Alabama’s Timber Industry—

Timber Product Output 

and Use, 2011

Forest Inventory & Analysis Factsheet

James W. Bentley, Jason A. Cooper, and Michael Howell

www.srs.fs.usda.gov

United States Department of Agriculture

Forest

Service

e–Science Update SRS–087

February 2014

Southern

Research Station

Introduction

This science update contains the findings of a 2011 canvass of all 

primary wood-using plants in Alabama, and presents changes in 

product output and residue use since 2009. It complements the 

Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) annual inventory of volume and 

removals from the State’s timberland. The canvass was conducted 

to determine the amount and source of wood receipts and annual 

timber product drain, by county, in 2011 and to determine interstate and cross-regional movement of industrial roundwood. Only 

primary wood-using mills were canvassed. Primary mills are those 

that process roundwood in log or bolt form or as chipped roundwood. Examples of industrial roundwood products are saw logs, 

pulpwood, veneer logs, poles, and logs used for composite board 

products. Mills producing products from residues generated at primary and secondary processors were not canvassed. Trees chipped 

in the woods were included in the estimate of timber drain only if 

they were delivered to a primary domestic manufacturer. 

A 100-percent canvass of all wood processors in Alabama was 

conducted in 2012 to obtain information for 2011. In addition, 

roundwood from out-of-State mills known to be using logs or bolts 

harvested from Alabama timberland was incorporated into Alabama 

production estimates. Each mill was canvassed by mail or through 

personal contact at plant locations. Telephone contacts followed 

mailed questionnaire responses when additional information or clarification of a response was necessary. In the event of a nonresponse, 

data collected in previous surveys were updated using current data 

collected for mills of similar size, product type, and location. Surveys 

for all timber products other than pulpwood began in 1961, and are 

currently conducted every 2 years.

Pulpwood production data were taken from an annual canvass of 

all southern pulpmills. Medium density fiberboard, insulating board, 

and hardboard plants were included in this survey.

The FIA Research Work Unit of the U.S. Department of Agriculture 

Forest Service developed the Timber Product Output (TPO) Database Retrieval System to help customers answer questions about 

timber harvesting and use in the Southern region. This system acts 

as an interface to a standard set of consistently coded TPO data for 

each State and county in the region and Nation. The database is 

well documented and easy to use. The retrieval system allows the 

user to select the TPO variables of interest and generate a standard 

set of timber products, removals, and mill residue tables for the 

specified resource area, State, or region. The system is available 

through the FIA Web site: http://srsfia2.fs.fed.us/. The Excel® core 

tables and figures that complement this science update are available 

on the TPO database.

The Southern Research Station gratefully acknowledges the tremendous cooperation and assistance provided by the Alabama Forestry 

Commission in collecting mill data. Appreciation is also extended 

to forest industry and mill managers for providing timber products 

information.

Georgia-Pacific, 

Naheola mill in 

Penningtion, AL. 

(photo courtesy of 

Alabama Forestry 

Commission)
2

All Products

• Industrial timber product output from roundwood increased 

157.0 million cubic feet, or 20 percent, to 960.3 million cubic feet.

• Output of industrial softwood roundwood products was up 23 

percent, to 736.3 million cubic feet, while output of industrial 

hardwood roundwood products increased 9 percent to 224.0 

million cubic feet (fig. 1).

• Across all products, 82 percent of roundwood harvested was 

retained for processing at Alabama mills. Exports of roundwood to 

other States amounted to 170.3 million cubic feet, while imports of 

roundwood amounted to 177.0 million cubic feet making the State 

a net importer of roundwood. 

Pulpwood

• Total pulpwood production increased 16 percent to 599.5 million 

cubic feet but accounted for 63 percent of the State’s total 

roundwood TPO compared to 64 percent of total TPO in 2009. 

Softwood output was up to 437.8 million cubic feet; hardwood 

output increased as well to 161.8 million cubic feet (fig. 4). These 

were increases from 2009 numbers of 22 percent and 5 percent, 

respectively.

