2000, reducing the number of active

structural panel plants operating in Idaho to four. Another

plywood plant closed in 2001. The closures since 1995 were

due to reduced timber availability, as well as increased competition from OSB producers elsewhere in North America and

overseas.

Other Primary Manufacturers

The 2001 census identified 53 other primary manufacturers

processing timber into cedar products, log homes, utility poles,

posts, and other small roundwood products. In 1990 and 1995,

there were 75 and 79 facilities, respectively (table 1).

Posts, poles, and other roundwood products—In 2001,

22 plants in Idaho manufactured various types of roundwood

products, such as utility poles, posts, corral poles, tree stakes,

and roundwood furniture. These plants had sales of $22.2

million from an output of more than 2.3 million pieces, a

decrease from 1995, when sales were $29.3 million from an

output of approximately 3.7 million pieces (table 2). Sales of

these products in 1990 were $34.2 million, and production was

4.3 million pieces.

Cedar products—Though the number of facilities has

decreased, Idaho’s cedar products industry has made a resurgence in sales and volume processed. Ten cedar products

manufacturers were active in 2001, processing approximately

34 MMBF Scribner of logs into cedar shakes, shingles, split

rail fencing, and fence lath. In 2001, cedar products sales were

$30.4 million, the highest on record, and twice the inflationadjusted 1995 sales value. This increase was due to slightly

higher cedar product prices and increased production. Most of

this growth was in split cedar posts and rails and fence lath.

Log homes—While the log home industry still accounts for

only 2 percent of Idaho’s primary forest industry sales, it has

grown substantially since 1979. The 2001 census identified 21

log home manufacturers, producing nearly 3.1 million lineal

feet of house logs. Despite decreased output and 11 fewer mills

operating in 2001 than in 1995, sales value increased to $25.5

million, the highest sales on record for Idaho. This compares to

1995 sales of $23.4 million and production of 3.7 million

lineal feet. Sales and production in 1979 were $17.9 million

and 4 million lineal feet, respectively. Sales increases from

1995 to 2001 were due to additional processing of house logs

into complete building shells or homes, the use of higher

value logs, and the design and production of higher value

homes.
10 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

Plant Capacity __________________

In this section we estimate the timber-processing capacity

and the proportion of that capacity utilized by Idaho’s primary

forest product manufacturers in 2001. Our analysis focuses on

plants processing sawtimber—sawmills, plywood and veneer

plants, house log plants, and utility pole plants. Capacity and

utilization for the nonsawtimber processing manufacturers are

discussed in less detail.

Definition of Production Capacity

Mills were asked to specify production capacity—volume of

finished product the facility is capable of producing both per 8-

hour shift and annually—given sufficient supplies of raw

materials and firm market demand for products. Most of the

larger mills estimated annual capacity based on two 8- or 10-

hour shifts daily for a 220- to 260-operating-day year. A few

estimated annual capacity equivalent to operating 24 hours per

day for 220 to 250 days per year. Smaller mills reported annual

capacity at only one shift per day for not more than 250

operating days per year.

Capacity in Units of Raw Material for

Sawtimber Processors

Sawtimber processors reported production capacity in a

variety of units. Sawmills reported production capacity in

1,000 board feet, lumber tally, while plywood capacity was

reported in 1,000 square feet on a 3⁄

8-inch basis. Utility pole

production capacity was reported in numbers of pieces of a

given size, and house log capacity in lineal feet. To combine

the production capacity figures from different sectors and to

estimate the industry’s total capacity to process sawtimber,

production capacity was converted to units of timber input

(MMBF Scribner) on a mill-by-mill basis, using each facility’s

product recovery factor.

Sawmill capacity figures were adjusted to MMBF of timber

by dividing production capacity in lumber tally by each mill’s

lumber recovery per board foot Scribner of timber processed.

Plywood and veneer capacity figures were converted to MMBF

Scribner by dividing production capacity in square feet by each

mill’s plywood recovery. Utility pole and house log capacities

were adjusted to MMBF Scribner by multiplying capacity in

the given finished product unit by an average Scribner board

foot volume per piece or per lineal foot.

Industry’s Capacity to Process Sawtimber,

1979 through 2001

Mill capacities and utilization estimates for 1979, 1985,

1990, 1995, and 2001 are based on complete censuses of

Idaho’s industry. For noncensus years, mill capacities and

utilization were estimated using information from industry

directories, trade associations, and industry consultants (Miller

Freeman, Inc. 1984–1999; Random Lengths 2001–2002;

WWPA 1964–2002).

Detailed capacity information is not available prior to the

1979 census. Idaho’s sawtimber processing capacity has declined by 37 percent since 1979, with most of the decline

occurring in the last decade (fig. 4). Annual capacity in 1979

was 2,063 MMBF. Between 1979 and 1985, capacity declined

5 percent. Since 1985, the decline accelerated, and capacity fell

to 1,717 MMBF in 1990 and 1,562 MMBF in 1995. Since

1995, Idaho’s sawtimber processing capacity has declined by

over 15 percent to 1,294 MMBF in 2001. Subsequent mill

closures reduced annual capacity to less than 1,150 MMBF in

2003.

Figure 4—Idaho sawtimber

processing capacity and

sawtimber processed, 1979

through 2002 (source:

Keegan and others 1997).
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 11

Sawtimber Capacity and Utilization by

Sector

Idaho mills processed 1,036 MMBF of sawtimber in 2001,

using 80 percent of sawtimber processing capacity (table 6).

This is the lowest level of utilization since 1985, when mills

utilized 74 percent of their capacity. Compared to previous

census years, capacity utilization has declined 10 percentage

points since 1990 and 3 percentage points since 1995.

Because sawmills account for roughly 88 percent of Idaho’s

sawtimber processing capacity, overall trends in sawtimber

processing capacity and utilization follow sawmill trends.

However, both sawmills and the structural panel (plywood,

veneer, and OSB) sectors have shown substantial declines in

capacity and in utilization. Most of the recent capacity decline

has occurred in the sawmill sector, which had 1,140 MMBF of

capacity in 2001. This is down by nearly 670 MMBF Scribner

since 1979, while the volume processed by sawmills is down

somewhat less—490 MMBF. Compared to the previous census in 1995, sawmill capacity declined by 178 MMBF (13

percent). Sawmills processed 948 MMBF of sawtimber in

2001, utilizing 83 percent of their capacity, the same proportion utilized in 1995.

Idaho’s plywood and veneer plants had the capacity to

process 126 MMBF in 2001 but processed 72 MMBF of

sawtimber, thus utilizing only 57 percent of the sector’s

capacity. These figures, the lowest on record, are indicative of

a significant decline in Idaho’s structural panel sector. The

addition of an OSB plant and the closure of a plywood plant

caused capacity to increase initially from 1979 to 1985, and

then fall from 1985 to 1995. Since 1995, the structural panels

sector has seen the closure of the OSB plant, as well as a

plywood plant, reducing the sector’s capacity by 76 MMBF.

Capacity utilization for these facilities was 91 percent in 1995.

Plywood and OSB plants tend to run at a higher rate of capacity

utilization because they are more capital-intensive than the

average sawmill, and their manufacturing processes are not

easily shut down. A large part of the decline in capacity

utilization in 2001 was due to one plant operating for less than

half of the year and then closing permanently.

The annual timber processing capacity of Idaho’s utility pole

and house log sectors in 2001 was 28 MMBF, which is lower

Table 6—Estimated capacity to process sawtimber and capacity utilized for sawmills, plywood/veneer plants,

utility pole and house log plants, Idaho, 1979, 1985, 1990, 1995, and 2001 (source: Keegan and

others 1997).

