ECONOMIC EVALUATION OF RESTORING THE SHORTLEAF PINE-BLUESTEM GRASS ECOSYSTEM ON THE OUACHITA

The USDA Fores t Serv ice i s res to r ing p re-European settlement forest conditions on about 10 percent (155,000 acres) of the Ouachita National Forest in western Arkansas. These conditions- characterized by large, scattered shortleaf pine and hardwoods maintained on 120-year rotations, with bluestem grass and associated herbaceous vegetation in the understory- are expected to re-establish a broad habitat type missing from the landscape, one suited to supporting the recovery of the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker (USDA Forest Service 1996a, 199613). This study was designed to forecast the amount of t imber harves t vo lume and revenue the Ouach i ta Nat iona l Fores t may fo rego by adopt ing the shor t lea f p ine-b lues tem grass (o r p ine-b lues tem) management sys tem in l ieu o f t rad i t iona l, even-aged management