Timber Harvesting Behaviour in Massachusetts, USA: Does Price Matter to Private Landowners?

Non-industrial private forest is the dominant ownership type in the eastern USA. Most of the private owners have non-consumptive, appreciative values and through surveys report little interest in the generation of timber revenue. Timber harvesting in Massachusetts was investigated for a 25-year period to compare the frequency and volume of harvests for five commercial species on private land, to species-specific stumpage prices reported on a quarterly basis. For four of the five species, there was no relationship; however, for one species a consistent effect was identified, whereby the volume harvested and number of harvest events were found to be significantly related to stumpage price, west of the Connecticut River. This effect is absent for eastern Massachusetts, and also not apparent consistently for other species. It is concluded that under some circumstances, private landowner harvest decisions are influenced by stumpage price.