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Millions of Acres, Billions of Trees: Socioecological Impacts of Shifting Timberland Ownership
Author(s) -
Gunnoe Andrew,
Bailey Conner,
Ameyaw Lord
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
rural sociology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.083
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1549-0831
pISSN - 0036-0112
DOI - 10.1111/ruso.12210
Subject(s) - livelihood , business , financialization , land tenure , production (economics) , state (computer science) , natural resource economics , economic growth , economics , finance , geography , agriculture , archaeology , algorithm , computer science , macroeconomics
Over the past 30 years, ownership changes in the United States have affected more than 50 million acres of timberland. Corporations in the U.S. forest products industry either sold off most of their timberland or restructured themselves to take advantage of changes in the tax code. These changes were the result of broader economic shifts in the U.S. economy related to the process of financialization. As a result, ownership of timberland has been separated from manufacturing capacity tied to the production from that land. The central questions we address are how have these changes in ownership affected management of timberlands and what impacts have been experienced by people and places dependent upon this resource for their livelihoods. This study focuses on Alabama, one of the nation's leading states in the production of wood‐based products. The study is based on 40 formal semistructured interviews with key actors in the industry, and frequent informal interactions with residents in timber‐dependent regions throughout the state. Our research suggests that there have been significant changes, but that these are not necessarily catastrophic and are in keeping with longer‐term trends associated with absentee ownership.