Framing the issues affecting northern forests

People in the North are concerned about forests, especially the forests near to them. Concerns reflect their diverse connections to forests and the many ways that rural and urban forests affect their quality of life. A recent analysis by Dietzman et al. (2011) summarized more than 700 comments about issues facing northern forests. The comments came from 74 print and online sources including Federal and State government planning and resource publications; scientific papers; and issue statements from nonprofit organizations, industry, professional associations, and universities. More than 90 percent of the sources were published between 2004 and 2009. The Dietzman et al. (2011) analysis identified 55 issues that were cited multiple times. Subsequent sections in this chapter address each of the 12 most frequently cited issues in more detail.