Economic Value of Wisconsin Forests
Introduction
The economic health of rural Wisconsin is dependent on agriculture, forestry, and tourism. In particular, the forest industries and forest-based recreation contribute significantly to Wisconsin’s economy.
Importance of Wisconsin Forest Industries
· Wisconsin has been the #1 paper making state in the nation for 50 years. Noteworthy accomplishments include:
o #1 in fine papers
o #1 in sanitary paper products
o #1 in high quality juvenile furniture
o #1 in millwork
o #3 in hardwood veneers.
o #1 in forest product manufacturing capital expenditures;
o #2 in annual payroll
o #2 in total forest products employment
· The forest products industry is Wisconsin’s second largest manufacturing employer. 1 in every 6 manufacturing jobs is employed by this industry. Furthermore, for every job in the forest products industry, an additional 1.6 jobs are created to support the industry. Direct employment translates into 15% of all the manufacturing wage and salary income generated in the state. Almost $3.2 billion dollars every year.
· Including wood furniture, Wisconsin produces approximately $20 billion annually in shipments from forest products, which is 2.5 times as much as Michigan and Minnesota.
· Wisconsin manufacturers depend on Wisconsin forestry. Over 90% of the state’s timber harvested is used by Wisconsin manufacturers.
· Wisconsin farmers depend on forestry. Wisconsin farmers are often times forest landowners and also often work in the forest products industry. <still waiting for data on MFL revenue from DNR to support this statement>
Forest Industry Locations <insert Doug’s map>
Trends in the Forest Industries miscellaneous miscellaneous
Wisconsin’s forest industries have been declining over the past few years. Figure p4_graph1, p4_graph2, and p4_graph3 show this declining trend. The value of shipments of Wisconsin forest industries for example, increased from $5.95 billion in 1981 to $20.32 billion in 1996, but declined to $19.85 billion in 2002 (see Figure p4_graph1).
The number of Wisconsin companies in the forest industries is also facing a decreasing trend over the past few years. As shown in Figure p4_graph2, the number dropped from 1888 in 1995 to 1847 in 2002.
In recent years employment in the Wisconsin’s forest product industry is also going downward, as illustrated in Figure p4_graph3. Wood product manufacturing increased from 23,200 jobs in 1990 to 27,900 jobs in 1999 but then decreased to 25,200 jobs in 2003. Paper manufacturing jobs slowly increased from 49,000 jobs in 1990 to 51,100 jobs in 1998 but dramatically decreased to 44,400 jobs in 2003.
Pressure from a soft domestic economy and strong foreign competition are some factors that contribute to the decline in Wisconsin’s forest industries.
<insert credit>
Wisconsin Economic Development Institute, Inc. and Center for Technology Transfer, Inc. (2004). Wisconsin’s Forest Products Industry Business Climate Status Report 2004. Madison: author.