Capacity to Percentage of total

Plant type process sawtimber Volume processed capacity utilized

- - - - - - - - - - - MMBFa , Scribner - - - - - - - - - -

1979

Sawmills 1,809 1,437 79

Plywood/veneer plants 221 210 95

Utility pole and house log plants 33 20 61

Total 2,063 1,667 81

1985

Sawmills 1,666 1,229 74

Plywood/veneer plants 265 208 78

Utility pole and house log plants 34 15 44

Total 1,965 1,452 74

1990

Sawmills 1,459 1,316 90

Plywood/veneer plants 227 214 94

Utility pole and house log plants 31 14 45

Total 1,717 1,544 90

1995

Sawmills 1,318 1,097 83

Plywood/veneer plants 202 184 91

Utility pole and house log plants 41 20 49

Total 1,562 1,301 83

2001

Sawmills 1,140 948 83

Plywood/veneer plants 126 72 57

Utility pole and house log plants 28 16 57

Total 1,294 1,036 80

a

MMBF = million board feet.
12 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

than in earlier censuses. The decrease in 2001 was mainly due

to the loss of 11 log home manufacturers since 1995. In 2001,

44 percent of sector capacity was utilized, which is somewhat

higher than utilization levels from previous census years.

Markets for Primary Wood

Products_______________________

In this section we examine the markets for Idaho’s primary

forest products industry and compare 2001 survey results with

1990 and 1995. Respondent mills summarized their 2001

shipments of finished wood products, providing information

on volume, sales value, and geographic destination (fig. 5).

Mills usually distributed their products through their own

distribution channels or through independent wholesalers and

selling agents. Because of subsequent wholesaling transactions, the geographic destination reported may not precisely

reflect final delivery points of shipments. Market destination

for the residue sector could not be released without revealing

firm-level information.

Excluding mill residues and sales by the residue-utilizing

sector, sales from Idaho’s primary wood products industry

totaled $835 million in 2001, down 21 percent from the 1995

sales total (table 7). Between 1995 and 2001, inflation-adjusted sales decreased in every region except the Far West

States and exports.

Sales to purchasers in the Far West increased from $190

million in 1995 to $201 million in 2001, while export sales to

other countries increased from $10 million to nearly $13

million for the same period. Comparing sales values from 2001

to values from 1990 shows substantial increases in sales to

other Rocky Mountain and Far West States, relatively stable

sales within Idaho, and decreasing sales in the North-Central,

Northeast, and South market areas as well as to other countries.

The major market areas for Idaho’s primary wood products

remain the Rocky Mountain and Far West States, as well as the

North-Central States. Over 80 percent of Idaho’s 2001 primary

wood product sales occurred in four market areas: Idaho, Far

West, Rocky Mountain, and North-Central (table 7). Sales to

the Far West increased from 18 percent of total sales in 1995

to 24 percent in 2001. This increase was offset by a decline of

sales in Idaho, from 19 percent of total sales in 1995 to 14

percent in 2001. The proportion of total sales to other Rocky

Mountain States increased slightly from 1995 to 2001, but

increased from 13 percent in 1990 to 23 percent in 2001.

Figure 5—Shipment destinations for Idaho’s primary wood products. Regions are Far West (1), Rocky

Mountain (2), North-Central (3), Idaho (4), Northeast (5), South (6).
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 13 Table 7—Destination and value of Idaho’s 2001 primary wood products salesa. Rocky Product Idaho Mountain Far West North-Central Northeast South Other countries Unknown Total - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sales value in thousand 2001 dollars - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Lumber, timbers, other sawn products 103,016 171,980 173,506 130,652 68,199 39,679 524 — 687,555 Plywood and veneer 1,128 4,734 11,477 22,156 13,773 9,086 7,500 — 69,853 Posts, poles, and other roundwood products 6,066 1,765 6,358 2,685 1,179 — 4,150 — 22,202 House logs and log homes 5,517 10,004 5,629 2,120 880 662 675 — 25,488 Cedar products 3,273 3,108 4,091 6,813 582 12,480 36 — 30,383 2001 All products total 118,999 191,591 201,061 164,425 84,613 61,907 12,885 — 835,481 1995 Total 204,895 234,493 189,500 234,831 100,874 86,231 10,221 — 1,061,046 1990 Total 120,694 117,637 173,684 218,542 144,266 96,229 14,627 19,794 905,474 1985 Total 85,014 145,216 114,243 169,362 106,842 99,260 1,942 85,174 807,053 1979 Total 153,187 291,951 129,404 363,868 147,695 150,135 14,379 184,527 1,435,146 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Percentage of total sales value by product - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Lumber, timbers, other sawn products 15 25 25 19 10 6 0 0 100 Plywood and veneer 2 7 16 32 20 13 11 0 100 Posts, poles, rails, and other roundwood products 27 8 29 12 5 0 19 0 100 House logs and log homes 22 39 22 8 3 3 3 0 100 Cedar products 11 10 13 22 2 41 0 0 100 2001 All products total 14 23 24 20 10 7 2 0 100 1995 Total 19 22 18 22 10 8 1 0 100 1990 Total 13 13 19 24 16 11 2 2 100 1985 Total 11 18 14 21 13 12 0 11 100 1979 Total 11 20 9 25 10 10 1 13 100 aDoes not include mill residue sales or sales by the residue-utilizing sector.
14 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

Market Areas by Finished Product Type

Lumber sales totaled just under $688 million in 2001, with

sales to the Rocky Mountain States accounting for 40 percent

of all lumber sales—15 percent in Idaho and 25 percent to other

Rocky Mountain States (table 7). In 1995 these States accounted for 43 percent of lumber sales, while in previous

census years they accounted for less than 30 percent (Keegan

and others 1997). The Far West and North-Central States

accounted for 25 and 19 percent of lumber sales, respectively.

Sales of Idaho lumber to the Northeast, South, and to other

countries has declined since 1995.

Nearly one-third (32 percent) of Idaho’s plywood and veneer sales were to the North-Central region, up from 23 percent

of plywood and veneer sales in 1995. Sales of plywood and

veneer to other countries increased from 3 percent in 1995 to

11 percent in 2001. Sales of plywood and veneer to the Far

West also increased, from 10 percent in 1995 to 16 percent in

2001. The sales increases to those three areas were offset by

substantial decreases of sales within Idaho and other Rocky

Mountain States. Sales in Idaho decreased from 16 percent in

1995 to 2 percent in 2001, and sales to other Rocky Mountain

States decreased from 16 percent to 7 percent. The proportion

of plywood and veneer sales to the South and Northeast

remained constant compared to 1995.

The majority of Idaho’s 2001 post, pole, rail, and other

roundwood product sales were in Idaho and the Far West,

accounting for 27 and 29 percent of roundwood product sales,

respectively. This is similar to 1995, when 31 percent of sales

were within Idaho, and 27 percent went to the Far West. Sales

in other Rocky Mountain States dropped from 17 percent in

1995 to 8 percent in 2001. Twelve percent of sales went to the

North-Central States, compared to 15 percent in 1995.

Log home and house log manufacturers generated about

$25.5 million in sales in 2001. Idaho and the other Rocky

Mountain States, as well as the Far West, were the major

markets for these products, composing over 80 percent of total

sales. In 2001, sales of cedar products (including cedar shakes,

shingles, and split rail fencing) generated about $30.4 million.

The major markets for cedar products were the South and

North-Central States, with 41 percent of cedar sales going to

the South and 22 percent to the North-Central States. These

two areas were also the major markets in 1995, each accounting for 29 percent of cedar sales. Cedar exports, as well as sales

to the Northeast States, have virtually ceased since 1995, when

those two market areas were responsible for a combined 12

percent of total sales.

Mill Residue: Quantity, Type, and

Use ___________________________

Wood fiber residue from primary wood products manufacturers (mill residue) is the major source of raw material for

Idaho’s pulp and paper and board industry, and an important

source of fuel for all major sectors of the wood products

industry. If not used, wood residue can create difficult and

expensive disposal problems. Sawmills and plywood plants

generate approximately 95 percent of the mill residue produced by Idaho’s forest products industry. This chapter details

the volumes and uses of mill residue generated by these plants.

Three general types of wood fiber residue are generated by

Idaho’s sawmills and plywood plants: coarse, fine, and bark.

Coarse residue includes chippable residue from slabs, edgings,

and trimmings from lumber manufacturing; log ends; pieces of

veneer not suitable for manufacturing plywood; and plywood

plant peeler cores not sawn into lumber. Fine residue includes

planer shavings and sawdust from sawmills, and sander dust

from plywood plants.

