Research &Development

Ann M. Bartuska, Deputy Chief
Barbara Weber, Associate Deputy chief
Bov Eav, Associate Deputy Chief
Hao Tran, Staff Assistant

About Forest Service Research & Development

We are the largest forestry research organization in the world and the national and international leader in forest conservation. As part of the Forest Service, the largest agency in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), our research contributes to the advancement of science and the conservation of many of our Nation's most valuable natural resources.

Forest Service Research and Development (R&D) scientists carry out basic and applied research to study biological, physical, and social sciences related to very diverse forests and rangelands. Public lands that make up the National Forest system comprise 1/20 of the entire land base in the United States. Our research promotes ecologically sound management of these vast natural resources. We also serve the Nation's private forest landowners, and we investigate new ways to process and recycle wood into products.

Our scientists work throughout the United States, from Florida to Alaska and from Maine to Hawaii. They perform research on university campuses, as well as in our own laboratories. Much of their research is outdoors, in forests and watersheds, on mountain tops and in grasslands.

Research and Development is made up of 4 major areas. They are:

• Resource Valuation and Use Research, Staff Director
• Science Policy, Planning, Inventory and Information, Staff Director
• Vegetation Management and Protection Research, Staff Director
• Wildlife, Fish, Water, and Air Research, Vacant, Staff Director

Forest Inventory & Analysis

Forest Inventory and Analysis reports on status and trends in forest area and location; in the species, size, and health of trees; in total tree growth, mortality, and removals by harvest; in wood production and utilization rates by various products; and in forest land ownership. The enhanced FIA program will include information relating to tree crown condition, lichen community composition, soils, ozone indicator plants, complete vegetative diversity, and coarse woody debris.

The program is managed by the Research & Development organization within the USDA Forest Service in cooperation with State and Private Forestry and National Forest System. FIA has been in operation under various names (Forest Survey and Forest Inventory and Analysis) for some 70 years. The program covers forests on all forest lands within the U.S. The program is implemented in cooperation with a variety of partners including State Forestry Agencies and private landowners who grant access to their lands for data collection purposes.

Visit the FIA site at:

http://www.fia.fs.fed.us/

Other Forest Service Research & Development Topics:

• USDA Forest Service Research & Development Accomplishments Report
• Forest Service Code of Scientific Ethics (pdf)
• A Strategic Assessment of forest biomass and Fuel Reduction Treatments in Western States (pdf)
• Development and Evaluation for Monitoring Vertebrate Populations and their Habitats at the Ecoregional Scale
• Search for all Research Publications