No. U.S. private working forest owners do not harvest old growth or other sensitive sites as part of their standard operations. Most of our nation’s old growth forests were harvested for settlement and industrialization long before any of us were alive. Old growth forests still exist, but nearly all are publicly owned. Private working forests provide 90% of forest products produced in the U.S. These forests are managed for successive cycles of growth, harvests, and regrowth to yield products. As a result, they include trees of a variety of ages and sizes, from seedlings to mature trees.
In the U.S., assurances are in place to verify that our forests are sustainably managed and climate smart through a mosaic of overlapping and mutually reinforcing local, state, and federal environmental laws and regulations, state-approved forestry best management practices (BMPs), and third-party forest management and wood fiber sourcing certification programs.
Harvesting and other forest management activities in or near old growth are typically done for wildfire mitigation and forest health to protect the oldest trees. If a harvest occurs in or near old growth, it is likely in response to a wildfire emergency or some other natural disturbance. Nearly all old growth is protected and harvesting exceptionally large trees (like old growth) is economically and physically impractical. Most modern harvesting equipment, transportation, and mills are only able to process smaller diameter logs.