Respondents to the 2001 census provided information on

volume of residue generated, sales value, and uses. Residue

volumes were reported in bone-dry units; a bone-dry unit

equals 2,400 lb of wood, ovendry weight. In addition to

residue quantity and disposition, Statewide residue factors,

which quantify the number of bone-dry units of residue generated per MBF of lumber produced, were updated for Idaho

sawmills based on the 2001 census (table 8).

Supply of Mill Residue

Idaho sawmills and plywood plants generated an estimated

1,755 thousand bone-dry units (MBDU) of manufacturing

residue in 2001 (table 9), compared to 1,822 MBDU in 1995,

and 2,117 MBDU in 1990. The decrease in residue generated

Table 8—Idaho sawmill residue factors (source: Keegan and others 1997).

Type of residue 1979 1985 1990 1995 2001

- - Bone-dry units per thousand board feet lumber tallya - -

Coarse 0.47 0.53 0.43 0.45 0.42

Sawdust .25 .21 .18 .18 .17

Planer shavings .22 .20 .15 .15 .13

Bark .30 .19 .18 .18 .20

Total 1.24 1.13 .94 .96 .92

a

Bone-dry units (2,400 lb of ovendry wood) of the various residue types generated for every

1,000 board feet of lumber manufactured.
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 15

since 1990 has resulted from a combination of decreasing

volumes of timber being processed and improving technology.

With computer-guided saws, thinner kerf saws, better planers,

and better plywood lathes, technological improvements have

led to lower residue factors through time (table 8).

The proportion of manufacturing residue that is utilized has

increased dramatically since 1969, largely because of pulp and

paper industry expansion and the opening of particleboard

plants in the region, but also because of the increasing use of

wood residue as a fuel to dry lumber and veneer and to generate

electricity. In 1969, only 63 percent of mill residues in Idaho

were used, increasing to 89 percent in 1979, 94 percent in 1985,

98 percent in 1990, 99 percent in 1995, and nearly 100 percent

in 2001 (table 9).

Coarse residue comprised the largest share of residues in

2001. Mills produced 810 MBDU, with nearly 100 percent

(806 MBDU) utilized. Pulp and paper mills in Idaho and other

States received 773 MBDU, with 33 MBDU going to other

uses, primarily internal energy use. Only 4 MBDU of coarse

residue were unused in 2001 (table 10).

The 545 MBDU of fine residue utilized represent virtually

100 percent of the fine residues generated in 2001. Just over

half of this fine residue (273 MBDU) went to pulp and paper

mills or board plants for use as raw material, 261 MBDU were

consumed as fuel, and 10 MBDU went for other uses such as

animal bedding, mulch, and raw material for other products.

Table 10 further divides fine residues into planer shavings and

sawdust. Planer shavings totaled 237 MBDU, while saw and

sander dust totaled 307 MBDU.

Use of bark has increased most dramatically since 1969

when only 39 percent was utilized; nearly 100 percent was

utilized in 2001. Of the 401 MBDU produced in 2001, 384

MBDU were consumed as fuel (table 10), and 17 MBDU

were used for miscellaneous products including decorative

bark, livestock bedding, and mulch. Less than 1 MBDU were

unused.

Residues from Other Manufacturers

The manufacture of utility poles, house logs, cedar products,

posts, small poles, and roundwood furniture generates several

types of residue, including bark, shavings and peelings, log

ends, cull portions of logs, and slabs from log home manufacturers. In 2001, just over 97 MBDU of these residues were

produced, and nearly 100 percent of this volume was used.

Uses of these residues include livestock bedding, garden

mulch, firewood, or other fuel.

Forest Products Industry and the

Idaho Economy _________________

In this section we discuss employment and worker earnings

trends in Idaho’s primary and secondary forest products industry as well as the industry’s place in the economy of Idaho. The

analysis focuses on the years preceding and including 2000,

the last year for which comprehensive data are available.

Employment estimates are provided for 2002. The primary

forest products industry includes:

• logging

• processing logs into lumber and other wood products

• processing wood residues into outputs such as paper or

electricity

• private-sector timber management services

The secondary industry, as defined in this report, includes

the further processing of the outputs from the primary industry,

though the outputs may be from Idaho or elsewhere. Secondary

products include prefabricated buildings, molding, millwork,

and cut stock, and doors and windows. Data from several

sources were used to identify employment and labor income

for Idaho’s primary and secondary forest products industry,

including the U.S. Department of Commerce, Regional Economic Information System (REIS), along with wage and salary

data from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, and information from the periodic censuses of the

industry done by the Bureau of Business and Economic Research as part of the FIDACS system.

Most of the primary and secondary industry is reported in

three standard industrial classifications (SIC), as defined by

the U.S. Office of Management and Budget: SIC 08—forestry;

SIC 24—lumber and wood products; and SIC 26—paper and

allied products (Office of Management and Budget 1987).

These classifications were used to estimate total employment

Table 9—Volume of wood residue generated by Idaho sawmills and plywood/veneer plants, 2001.

Residue Wood residue Percentage of type Percentage

 type Used Unused Total Used Unused of total

- - - - - - - - - Bone-dry unitsa - - - - - - - - - Percent of total

Coarse 806,460 3,325 809,785 99.6 0.4 46

Fineb 544,556 3 544,559 100.0 .0 31

Bark 401,031 43 401,074 100.0 .0 23

Total 1,752,047 3,371 1,755,418 99.8 .2 100

a

Bone-dry unit = 2,400 lb of ovendry wood.

b

Fine residue includes sawdust and planer shavings.
16 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

and income to workers (labor income) in Idaho’s forest products industry. They provide a conservative measure of the

wood and paper products industry as they capture the majority

of primary and secondary activity. However, a number of

activities are not included in these three classifications, including the hauling of logs by independent truckers; hauling of

finished products by truck, rail, or barge; and timber management activities by government employees. Additionally, a

portion of the secondary industry—the manufacturing of wood

furniture—is found in (SIC) 25 and is not included here.

Based on the three classifications—08, 24, and 26—approximately 17,900 workers, earning over $900 million (2001

dollars), were employed in the forest products industry in

Idaho in 2000 (USDC Bureau of Economic Analysis 2003).

The primary sectors accounted for approximately 12,700 workers, while the secondary sectors employed the remaining 5,200

(table 11). With additional mill closures and curtailments, the

preliminary estimate of 2002 industry employment is 16,400.

Trends in Forest Products Employment

and Labor Income

Employment and timber harvest—Changes in employment levels in Idaho’s forest products industry over the past

three decades are due primarily to fluctuating timber harvest

levels and changes in the number of workers employed per unit

volume of timber harvested. Employment in Idaho’s wood and

paper products industry grew from about 15,400 workers in

1970 to a peak of 22,700 workers in 1979. The years 1976

through 1979 had the highest average employment for any

Table 10—Production and disposition of residues by Idaho sawmills and plywood/veneer plants, 2001

(source: Keegan and others 1997).

Type of Total Reconstituted

residue utilized products Hogfuel Other uses Unused Total

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Thousand bone-dry unitsa - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Coarse

1979 987 957 10 20 21 1,008

1985 976 930 28 18 14 990

1990 1,001 988 — 13 5 1,006

1995 885 872 3 10 1 886

2001b 806 773 30 3 3 810

Sawdust

1979 399 197 164 38 58 457

1985 308 176 115 17 22 330

1990 365 175 167 23 13 378

1995 306 158 133 15 4 310

2001 237 80 148 9 — 237

Planer shavings

1979 340 215 112 13 20 360

1985 288 128 155 5 17 305

1990 310 221 88 1 9 319

1995 250 130 113 7 8 258

2001 307 193 113 1 c 307

Bark

1979 473 — 429 44 174 647

1985 282 — 263 19 73 355

1990 395 — 344 51 19 414

1995 358 — 343 15 10 368

2001 401 — 384 17 c 401

Total

1979 2,199 1,369 715 115 273 2,472

1985 1,854 1,234 561 59 126 1,980

1990 2,071 1,384 599 88 46 2,117

1995 1,799 1,160 592 47 23 1,822

2001b 1,751 1,046 675 30 3 1,755

a

Bone dry unit = 2,400 lb of ovendry wood.

b

Numbers do not sum to total due to rounding.

c

Less than 500 bone-dry units.
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 17

4-year period from 1969 to 2000 at 21,400 workers (fig. 6).

