Thanks to new restoration efforts, decades of decline in forests throughout the southeast are being reversed.
A new study from the U.S. Forest Service reports that longleaf pine forests are returning to the region, especially in Georgia. “We’ve reversed this trajectory of decline that’s been going on for several centuries,” said study author Kevin Potter, a research ecologist at the USFS Southern Research Station.
The agency said that once more than 57 million acres of longleaf pine forest stretched across the southeast from Virginia to Texas but much of it was clear-cut for timber by the early 20th century. Many more were lost to fire suppression until only about three million acres remained, the USFS said.
New restoration efforts have reversed the trend but it said the species still has a long way to go since most new seedlings are planted, not naturally occurring. “We would prefer that these forests be self-sustaining, that we have longleaf pine that is regenerating naturally and not having to rely on people coming in and planting new seedlings,” Potter said.
According to a WABE public radio report, Georgia saw one of the largest increases in total longleaf pines between recent tree censuses, adding about 47 million trees. It was one of only three states, along with Florida and Mississippi, that saw an increase in the number of seedlings.
“Overall, the study found that while the total amount of longleaf pine is increasing, other forest types have less longleaf pine in them than previously,” WABE reported. “That suggests that longleaf pine forests are either being intentionally restored or converted to other types of forest, like oak or faster-growing pine varieties.”
“If we think about where we need to be targeting our restoration efforts into the future, the window may be closing for the best locations to target those efforts,” Potter said, adding that longleaf pine forests absorb climate-warming carbon dioxide and provide critical habitat for many animal and bird species.
