An input-output analysis of forest products industry contributions to regional economies of the South and Pacific Northwest

An input-output analysis using IMPLAN was employed to examine forest-based industry contributions to regional economies of the South and Pacific Northwest United States. Output, employment, personal income, and value added multipliers were used to estimate economic impacts of the industry. An analysis was conducted of incremental impacts per million board feet of timber delivered by each region's logging sector to forest-based industries. With the exception of employment, the industry in the South has higher multipliers than the industry in the Pacific Northwest. The total regional impact of the forest-based industry on the South's economy is approximately five times that of the industry in the Pacific Northwest. The industry's impact as a percentage of regional totals is substantially higher in the Pacific Northwest. Incremental impacts to the Pacific Northwest economy per unit change in the amount of timber delivered by its logging sector are greater than in the South.