Timber harvest was also at its highest 4-year average during

this period, at 1,835 MMBF per year. However, while timber

harvest increased by 2.4 percent between 1969 and 1979,

employment in Idaho’s forest products industry increased

nearly 45 percent.

With the onset of a severe recession in the early 1980s, Idaho

experienced a decline in timber harvest of almost 37 percent

(1979 through 1982). Employment declined significantly,

reaching a trough at 16,000 workers in 1982. However, as the

recession eased up, markets began to improve, and by 1989

harvest had increased to 1,845 MMBF and employment had

reached 19,900. Despite a more than 35 percent decline in

timber harvest starting in the late 1980s, employment remained

strong into the 1990s, reaching 21,100 workers in 1994 before

starting a steady decline that continued through 2002.

Idaho’s forest products industry has employed substantially

more workers per million board feet of timber harvested in

recent years than it did 30 years ago (fig. 7). Although the

1980s showed a decrease in the number of workers per million

board feet of timber, both the 1970s and the 1990s showed

increases. The number of workers employed per unit volume

of timber harvested has been influenced by numerous factors,

including:

• expanded utilization of timber

• market conditions

• the degree of secondary manufacturing

• structural changes in the industry

• technological changes

• mechanization and automation

• log flows

• timber harvest design changes

• changing raw material availability

While a detailed analysis of these factors is beyond the scope

of this report, we discuss major influences below. During the

1970s, the forest products industry employed more workers

(fig. 7) due to strong markets and expanded use of timber. The

Table 11—Employment in Idaho’s primary and secondary

wood and paper products industry, 1990 and 2000.

 Wood and paper

products industry 1990 2000

- - - - - - - Workers - - - - - - -

Primary industries 16,832 12,750

Secondary industries 3,520 5,186

Total 20,352 17,936

Figure 6—Idaho forest industry employment, 1969 through 2002.
18 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

expanded use of timber came about specifically through the

development of the particleboard industry and expansion of

the paper industry, both of which use wood residue, formerly

a waste product of sawmills and plywood plants. Thus, utilizing a greater proportion of the log led to employing more

workers without increasing the timber harvest. Through the

1980s, development and implementation of substantial technology increased industry product output but reduced employment per unit volume of timber harvested. In the 1990s, this

trend reversed and the number of workers per million board

feet of timber harvested increased sharply from close to 12 in

1990 to 15 in 2000, an increase of over 25 percent that was

driven mostly by increases in the secondary sectors.

Idaho’s forest products industry saw a decrease in employment during the 1990s, with declines in the primary sectors

overriding increases in the secondary industries (table 11). The

primary and secondary sectors deal with declining timber

harvests differently. Most of the secondary industries use

wood products manufactured by Idaho’s or the region’s primary industry as their input, but it only consumes a fraction of

what the regional primary industry produces. Also, the secondary industry can more easily acquire raw materials from

elsewhere. It is, therefore, not as susceptible to local declining

timber availability as is the primary industry. In the primary

industry, changes in timber harvest levels affect employment

more directly.

Labor income—Similar to employment, labor income

peaked in the late 1970s and again in the early 1990s. Labor

income grew steadily through the 1970s, reaching a high of

$1.07 billion in 1978. Following major declines in the early

1980s, labor income again rose through the latter part of the

decade, but 1991 saw a recession-induced trough in labor

income, at $718 million. A peak followed in 1994, at approximately $1 billion, and labor income finished the decade at more

than $900 million.

Labor income for the forest products industry as a percentage of total labor income peaked in the late 1970s, with troughs

in the early 1980s and 1990s (fig. 8). Starting out at approximately 7 percent of total labor income in 1969, the forest

products industry’s share rose to 8.6 percent in 1979 before

hitting a trough at 5.8 percent in 1982 and another one at 5.1

percent in 1991. In 2000, the forest products industry provided

4.6 percent of the State’s labor income.

Figure 7—Idaho forest industry employment per million board feet of timber harvested, 1969 through 2000.
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 19

Idaho’s Basic Industries and Trends in the

State Economy

Basic sectors are those whose products or services are

generally sold outside of the area, or otherwise result in an

inflow of funds from outside of the area. Revenues from these

sources inject new funds into a local economy by paying local

workers, buying local investments, and making other local

purchases. Thus, changes in these basic sectors lead to changes

in an area’s overall economic activity as measured, for example, by total labor income.

The 1970s represent a period of rapid growth in Idaho’s

economy, with every major nonfarm basic industry sector

increasing substantially. The most rapidly growing sectors

were wood and paper products and other manufacturing; each

saw inflation-adjusted labor income almost doubling throughout the decade (fig. 9). From a peak in 1979, Idaho’s economy

declined significantly to a trough in 1982, a period coinciding

with the worst postwar recession in the U.S. economy. Total

labor income for the State fell by almost 10 percent during this

period, driven by declines in all but one of Idaho’s basic

industries. Agriculture was the only basic industry to show

improvements during this period, with a 30 percent increase

between 1979 and 1982. Total labor income again turned

Figure 8—Forest labor income as percent of Idaho’s total labor income, 1969 through 2000.

upward in 1983, with uneven growth in the late 1980s and

accelerating growth in the 1990s, totaling 53 percent between

1990 and 2000.

Again, the basic industries were major contributors to the

overall growth increase in the last half of the 1980s and through

the 1990s, as every major basic industry in Idaho showed

increases in adjusted labor income for the period. The largest

growth was observed in the category of other manufacturing,

where labor income more than doubled during the 1990s, from

$1.11 billion in 1990 to $2.64 billion in 2000. By comparison,

the second fastest growing sector was that of nonresident

travel, where labor income increased by 47 percent, from $347

million to $509 million, followed by mining and transportation, with labor income growth of 43 percent, from $793

million to $1.14 billion. Wood and paper products labor

income increased 15 percent in the 1990s, from $845 million

to $974.

Forest Products Industry and Idaho’s

Economic Base

Idaho has one of the country’s largest forest products industries relative to the State economy. Using percent of total labor

income as a measure of relative dependency, Idaho and Oregon
20 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

ranked second among the 50 States, with 4.6 percent of total

labor income coming directly from the forest products industry

in 2000. Only Maine, with 5.5 percent, ranked higher. In Idaho,

the wood and paper products industry accounted for 12 percent

of basic labor income in 2000, a drop from its 14 percent

contribution in 1990 (table 12).

Forest products is a high-wage industry. In Idaho, average

labor income per forest products worker was $44,800 in 2000,

substantially higher than for other industries in the State, at

Figure 9—Labor income in Idaho’s basic industries, 1969 through 2000.

$27,000. Consequently, the industry contributes proportionately more to the State’s labor income than to State

employment: 12 percent of basic industry labor income

versus 8 percent of employment in 2000 (table 12).

Northern Idaho

The forest products industry is substantially more important

in the 10 Idaho Counties north of the Salmon River (Benewah,

Table 12—Idaho’s basic industries labor income and employment, 1990 and 2000.

Basic industry 1990 2000 1990 2000

Percentage of basic Percentage of basic

industries labor income industries employment

Federal government 16 13 13 10

Mining and transportation 13 14 11 12

Food and kindred products 9 7 9 8

Nonresident travel/tourism 6 6 14 15

Other manufacturing 18 32 17 21

Wood and paper products 14 12 11 8

Agriculture 24 15 25 26

Total basic 100 100 100 100
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 21

Bonner, Boundary, Clearwater, Idaho, Kootenai, Latah, Lewis,

Nez Perce, and Shoshone Counties) than in the State as a

whole. In addition to the State-level basic industries mentioned

previously, net retirement income and earnings of commuters

living in northern Idaho but working elsewhere contribute

measurably to the economic base in these 10 Counties. Retirement payments represented an inflow of over $118 million in

2000, or 8 percent of the economic base, demonstrating that

northern Idaho is something of a retirement haven. In addition,

northern Idaho residents working outside the area generated an

inflow of $169 million in labor income in 2000, the equivalent

of 11 percent of the economic base. Net retirement and net

commuter earnings are not part of the economic base at the

State level.

