An inventory paints a picture of the current state of our
forests, as well as what needs to be addressed in the future. It is an important stage of
planning.
Some communities may prefer to set preliminary goals of what they
want their community or forest to look like in the future, while
other communities will want to gather information to use for their
goal setting. Either way, current data is important to
setting long-term goals.
Up to date information about a community�s
forest resource can lead to better decisions and may prevent
conflicts over perceptions of community issues. A
forest inventory
or assessment may be conducted to determine: forest quantity, forest
quality, forest ecological function, forest ownership, and forest
value. This provides a big picture of the forest resource and helps
a community make informed goals and objectives. Much of this
information will be at the county level and while not specific to
your Town, will still give a good idea of what your community looks
like and what issues are important.
Accurate data is critical; if data is flawed, the whole analysis
will be flawed and will lead to misinformed decision making.
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