In the wake of the Great Recession, the forests of South Carolina are fuller than they have been in 100 years. According to the SC Department of Agriculture, forests cover two-thirds of South Carolina’s land area, and they are vital to its environmental health, economic growth, and culture. The forestry industry is South Carolina’s largest manufacturing industry, and timber is its number one commodity. The industry employs over 90,000 people and generates $4.1 billion each year. Timber is also South Carolina’s biggest export. South Carolina exports $1.4 billion in forest products each year, both domestically and globally, which means that the people of South Carolina are not the only ones dependent on the success of the SC timber industry.
After the Great Recession of 2007-2009, the housing market fell, which caused the hardwood timber industry to go down with it. While the industry took a hit, the break in logging allowed for the forests to grow fuller than they have been in 100 years. The revival of the housing market, a significant increase in demand for cleaner and renewable energy sources, along with record-breaking forest stocks have all created a perfect storm for the forestry industry.
The 20/15 Project was a study produced by the Forestry Commission and the South Carolina Forestry Association, which came up with plans and predictions for how to facilitate the growth of the Forestry Industry in a sustainable way. The goal of the project was to increase forestry’s economic impact from $17.4 billion in 2006 to $20 billion by 2015. While these numbers may spark concern in many, the project claims that if done correctly, the total pine inventory will be higher by 2029 than it was in 2009.