New Hampshire’s Interim State Forester, Brad Simpkins, announced the release of “The Economic Importance of New Hampshire’s Forest-Based Economy”, a report which summarizes everything from the percent of forests covering the state (84%) to the $2.26 billion impact the forest-based industry has on New Hampshire’s economy.
“Many folks are surprised to learn that we have such a vibrant forest industry in New Hampshire or that 76% of the state’s forests are privately owned, ” said Simpkins. “The state, through the Department of Resources and Economic Development, Division of Forests and Lands is also actively managing its forests and contributing timber to the markets.”
“This is the go-to source for information on the state’s forests and forest industry,” said Jason Stock, Executive Director of the New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association. “New Hampshire’s forest industry is an economic powerhouse supporting close to 20,000 jobs across the state,” said Stock.
New Hampshire has approximately fifty sawmills operating in the state and seven wood-fired power plants, that combined provide over 150 MW of generation capacity. Five of the power plants have been in near-continuous operation for over 20 years, providing New Hampshire residents with renewable power from the state’s forests.
Key findings from this report include:
The economic value of forest-based components to the State’s economy is $2.259 billion annually, or almost 4% of the Gross State Product.
The combined payroll of forest-based jobs is $608 million.
Forest landowners received over $30 million from the sale of timber in 2009, with $3 million going back to communities in the form of timber tax.
Every 1,000 acres of New Hampshire forest supports 1.7 forest-based manufacturing jobs and 2.4 forest-based recreation and tourism jobs.
The publication also provides an analysis of several additional topics, such as a description of the forest resource, wood flows, growth and harvest data, and wood energy.
The report was produced by the Northeast State Forester’s Association (NEFA) with a grant from Northeast Utilities. The “Economic Importance of New Hampshire’s Forest-Based Economy” is available electronically on NEFA’s website, www.nefainfo.org and from the New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands website at www.nhdfl.org, or by calling the NH State Forester’s office, (603)271-2214.