The more conventional basic industries of northern Idaho

are the same as those found in the rest of the State. The forest

products industry remains a major component of the economic

base, despite some recent declines. The industry provided

approximately 11 percent of total area labor income and 27

percent of labor income in area basic industries in 2000. These

numbers were down from 22 percent of total labor income and

39 percent of basic labor income in 1990 (table 13).

Idaho’s Timber Harvest and

Utilization ______________________

In this section we examine the ownership and geographic

sources of Idaho timber, types of timber products harvested,

end uses of timber, species composition, and movement of

timber products. We begin by drawing on a number of sources

to provide a broad overview of harvest trends in Idaho since

World War II. Following the overview, we used recent censuses to examine specific changes in timber source and how

Idaho’s harvest is currently used.

According to Brown and Chojnacky (1996), there are 17.6

million acres of nonreserved timberland in Idaho available for

timber production and other uses. Timberland is categorized

under one of four broad ownership categories: National Forest

Table 13—Northern Idaho’s basic industries labor income,

1990 and 2000.

Basic industry 1990 2000

Percentage of basic

industries labor income

Federal government 12 11

Mining and transportation 17 16

Nonresident travel/tourism 11 10

Other manufacturing 9 13

Wood and paper products 39 27

Agriculture 4 4

Net retirement 3 8

Net residence adjustment 4 11

Total basic 100 100

(73 percent of Idaho’s timberland), other public (9 percent),

industrial private (7 percent), and nonindustrial private land

(11 percent) (Brown and Chojnacky 1996). National forests

are administered by the USDA Forest Service. Other public

land refers to land managed by the USDI Bureau of Land

Management or Idaho Department of Lands. Industrial timberland is owned by firms that process timber into manufactured

products. Nonindustrial private timberland refers to private

land owned by individuals or firms without forest products

manufacturing facilities; tribal timberland is classified as nonindustrial private land for this report. Timber resources are

distributed among the ownership categories in roughly the

same proportions as timberland (Brown and Chojnacky 1996).

Harvest Trends 1947 through 2001

The USDA Forest Service has kept comprehensive annual

harvest data by ownership in Idaho since 1969. Other sources

of information were used to develop harvest numbers for 1947

through 1969 (fig. 10). While detailed harvest by ownership

could not be developed for all years, the harvest estimates are

reasonable representations of total harvest and harvest trends.

Total harvest and non-National Forest harvest were estimated

for 1947 through 1958; harvest data for private land, National

Forests, and other public land have been produced for subsequent years.

During the 25 years immediately following World War II,

Idaho’s timber harvest nearly doubled, from about 950 MMBF

Scribner in 1947 to about 1,800 MMBF in the late 1960s. The

major factor in increased harvest during this period was the

increase in National Forest harvest, from 250 MMBF in 1947

to an all time high of more than 1 billion board feet annually in

1968 and 1969. Post World War II public policy encouraged

increased harvest on Federal lands to meet the strong national

demand for building materials. As a result, the share of Idaho’s

harvest from the National Forests increased from less than 30

percent in the 1940s to 60 percent in the late 1960s.

Timber harvest levels increased further in the 1970s, and the

peak harvest for Idaho occurred in 1976 at 1.9 billion board

feet. National forest harvest in the late 1970s was slightly

below the late 1960s; the increase in total harvest came

primarily from private timberlands. In the late 1970s, National

Forests provided about half of Idaho’s timber harvest. Private

lands provided about 40 percent of the harvest in the late 1970s

versus 33 percent in the late 1960s. Most of the remaining

harvest in the 1970s was from State of Idaho lands.

During the recession years of the early 1980s, harvest fell

sharply, but rebounded in the last half of the 1980s to an

average level of 1,635 MMBF. By the late 1980s, harvest from

National Forest lands had slipped to 45 percent, and harvest

from private lands increased to about 45 percent. Harvest from

Idaho Department of Lands and Bureau of Land Management

forest lands made up the remaining 10 percent.

Throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, Idaho’s total

timber harvest declined steadily because of a dramatic decline

in harvest from National Forest lands. In 2001, the National
22 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

Figure 10—Idaho timber harvest by ownership, 1947 through 2001 (source: Keegan and others 1997).

Forest harvest for Idaho was the lowest on record and only 11

percent of what it was in 1990. The National Forest harvest

declined by 629 MMBF from 1990 to 2001 and accounted for

94 percent of Idaho’s total harvest decline (673 MMBF) over

the same period. According to National Forest supervisors, the

reductions in National Forest harvests from 1993 to 2000 were

due to a number of factors and constraints. These include, in

order of importance, protection for threatened and endangered

species, timber sale appeals and litigation by conservationists,

and cumulative effects of past timber harvesting (Haminishi

and others 1995).

The volume of timber harvested from Idaho’s private timberlands remained stable throughout the 1990s and into the

new century; however, the proportion of the harvest coming

from private lands increased steadily from 45 percent (732

MMBF) in 1990 to 72 percent (750 MMBF) in 2001. Harvest

from Idaho’s other public lands followed a similar trend, with

harvest volumes remaining fairly stable, but the proportion of

the total harvest increasing from 14 percent (259 MMBF) in

1990 to 21 percent (179 MMBF) in 2001. In 1998, the harvest

volume from other public lands in Idaho surpassed the volume

harvested from Idaho’s National Forests for the first time on

record. Timber harvest from State of Idaho lands accounted for

17 percent (172 MMBF) of Idaho’s total harvest in 2001 and

about 96 percent of harvest from “other public” lands. Harvest

from Bureau of Land Management lands remained a small

fraction of harvest from “other public” lands in 2001.

Geographic Source of the Harvest

Counties north of the Salmon River supplied 89 percent of

the 2001 harvest, while 11 percent came from Counties south

of the Salmon River (table 14). Clearwater County continued

to lead the State in timber harvest with 182 MMBF in 2001—

about 18 percent of Idaho’s harvest. Other leading timberproducing Counties were Shoshone with 172 MMBF, Benewah

with 129 MMBF, Bonner with 124 MMBF, Kootenai with 81

MMBF, and Latah with 70 MMBF. Together, these six northern Counties supplied 75 percent of Idaho’s 2001 timber

harvest. Valley County had the largest harvest in southern

Idaho at 39 MMBF, which was 4 percent of the State’s harvest.

Adams, Boise, Elmore, and Valley Counties contributed to a

combined 9 percent of the State’s harvest.

Harvest volumes in 2001 for both northern and southern

Idaho were lower than any of the previous census years. Since

the 1979 census, harvest has declined 511 MMBF (36 percent)

in northern Idaho and 332 MMBF (75 percent) in southern

Idaho. Compared to 1995, the harvest was down 18 percent in

northern Idaho and down 60 percent in southern Idaho.

All 10 northern Idaho Counties have seen declines in harvest

levels since 1990, with the largest decreases occurring in Idaho

and Clearwater Counties. Idaho County’s harvest has declined

by 63 percent since 1990, mostly due to a 93 percent decline (89

MMBF) in National Forest harvest. Harvest levels from other

ownerships decreased 26 percent (21 MMBF) over the same
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 23

Table 14—Idaho’s timber harvest by County, 1979, 1985, 1990, 1995, and 2001 (source: Keegan and others 1997).