• Thirteen pulpmill facilities were operating and receiving 

roundwood in Alabama in 2011, the same as 2009. Total 

pulpwood receipts for these mills increased to 606.4 million 

cubic feet, accounting for 63 percent of total receipts for all mills.

North

North 

Central

West 

Central

Southwest 

North

Southwest 

South

Figure 3—Primary wood-using mills by region, Alabama, 2011.

Sawmill (0–5 mmbf)

Sawmill (>20 mmbf)

Sawmill (5–20 mmbf)

Composite panel

Veneer

Pulpmill

Plywood mill

Other mill

Primary wood-using mills

Southeast

• Pulpwood and saw logs were the principal roundwood products 

in 2011. Combined output of these two products totaled 868.4 

million cubic feet and accounted for 91 percent of the State’s 

total industrial roundwood output (fig. 2).

• Total receipts at Alabama mills, which included roundwood 

harvested and retained in the State and roundwood imported 

from other States, was up 14 percent from 847.6 million cubic feet 

to 967.0 million cubic feet.

• At the same time, the number of primary roundwood-using plants 

in Alabama declined from 120 in 2009 to 115 in 2011 (fig. 3). 

The number of sawmills decreased by five, while the number of 

pulpmills, veneer, composite panel, and other miscellaneous mills 

remained stable.

Year

1971

1982

1985

1989

1995

1997

1999

2003

2005

2007

20092011

Production (million cubic feet)

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200 Softwood 

Hardwood 

Figure 1—Roundwood production for all products by species group 

and year, Alabama.

Total 960 million cubic feet

Saw logs

28%

Other

industrial

5%

Veneer logs

4%

Pulpwood

63%

Figure 2—Roundwood production by type of product, 

Alabama, 2011.
3

• Seventy-nine percent of roundwood cut for pulpwood was 

retained for processing at Alabama pulpmills. Roundwood 

pulpwood accounted for 74 percent of total known exports 

and 75 percent of total imports. 

Saw Logs

• Saw logs accounted for 28 percent of the State’s total roundwood 

products. Output of softwood saw logs increased 19 percent to 

223.8 million cubic feet, while that of hardwood saw logs was up 

12 percent to 45.0 million cubic feet (fig. 5).

Year

1971

1982

1985

1989

1995

1997

1999

2003

2005

2007

2009

2011

Production (million cubic feet)

0

100

200

300

400

500

Softwood 

Hardwood 

Figure 4—Roundwood pulpwood production by species group and 

year, Alabama.

Year

1971

1982

1985

1989

1995

1997

1999

2003

2005

2007

2009

2011

Production (million cubic feet)

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

Softwood 

Hardwood 

Figure 5—Roundwood saw-log production by species group and 

year, Alabama.

Year

1971

1982

1985

1989

1995

1997

1999

2003

2005

2007

2009

2011

Production (million cubic feet)

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Softwood 

Hardwood 

Figure 6—Roundwood veneer-log production by species group and 

year, Alabama.

• The number of veneer mills operating in Alabama remained stable 

at 12 for 2011. Receipts of veneer logs increased 50 percent to 

33.1 million cubic feet. Softwood veneer log receipts increased 69 

percent to 24.5 million cubic feet, while those of hardwoods were 

up 14 percent to 8.6 million cubic feet. 

Other Industrial Products

• Roundwood harvested for other industrial uses such as poles, 

posts, mulch, residential firewood, industrial fuel, logs for log 

homes, composite panels, and all other industrial products totaled 

49.5 million cubic feet. Softwood made-up 82 percent of the other 

industrial products volume.

• The number of plants producing other industrial products totaled 

17 in 2011. Combined receipts of other industrial products from 

softwood and hardwood totaled 57.0 million cubic feet. Industrial 

fuel accounted for 30.6 million cubic feet, or 54 percent, of receipt 

volume for this category.

Plant Byproducts

• In 2011, processing of primary products in Alabama mills 

generated 276.5 million cubic feet of wood and bark residues. 

Coarse residues from all primary products amounted to 100.0 

million cubic feet, while bark volume totaled 100.5 million cubic 

feet. Collectively, sawdust and shavings made-up 28 percent of 

total residues, or 76.0 million cubic feet (fig. 7).

