Forest Facts For California

Timber Resources:

Total area of timberland-l3,500,000 acres.

Brush and potential forest land that should be growing trees-2,000,000 acres.

California contains 15 per cent of all the remaining virgin timber in the United States.

Forests of California contain enough lumber to build 43,000,000 five-room bungalows, or to lay a board floor, one inch thick, over the entire States of Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

The timber resources of California are valued at $750,- 000,00Lan amount sufficient to start a bank account of. $2N for every man, woman and child in the State.

Lumbering ranks fourth among the industries of California in the number of wage-earners employed, and fifth in the value of its products. 25,W people are yearly engaged in the lumbering and wood-using industries of the State. and the value of timber and lumber products amounts to $100,000,000.

National Forests:

The National Forests of California are 17 in number and cover an area of 19,297,896 acres (net) of mountainous land.

Roads and Trails (Proposed and existing):

Roads in National Forests-7,500 miles, approximate. Trails in National Forests-l0,000 miles, approximate.

Total amount of National Forest road and trail funds spent to June 30, 1923-$4,340,000.

Receipts and Disbursements:

25 per cent of all National Forest receipts are returned to the State for apportionment to Counties in which National Forests are located, for schools and roads.

10 per cent'additional of National Forest receipts are spent by the Forest Service on road and trail construction in the Counties in which the National Forests are located.

Grazing and Wild Life:

195,000 cattle and 467,W sheep grazed in the National Forests of California last year. These numbers represent 13 per cent of all the beef cattle in the State, and 19 per cent of all the sheep.

The total estimated number of big game animals in California is : Deer-250,000; Bear-12,0@; Elk-150; Antelope-5O0; Mountain sheep-1o,00o. Fully 75 per cent of all the big game animals in the State live within the National Forests.

Practically all the important trout streams in California have their source within some one of the National Forests.

Water Conservation:

Of the 4,000,000 acres of irrigated land in California, it is estimated that 85 per cent is directly dependent on the National Forests for water supply.

Of the 7,000,000 h.p. of potential hydro-electric development in the State of California, fully 2/3 is located within the National Forests.

Many cities and towns in the State are entirely dependent on the National Forests for their domestic and municipal supply of water.

Recreation Travel:

The National Forests of California are the greatest summer playgrounds of America. In 1923, over 4,336,000 people visited the National Forests of California. Of this total, 2,42A,000 were transient motorists; 768,000 picnickers; 618,00O campers; 430,0@ hotel and resort guests; and 100,000 summer-home owners, etc.

Eighty-eight per cent of all the visitors to the National Forests were motorists.

California, t9l9-L923, inclusive:

Total number of Fires (forest, brush and grain)-11,185. ' Area burned over-2,841,000 acres.

Per cent of man-caused fires--3?Vo.

Cost of suppressing fires-$l,1 12,830.

Loses Fight To Suspend Rates

The Railroad Commission has denied the application of Los Angeles Lumber Products Compahy, of San Pedro, for the suspension of reduced rates on lumber and lumber products from Mcloud to consuming points within the state of California. These reductions, ranging from 2 to 3/z cents per 100 pounds were scheduled to become effective through publication by Southern Pacific Company and Pacific Freight Tariff Bureau, on November 30.

Los Angeles Lumber Products Company desired to have these reduced rates suspended pending a decision in the joint proceediirg brought by thit company before the Interstate Commerce Commission and the Railroad Commission of California, involving a proposed revision of lumber rates from northern producing points and Los Angeles harbor points to points throughout California, in order to eliminate an alleged disc,rimination against Los Angeles harbor lumber industries.