Northern Idaho

County 1979 1985 1990 1995 2001 1979 1985 1990 1995 2001

- - - - - - - - Million board feet, Scribner - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Percentage of total harvesta - - - - - - -

Clearwater 544 338 267 234 182 29 21 16 17 18

Shoshone 206 217 183 194 172 11 14 11 14 17

Idaho 190 156 174 113 65 10 10 10 8 6

Bonner 142 175 197 139 124 8 11 12 10 12

Benewah 100 94 152 117 129 5 6 9 9 13

Boundary 94 80 86 69 57 5 5 5 5 6

Kootenai 65 80 152 114 81 4 5 9 8 8

Latah 57 89 84 96 70 3 6 5 7 7

Nez Perce 8 12 17 8 4 0 1 1 1 0

Lewis 4 13 20 17 14 0 1 1 1 1

Northern Idaho 1,410 1,254 1,332 1,100 899 76 79 79 80 89

Southern Idaho

Valley 107 88 52 67 39 6 6 3 5 4

Boise 84 67 127 93 20 5 4 8 7 2

Adams 52 66 87 28 25 3 4 5 2 2

Washington 4 9 4 6 0 b 1 b b 0

Elmore 25 14 5 38 7 1 1 b 3 1

Other Counties 20 3 6 11 1 1 b b 1 0

Southwestern Idaho 292 247 281 242 91 16 16 17 18 9

Fremont 76 43 20 2 3 4 3 1 b b

Lemhi 34 11 16 6 1 2 1 1 b b

Clark 10 10 16 0 1 1 1 1 0 b

Caribou 4 10 3 5 5 b 1 bbb

Other Counties 24 19 24 15 7 1 1 1 1 1

Southeastern Idaho 148 93 79 27 17 8 6 5 2 2

Southern Idaho 440 340 360 269 108 24 21 21 20 11

Idaho Total 1,850 1,594 1,692 1,370 1,007 100 100 100 100 100

a

Percentage detail may not add to 100 due to rounding.

b

Less than 0.5 percent.

period. Since 1990, Clearwater County has seen a harvest

decline of 90 percent (40 MMBF) from National Forest lands.

Harvest levels from State lands and industrial lands also

declined over the same period (34 percent and 17 percent,

respectively).

Southern Idaho’s most dramatic harvest decreases occurred

in the southwestern Counties of Adams, Boise, and Valley,

where timber harvest has decreased by 182 MMBF since 1990

(table 14). Virtually all of the decrease can be attributed to

sharply declining harvest levels from National Forest lands,

which declined by approximately 90 percent since 1990. The

harvest from other ownerships has remained essentially unchanged over the same period.

Types of Timber Products Harvested

The primary products manufactured directly from harvested

timber are reported in four general categories: saw logs, veneer

logs, pulpwood, and other timber products. Saw logs are

timber products sawn to produce lumber, structural timbers,

railroad ties, and similar products. Veneer logs are used to

produce veneer and, in some cases, plywood. Pulpwood is

timber used in round form to produce wood chips for manufacturing pulp and paper. “Other timber products” refers to utility

poles, house logs, cedar product logs, posts and small poles,

and timber used by roundwood furniture manufacturers. Between 1984 and 1997 timber used to produce OSB was called

fiberwood and was included in other products.

The volume and proportion of harvest in each product

category may indicate changes in industry structure and in

market conditions as much as changes in the resource itself.

This is especially true in distinguishing between saw logs and

veneer logs. As in previous censuses, saw logs and veneer logs

remained the primary timber products harvested, accounting

for 95 percent of the harvest in 2001 (table 15). Saw logs

constituted 905 MMBF, or 90 percent of the total harvest in

2001, which is a higher proportion of saw logs in the harvest

than in any of the previous census years. In 1990, 1,400 MMBF

of saw logs were harvested in Idaho, accounting for about 83

percent of the total harvest; and 1,028 MMBF were harvested
24 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 Table 15—Idaho’s timber harvest volume by ownership source and product type, 2001. Lumber, timbers, Veneer and Posts, poles, and House logs Cedar Ownership source other sawn products plywood other roundwood and log homes products Pulpwood All products - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Thousand board feet, Scribner - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Private timberlands 683,656 42,612 2,055 876 18,402 2,756 750,357 Industrial 389,419 39,707 754 90 11,386 1,673 443,029 Nonindustrial 282,610 2,695 1,301 786 7,016 1,063 295,471 Tribal 11,627 210 — — — 20 11,857 Public timberlands 221,684 12,355 5,264 5,630 11,072 698 256,704 National forests 70,703 663 1,123 5,366 — 9 77,863 Other public lands 150,982 11,692 4,141 264 11,072 689 178,841 Total 905,340 54,968 7,319 6,507 29,474 3,454 1,007,061
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 25

in 1995, accounting for about 75 percent of the total harvest

(Keegan and others 1997).

Timber processed by the plywood industry and categorized

as veneer logs is also suitable for lumber production. As a result

of plywood industry development in the 1960s and 1970s, an

increasing proportion of timber was harvested for plywood

production and classified as veneer logs rather than saw logs.

Since 1990, sawmill numbers, lumber production, and capacity have declined. However, reduced production and capacity

in the plywood and veneer sector have been more drastic, and

some timber that could be used for veneer production is being

sent to sawmills for processing into lumber. At 55 MMBF,

veneer logs were the second largest component of Idaho’s

timber harvest in 2001. Veneer logs accounted for 5 percent of

the total harvest, which is a smaller proportion of the harvest

than in previous census years. The veneer log harvest in 1990

was 168 MMBF, accounting for about 10 percent of the total

harvest; and in 1995 it was 172 MMBF, accounting for slightly

less than 13 percent of the total harvest (Keegan and others

1997).

The harvest of timber products other than saw logs and

veneer logs declined from 170 MMBF in 1995 to 47 MMBF in

2001. At 29 MMBF, cedar products constituted the majority

of Idaho’s other products harvest in 2001. Slightly more than

7 MMBF of the harvest were post, pole, and rail material, while

slightly less than 7 MMBF were for house logs. The remainder

was pulpwood. Most of the decline was due to closure of an

OSB plant and drastically reduced pulpwood harvest. Idaho’s

pulpwood harvest was 45 MMBF in 1990, 105 MMBF in 1995,

and about 3 MMBF in 2001. Fluctuations in Idaho’s year-toyear pulpwood harvest are due to variations in world paper

markets, local (Idaho and adjacent States) and overseas chip

markets, and the supply of chippable mill residue material.

Therefore, no long-term significance should necessarily be

attributed to annual changes in Idaho’s pulpwood harvest. In

1995, paper prices were moderately strong. Consequently,

demand for raw material by pulp and paper mills was also

strong, and roundwood pulpwood was substituted for mill

residue in 1995 due to reduced mill residue production.

Land Ownership and Type of Product

Harvested

The amount of timber harvested from public and private

lands varies by product type. Sawmills process about 90

percent of the timber harvested in Idaho. In 2001, private lands

supplied 76 percent (684 MMBF) of Idaho’s saw log harvest

(table 15), an increase of 12 percent in volume compared to

1995, when private lands provided 59 percent (604 MMBF) of

Idaho’s saw log harvest. Prior to 1995, censuses showed

private lands providing less than half of Idaho’s saw log

harvest (Keegan and others 1997). Substantial declines in the

saw log harvest from Idaho’s National Forests are the major

reason for the increase in the private land proportion. In 2001,

National Forests provided just 8 percent (71 MMBF) of Idaho’s

saw log harvest, compared to 23 percent (238 MMBF) in 1995

and 44 to 50 percent in censuses prior to 1995.

Private lands continue to be the major source of Idaho’s

veneer log harvest, providing 78 percent (43 MMBF) in 2001.

This is not surprising since most of the manufacturing capacity

in this sector is owned by mills with industrial timberlands.

However, the proportion of the veneer log harvest from private

lands has increased since 1995, when 62 percent (107 MMBF)

of veneer logs were harvested on private lands. As with the saw

log harvest, this proportionate change is due to declines in

National Forest harvest. Censuses prior to 1995 showed proportions of the veneer log harvest from private lands ranging

from a low of 48 percent (80 MMBF) in 1990 to 62 percent (112

MMBF) in 1985.

