§1601 Renewable Resource Assessment

Summary

The Secretary of Agriculture must prepare a Renewable Resource Assessment. The first one was due by December 31, 1975, it had to be updated in 1979, and it must be updated every ten years after that. The Assessment must look at current and future uses, demand, supply, and price trends for forests, rangelands, and related lands, including international factors. It must list present and potential renewable resources, say how they could yield more goods and services, and estimate costs and returns to the federal government. The report must describe Forest Service programs and how they relate to public and private activities, discuss laws and policies that affect land use and ownership, and analyze how global climate change and urban/rural forestry relate to forests, carbon dioxide, and risks of climate change. Starting in 1979, each Assessment must also report on extra fiber potential in the National Forest System, ways to use forest and urban wood wastes and recycled wood, and the locations and technology of wood product mills, with a program to encourage better fiber use. The Secretary must allow public input and work with other federal agencies when making these reports. Congress requires that all national forest lands be kept in suitable forest cover and managed for multiple uses and sustained yield. Each year, with the President’s budget starting with fiscal year 1978, the Secretary must report where lands need reforestation or other treatment, by forest and State and, where possible, by productivity class. Treated lands must be checked after the first and third growing seasons and certified; lands not certified return to the backlog for prompt treatment. For each of the 10 years beginning after November 15, 2021, the Secretary must tell Congress how much money is needed to replant the acreage cut that year plus enough of the backlog to eliminate it within 10 years. After that period, the Secretary must annually estimate funds needed to prevent the backlog from growing larger than at the start of the fiscal year. These cost estimates must be included in the President’s budget and sent to congressional leaders starting with the budget for fiscal year 2021. The law authorizes $200,000,000 a year, starting October 1, 1977, for reforestation and treatment; the money stays available until spent. The law defines key reforestation terms (natural regeneration, priority land, reforestation, Secretary, unplanned event), requires work follow Forest Service practices, directs the Secretary to prioritize projects recommended by regional foresters, and requires an annual report to Congress on herbicide and pesticide use and effects in the National Forest System.