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HEARTWOOD is a regional network that protects forests and supports community activism in the eastern United States through education, advocacy, and citizen empowerment.

HEARTWOOD was founded in 1991, when concerned citizens from several midwestern states met and agreed to work together to protect the heartland hardwood forest.

This region was once blanketed with a majestic hardwood forest containing more than 70 species of hardwood trees. Unfortunately, much of this forest has been cleared and what remains is mostly isolated fragments of public land that nonetheless play a critical role in providing habitat for wildlife, purifying the air and water, moderating global climate change, and offering places of beauty and enjoyment. .

Today, our efforts remain rooted in the heart of the central hardwood region, with an emphasis on our “core states” of Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, and Missouri. Over time, Heartwood has branched out to serve areas of need throughout an 18-state region, giving special attention to the “at risk” national forests in Michigan, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Arkansas, West Virginia, and Virginia.


Wayne NF Economic Analysis

Heartwood has always felt that the public is not getting its money's worth in regard to taxpayer funding of the management of our national forests. Under legal requirements in place in 2006, the Forest Service was required to maximize net public benefits when adopting a 15 year land and resource management plan.  In 2006, the Wayne National Forest in Ohio adopted a "revised" 15 year management plan.  Heartwood, Buckeye Forest Council, and others appealed this plan.  Those appeals were, for the most part, denied. We commissioned Greenfire Consulting, a highly qualified economic consulting firm from Bloomington, Indiana, to review the Wayne's finding that they indeed did "maximize net public benefits."  The finding of this study indicate that this was not the case.

Intro, Summary & Recommendations: <[PDF 136kb]> <[MS Word 71kb]>

Economic Study Text: <[PDF 1.3mb]>   <[MS Word 3.7mb]>

Table: Logging <[PDF 27kb]>   <[Excel 64kb]>

Table: Mining <[PDF 27kb]>   <[Excel 55kb]>

Table: Other Economic Activities <[PDF 53kb]>   <[Excel 114kb]>