• In 2011, Alabama had 73 sawmills, 5 fewer mills than in 2009. Total 

saw-log receipts were up 44.9 million cubic feet to 270.4 million 

cubic feet. Softwood saw-log receipts increased 21 percent to 

227.3 million cubic feet, while those of hardwoods were up 14 

percent to 43.1 million cubic feet. 

• Alabama retained 88 percent of its saw-log production for withinState manufacture, with saw-log imports exceeding exports by 1.6 

million cubic feet in 2011.

Veneer Logs

• Output of veneer logs in 2011 totaled 42.4 million cubic feet, a 

46-percent increase since 2009, and accounted for 4 percent of 

the State’s total roundwood TPO volume. Output of softwood 

veneer logs increased 61 percent to 34.0 million cubic feet, while 

that of hardwood veneer logs was up 7 percent to 8.4 million 

cubic feet (fig. 6).

Total 277 million cubic feet

Sawdust

20%

Coarse

36%

Shavings

8%

Bark

36%

Figure 7—Primary mill residue by residue 

type, Alabama, 2011.
4

Jason A. Cooper, Forester

Forest Inventory and Analysis

Southern Research Station

USDA Forest Service

4700 Old Kingston Pike

Knoxville, TN 37919

Phone: 865-862-2009 / Fax: 865-862-2048

Email: jasoncooper@fs.fed.us

Southern FIA: http://srsfia2.fs.fed.us

National FIA: http://fia.fs.fed.us

The Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), is dedicated to the principle of multiple use management of the Nation’s 

forest resources for sustained yields of wood, water, forage, wildlife, and recreation. Through forestry research, cooperation with 

the States and private forest owners, and management of the National Forests and National Grasslands, it strives—as directed by

Congress—to provide increasingly greater service to a growing Nation.

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or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Contact Information

James W. Bentley, Forester

Forest Inventory and Analysis

Southern Research Station, 

USDA Forest Service

4700 Old Kingston Pike

Knoxville, TN 37919

Phone: 865-862-2056 / Fax: 865-862-2048

Email: jamesbentley@fs.fed.us

Southern FIA: http://srsfia2.fs.fed.us

National FIA: http://fia.fs.fed.us

Michael Howell, Forester

Forest Inventory and Analysis

Southern Research Station

USDA Forest Service

4700 Old Kingston Pike

Knoxville, TN 37919

Phone: 865-862-2054 / Fax: 865-862-2048

Email: mhowell@fs.fed.us

Southern FIA: http://srsfia2.fs.fed.us

National FIA: http://fia.fs.fed.us

How to Cite this Publication

Bentley, James W.; Cooper, Jason A.; Howell, Michael. 2014. 

Alabama’s timber industry, 2011—timber product output and 

use—forest inventory and analysis factsheet. e-Science Update 

SRS–087. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest 

Service, Southern Research Station. 4 p.

• The processing of saw logs generated 182.4 million cubic feet 

of mill residues, accounting for 66 percent of the total residues 

produced (fig. 8).

• Nearly 276.2 million cubic feet, or 100 percent, of the wood and 

bark residues were used for a product. While <1 percent of the 

residues were not used for a product, 56 percent of the residues 

were used for industrial fuel and 33 percent were used for fiber 

products (fig. 9). Eighty-eight percent, or 87.7million cubic feet, 

of the coarse residues were used for fiber products. Ninety-four 

percent of the bark was used for industrial fuel, while 73 percent 

of the sawdust and shavings were used for industrial fuel.

Load of pulp logs headed to pulpmill. 

(photo by James Bentley)

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Total 277 million cubic feet

Particleboard

7%

Fiber

products

33%

Industrial

fuel

56%

Sawn

products

<1%

Miscellaneous

4%

Not used

<1%

Figure 9—Disposal of residue by product, Alabama, 

2011.

Total 277 million cubic feet

Pulpwood

25%

Veneer

logs

8%

Other

industrial

1%

Saw

logs

66%

Figure 8—Primary mill residue produced by 

roundwood type, Alabama, 2011.