Evening star., 1952-03-26
World Forested Surface
Put at 7 Billion Acres
Less Thon Third Unm0nosed
Despite Unsotisfied Demand
By Thonos r. Henry

Despite Unsotisfied Demand
By Thomas R. Henry
At least z billion acres Of the earth,s
surface is forested.
or this vast area between. Z and
5 billion acres remain largely unex-
plotted, o region equal to all Of North
America north Of the Rio Grande. Ac-
cOrding to latest statistics approximately
S.35 billion acres are exploited but
less than third are under any yskind OF
scientific management.
Meanwhile there Is . potential un-
satisfied demand for so per cent in
crease in the billion tons Of wood now
used, and this applies only to the SUPP
ply Of wood products OF the present
greatest userS--the United States. Cam
ada and Western Europe. Utilization
and preservation Of the earth,s wood
supply, Squandered in the past, Is q
major future problem.
Such are the figures just compiled by
the American Geographical Society.
The Importance of the problem is en-
phasized, says society bulletin just
issued. by the frequent statement that
had Germany been successful in con-
trolling sufficient wood supply in the
last war she would have been nearly
blockade-proof.
Three Major Uses.
In the past forests have been called
on to supply three things-lumber for
building, fuel. and pulp for paper. The
latter utilization has depended on the
V,V.nvivVNifvy ~ rattle
the major uses, with more than so per
cent being utilized as firewood. But
now. the society points out, chemists
have developed scores Of vital products
out OF wood and hold out the possibility
range from radio recording tapes to
inner SoleS for shoes. from photographs
paper to sewer pipes There also is the
imminent possibility Of deriving food by
chemical treatment Of wood.
Most challenging to the pioneer
spirit" says the bulletin, "are the poten-
tial resources in the largely untouched
forests Of both the sub-Arctic regions
and the Tropics-altogether between
3.75 billion and s billion acres. OF these
vast reserves between IL billion and Is
billion acres are in the Northern Hemi-
sphere. About 500 million acres are. in
Canada, so million to 100 million in
Alaska, and the larger part Of the re.
n1ainder in the Soviet Union.
I'm Canada about half the merchants
able timber. or some $50 million acres,
still is beyond the reach of profitable
transportation. In Alaska virgin timber
Of export quality covers less than 5
million acres in the relatively accessible
southeastern part. The go million to 100
million acres Of the interior Arctic forest
are at present regarded as suitable
chiefly for local use because Of their un-
even quality and the difficulty Of access.
Tropics Offer Best Hope.
'The tropical forests. particularly
those Of Central and South America,
offer the world as a whole its best hope
for timber riches. The forests Of Africa
are less extensive than Is commonly sup
posed. Southeast Asia and its great
archipelagoes are rich in forests but their
mighty neighbors. China and India, are
two of the worlds wood -hungriest
nations.
utilization Of these tropical reserves
depends primarily on research. Only a
small number Of the several thousand
species have been adequately tested for
commercial use. Much experimentation
will be required before the highly mixed
growths can be profitably logged by
large-scale methods" a&
The worlds forests are Of three main
types, the American Geographical
Society researchers point out. First are
the conifers-pine, spruce. fir and larch
OF which 95 per cent are in the North
ern Hemisphere. They are soft woods
which have proved most adaptable for
building, packaging. manufacture Of
paper pulp, and most Of the derived
chemical products. These forests up to
the present have largely supported the
worlds wood industries.
Zone Largely Exploited.
Second are the forests, mostly Of hard
woods, of the temperate zone which are
rather fully exploited. In the tropical
forests. however. only about third OF
the woods are hard and heavy. Some,
like ironwood, are SO hard they viii turn
nails. A third are soft and light, such as
balSa, which is lighter than cork. A third
are intermediate and for the most part
do not At into the established patterns OF
the present.
I'm order to I'LL an estimated unsatis-
fed annual demand Of at least TOO mill
lion cubic meters, the present volume of
world production would have to be in
creased SO per cent" says the society.
''This would merely bring the world
average to the present level of five fairly
prosperous but forest-deficient countries
Switzerland. Denmark. New Zealand.
Malaga and Uruguay, fairly typical of
their respective regions but enjoying
about average purchasing power.
Throughout the world the quantity
Of wood and wood products used per
person is one of the major indexes Of
economic development. BY doubling the
amount of wood used In the poorer
countries their living standards could bs
raised astoniShingly."