About 91% of Connecticut’s forests are timberland, capable of producing commercial crops of timber. The remaining 9% includes protected forests as well as mountaintops and wetlands with poor growing conditions.

Logging and harvesting of fallen trees is conducted on private and state land. Connecticut requires commercial foresters to be certified with the state. There are currently about 550 certified commercial foresters and loggers, including five in Cornwall.

Approximately 19,000 acres of forest is harvested for commercial timber annually. About 40% is red oak. White pine accounts for about 14% of sawtimber harvested every year, while hemlock is the third most harvested at 13%.

“We have such a beautiful stand of hardwoods in this state because [the forests] were clear cut. We have some of the best red oak in the world: there’s rich mineral soil here.”

~ Larry Stevens, certified forester, 2012