Sam Houston National Forest - Multiple-use Management

Multiple-use Management

The Sam Houston National Forest is managed under the multiple-use concept. Under this concept, the uses of the forest, such as recreation, fish and wildlife, timber, grazing, soil and water, and minerals, are planned to maintain a balance among the benefits, yet provide for public needs. Forest Service objectives, by law, must consider all resources of the forest and no single resource can be emphasized to the detriment of others.

In 1960, the Multiple Use-Sustained Yield Act put into law what had been practiced on the National Forests in Texas for almost 30 years. This act emphasized that resources on public lands would be managed so that they are used in the combination that will best meet the needs of the people, that the benefits obtained will exist indefinitely and that each natural resource would be managed in balance with other resources to meet present and future public needs.

Management plans outline direction for a forest under the multiple-use concept. However, even the most carefully planned system of management cannot foresee environmental or natural factors which can cause drastic changes in a forest. Fire, storms, insects and disease, for example, can alter the way a forest is managed.