In 2001, private timberlands provided 52 percent of the

harvest for cedar products, house logs, posts, poles, rails, and

other products. This is a smaller proportion than in 1995, when

private timberlands supplied 70 percent of the combined

harvest for these products. The decreased proportion from

private lands can be attributed to strong pulp markets in 1995

and weak markets in 2001. The pulp and paper sector typically

relies on private lands for a large portion of their roundwood

receipts. In 2001, private lands provided 80 percent (3 MMBF)

of the pulpwood harvest in Idaho; 84 percent (88 MMBF) in

1995; and 64 percent (29 MMBF) in 1990 (Keegan and others

1997). Therefore the strength of the pulp market during census

years has a direct influence on the proportion of the harvest for

these products that originates from private timberlands. In

addition, strong roundwood pulpwood markets often occur at

infrequent and unpredictable intervals, generally when lumber

production is down, paper markets are good, and private

landowners can respond much more quickly to take advantage

of ephemeral markets. Because three of Idaho’s industrial

timberland owners also own pulp and paper mills, either in

Idaho or in other States, they are in a position to recognize

and immediately respond to roundwood pulpwood market

opportunities.

Although private lands supplied 52 percent of the combined

harvest for these products, some products, particularly house

logs and posts, poles, and rails, originated primarily from

public timberlands in 2001. Nearly 87 percent of house logs

were harvested on public lands while almost 72 percent of the

harvest for posts, poles, and rails came from public lands.

Public lands also supplied 38 percent of the harvest for cedar

products.

Species Composition of Timber Harvest

The largest species component of Idaho’s 2001 timber

harvest was Douglas-fir at 26 percent of the total volume

harvested (table 16). This is similar to 1995, when Douglas-fir

comprised 27 percent of the harvest. True firs—grand fir

(Abies grandis (Dougl. ex D. Don) Lindl.) and subalpine fir

(Abies lasiocarpa (Hook.) Nutt.)—comprised the second largest component of Idaho’s 2001 timber harvest, with 24 percent

of the total volume. In previous census years, the true firs were

the largest component of Idaho’s timber harvest. The most

notable recent change to the species mix of Idaho’s timber
26 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

harvest was ponderosa pine’s decline from 17 percent of the

harvest in 1995 to 7 percent in 2001, due largely to decreased

harvesting in southern Idaho. Related changes since 1995 include an increased proportion of western larch, from 6 percent

to 10 percent, and the increase of western hemlock from

4 percent to 12 percent of the harvest.

Over the past 30 years, a major change in species composition of the harvest has been the reduced amount of western

white pine. The white pine harvest was about 343 MMBF in

1969 and accounted for 19 percent of Idaho’s timber harvest. By 2001, the white pine harvest had dropped to 39 MMBF,

4 percent of the total harvest. This change is the result of

several interacting factors including white pine blister rust, a

bark beetle epidemic of the 1960s, high-grade logging, and fire

suppression. By far the biggest blow to white pine was dealt by

white pine blister rust, an exotic disease introduced to the

United States from Europe in the early 1900s. Blister rust had

reached epidemic levels in the 1940s and caused great damage

to the white pine resource throughout the Inland Northwest

(Fins and others 2001).

Species Composition of Product Types

In 2001, all of Idaho’s commercial softwood tree species

were used to produce lumber (table 17). True firs were the

species most harvested for saw logs in 2001, comprising 26

percent of the saw log harvest, while Douglas-fir accounted for

25 percent. Thirteen percent of saw logs were western hemlock, and 9 percent were western larch. This represents a shift

from previous censuses when Douglas-fir, true firs, ponderosa

pine, and western redcedar (Thuja plicata Donn ex D. Don)

were the four most harvested species for saw logs. In 1985,

lodgepole pine replaced western redcedar in the top four

species harvested for saw logs.

Douglas-fir made up 64 percent of Idaho’s 2001 veneer log

harvest, followed by western larch at 23 percent. The remainder was western white pine (9 percent), true firs (2 percent),

and other species (2 percent). The major change in veneer log

species composition since 1979 has been the increase in

Douglas-fir from 39 percent and decrease in true firs from 44

percent (Keegan and others 1997).

Differences between the 2001 and 1995 harvests for products other than saw logs and veneer logs can be attributed to the

influence of the pulpwood market, which was strong in 1995

and weak in 2001. True firs, ponderosa pine, and Douglas-fir

were the primary species harvested for pulpwood (105 MMBF)

in 1995, accounting for 31, 26, and 21 percent of the pulpwood

harvest, respectively. In 2001, true firs accounted for 73

percent of Idaho’s pulpwood harvest, which was just 3 MMBF.

Western redcedar accounted for 65 percent of the harvest of

timber products other than saw logs and veneer logs in 2001,

followed by lodgepole pine and western white pine at 9 percent

each. In 1995, true firs, ponderosa pine, and other species

(primarily cottonwood (Populusspp.) used for oriented strand

board) were the top three species harvested for products other

than saw logs and veneer logs. Spruce and Douglas-fir were the

leading species harvested for house logs, while western redcedar

and lodgepole pine were the most harvested species for posts,

poles, and rails.

Movement of Timber

The concentration of production in fewer and larger facilities has created manufacturing centers that draw timber from

large geographic areas. Thus, large volumes of timber now

cross County and State lines. Because many Counties, especially in southern Idaho, now have only one or two timber

processing facilities, timber movement is described by three

broad geographic regions—northern Idaho, southwestern Idaho,

and southeastern Idaho—to avoid disclosure of firm-level

information concerning timber receipts.

Movement across State lines—In 2001, 10 percent of

Idaho’s harvest (103 MMBF) was shipped for processing

Table 16—Idaho’s timber harvest by species, selected years 1969 through 2001 (source:

Setzer 1971; Keegan and others 1997).

Species 1969 1979 1985 1990 1995 2001

- - - - - - - - - - - - - Percentage of all speciesa - - - - - - - - - - - -

Douglas-fir 18 20 21 22 27 26

True firs 24 22 27 23 25 24

Western hemlock b 1 3 3 4 12

Western redcedar 7 11 10 11 9 10

Western larch 6 6 6 6 6 10

Ponderosa pine 14 13 12 18 17 7

Lodgepole pine 4 8 10 10 6 5

Western white pine 19 86534

Spruce b 35322

Other species 891020

All species 100 100 100 100 100 100

a

Percentage detail may not add to 100 due to rounding.

b

Western hemlock and Engelmann spruce were included in the other species group in 1969.
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 27 Table 17—Idaho’s timber harvest volume by species and product type, 2001. Lumber, timbers, Veneer and Posts, poles, and House logs Cedar Ownership source other sawn products plywood other roundwood and log homes products Pulpwood All products - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Thousand board feet, Scribner - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Douglas-fir 223,637 35,124 52 1,782 — 374 260,968 True firs 237,677 1,283 5 21 — 2,520 241,507 Western hemlock 121,323 — — — — — 121,323 Larch 84,319 12,593 8 173 — 374 97,467 Cedar 71,000 196 4,556 38 25,612 — 101,402 Ponderosa pine 68,959 622 35 235 — 125 69,976 Lodgepole pine 48,308 238 2,664 1,500 — 60 52,769 Western white pine 30,531 4,886 — 116 3,862 — 39,395 Spruce 17,608 27 — 2,614 — — 20,248 Other softwoods 1,979 — — 15 — — 1,994 Hardwoods — — — 13 — — 13 All species 905,340 54,968 7,319 6,507 29,474 3,454 1,007,061
28 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

outside of the State (table 18). Idaho’s primary wood products manufacturers received 134 MMBF of timber that was

harvested outside of Idaho, making the State a net importer of

nearly 32 MMBF of timber in 2001. This is in contrast to

previous surveys, when Idaho had net exports ranging from

7 to 39 MMBF. None of the timber harvested in Idaho during

2001 was shipped to other countries for processing. However, Idaho mills did receive nearly 28 MMBF of Canadian

timber, mostly saw logs.

Southern Idaho Counties supplied 52 percent (54 MMBF) of

Idaho’s timber exports in 2001, with southwestern Idaho

Counties accounting for the majority (49 MMBF) of that

volume. Northern Idaho Counties were the source of the

remaining 48 percent (49 MMBF) of timber exports to other

States.

