Mapping & Inventorying Mature Forest in Conterminous USA

Image: old growth fir forest, U.S. Forest Service- Pacific Northwest Region, https://www.flickr.com/photos/forestservicenw/36445933062

Why mature forests?

Mature forests provide critical habitat for wildlife, store nationally and globally significant stocks of ecosystem carbon, and provide clean drinking water. It is important that we know where these forests occur and how they are managed, to help ensure they are protected and continue to provide benefits to society for generations to come