Saw and veneer logs were the major component of timber

harvest flowing into and out of Idaho. In 2001, Idaho sawmills

and plywood/veneer mills imported 127 MMBF of saw and

veneer logs, while 102 MMBF of saw and veneer logs were

exported. Nearly 6 MMBF of house logs were imported in

2001, along with just over 1 MMBF of logs for other products.

Movement within Idaho—Ninety percent (904 MMBF) of

Idaho’s 2001 timber harvest was processed within the State

(table 19). Timber movement among Idaho’s three geographic

regions is extremely limited; nearly 99 percent of timber

harvested in Idaho is processed in the region of harvest.

However, timber movement among Counties within the same

region is quite common, as 68 percent of timber harvested in

Idaho during 2001 was processed in a County other than the

County of harvest. The following paragraphs present a more

detailed examination of timber flow for each region.

Northern Idaho: The 10 Counties north of the Salmon River

are the center of both Idaho’s timber harvesting and processing

activities. The total harvest in these Counties was nearly 899

MMBF, or 89 percent of the State’s harvest. Ninety-five

percent (849 MMBF) of the timber harvested in northern Idaho

was processed in Idaho. Of the 849 MMBF harvested in

northern Idaho and processed in Idaho, virtually all (845

MMBF) was processed in northern Idaho. Only 4 MMBF of

timber harvested in northern Idaho was processed in Idaho

south of the Salmon River. Thirty-three percent of timber

harvested in northern Idaho was processed in the County of

harvest, 51 percent was processed in Counties adjacent to

(sharing a County line with) the County of harvest, and 16

percent was processed in Counties not adjacent to the County

of harvest.

Southwestern Idaho: Just over 91 MMBF of timber—9

percent of the State’s total harvest—was harvested in the

10 Counties of southwestern Idaho in 2001. Nearly 54 percent

(49 MMBF) was processed outside the State. Of the 46 percent

(42 MMBF) that was processed in Idaho, 36 MMBF were

processed in southwestern Idaho. Virtually all of the remaining

6 MMBF were processed in northern Idaho, with small volumes processed in southeastern Idaho. Within southwestern

Idaho, 19 percent (8 MMBF) of the timber was processed in the

Table 18—Idaho’s timber imports and exports to other States,

2001.

 Timber products Imports Exports Net imports

- - - Thousand board feet, Scribner - - -

Saw and veneer logs 127,218 (102,391) 24,827

House logs 5,855 — 5,855

Other logs and chips 1,236 (295) 941

Total 134,310 (102,686) 31,623

County of harvest, while 81 percent (34 MMBF) was processed in other Counties. About 26 MMBF (63 percent) was

processed in Counties adjacent to the County of harvest, and

8 MMBF (18 percent) were processed in Counties not adjacent

to the County of harvest.

Southeastern Idaho: Southeastern Idaho accounted for the

smallest percentage of volume harvested in Idaho in 2001, with

17 MMBF (2 percent). The majority of this volume (13

MMBF) was processed in Idaho; 4 MMBF were processed

outside the State. Of the 13 MMBF processed in Idaho, 97

percent stayed in southeastern Idaho for processing. The

remaining 3 percent was processed in southwestern Idaho, and

trace amounts were processed in northern Idaho.

Of the timber harvested in southeastern Idaho that remained

in the State for processing, just 11 percent was processed in the

County of harvest, with an additional 35 percent processed in

Counties adjacent to the County of harvest. The remaining 54

percent was processed in Counties not adjacent to the County

of harvest.

End Uses of Idaho’s Timber

In this final section we trace Idaho’s timber harvest as it

flows through the primary manufacturing sectors (fig. 11).

Because both mill residue products and timber products are

displayed, volumes are presented in cubic feet rather than

board feet Scribner. The following conversion factors were

used to convert board foot Scribner volume to cubic foot

volume:

• 4.2 board feet per cubic foot for saw logs

• 5.0 board feet per cubic foot for veneer logs

• 3.5 board feet per cubic foot for pulpwood

• 3.0 board foot per cubic foot for all other timber products

In 2001, Idaho’s timber harvest was approximately 243

million cubic feet (MMCF), exclusive of bark (fig. 11). Of this

volume, 217 MMCF went to sawmills, 11 MMCF to plywood

plants, 1 MMCF to pulp and board mills, and 14 MMCF to

other primary manufacturers. These figures refer to Idaho’s

timber harvest and include timber products shipped to out-ofState mills; they do not include timber harvested in other States

and processed in Idaho.

Of the 217 MMCF received by sawmills for manufacturing,

96 MMCF (44 percent) actually became finished lumber or
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 29 Table 19—Idaho’s intra-State and inter-State timber flow, 2001. Intra-State timber flow Inter-State timber flow Total Total Total Total Total Total processed processed processed in processed processed in processed in Total in County of in adjacent nonadjacent in northern southwestern southeastern processed Processed Region of Harvest harvest Counties Counties Idaho Idaho Idaho in Idaho out-of-State Total harvest - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Thousand board feet, Scribner - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Northern Idaho 276,870 435,315 137,216 845,093 4,308 — 849,401 49,175 898,576 Southwestern Idaho 8,014 26,196 7,569 5,523 36,126 130 41,779 49,475 91,254 Southeastern Idaho 1,491 4,645 7,061 3 350 12,844 13,197 4,036 17,233 Southern Idaho 9,505 30,841 14,630 5,526 36,476 12,974 54,976 53,511 108,487 Idaho Total 286,375 466,156 151,846 850,619 40,784 12,974 904,377 102,686 1,007,061 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Percentage of total harvest - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Northern Idaho 33 51 16 99 1 0 95 5 100 Southwestern Idaho 19 63 18 13 86 0 46 54 100 Southeastern Idaho 11 35 54 0 3 97 77 23 100 Southern Idaho 17 56 27 10 66 24 51 49 100 Idaho Total 32 52 17 94 5 1 90 10 100
30 USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004

Figure 11—Idaho timber harvest and flow, 2001.
USDA Forest Service Resour. Bull. RMRS-RB-4. 2004 31

other sawn products, and 6 MMCF were lost to shrinkage. The

remaining 115 MMCF of wood fiber became mill residue.

About 87 MMCF of sawmill residues were used as raw

material by pulp mills and board plants; 27 MMCF were used

as hogfuel; 1 MMCF were used for miscellaneous purposes

such as livestock bedding; and less than 0.5 MMCF remained

unused.

Plywood and veneer plants received 11 MMCF of timber in

2001, of which 5 MMCF (45 percent) became plywood. Of the

remaining 6 MMCF, 5 MMCF were used by the pulp and board

sector, and 1 MMCF were used as hogfuel.

Pulp and paper mills and particleboard plants, both in and out

of Idaho, received approximately 93 MMCF of wood fiber

from Idaho timberlands to be used as raw material for manufacturing products. Only 1 MMCF of that was furnished from

timber delivered to pulp and paper mills in round form.

Sawmills supplied 87 MMCF of mill residue, and plywood

plants furnished the remaining 5 MMCF.

Other primary manufacturers received approximately 14

MMCF of timber products. The percentage of timber volume

that becomes a finished product in the log home, post and pole,

utility pole, and cedar product sectors varies, but several firms

indicated that from 40 to more than 70 percent of the timber

volume—exclusive of bark—becomes a finished product.

Mills in this sector seldom supplied residue for use in other

sectors. Most of the residue from these sectors was used as

firewood, livestock bedding, and mulch. In 2001, an estimated

8 MMCF of the 14 MMCF delivered to these facilities became

products, 5 MMCF became residue used for the various

purposes mentioned, and about 1MMCF of residue remained

unused.

References _____________________

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its

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The Rocky Mountain Research Station develops scientific information and technology to improve management, protection, and use of

the forests and rangelands. Research is designed to meet the needs

of National Forest managers, Federal and State agencies, public and

private organizations, academic institutions, industry, and individuals.

Studies accelerate solutions to problems involving ecosystems,

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multiple use economics, wildlife and fish habitat, and forest insects

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Research Locations

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