North-4 Subsections: St. Louis Moraines, Tamarack Lowlands, Nashwauk Uplands, and Littlefork-Vermilion Uplands

Posted September 24, 2007

Description and Maps

This Subsection Forest Resource Management Plan (SFRMP) process considers state forest lands administered by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Divisions of Forestry and Fish and Wildlife in the St. Louis Moraines, Tamarack Lowlands, Nashwauk Uplands, and Littlefork-Vermilion Uplands subsection landscape units (North-4 Subsections). These four units cover approximately 5.5 million acres located in an area that extends roughly from Tower in the east to Blackduck in the west, and from Aitkin in the south to International Falls in the north. For more detailed land descriptions, refer to chapters 1 through 3 of the Preliminary Issues and Assessment document.

Maps

Recreation, forestry, and tourism are major uses of land in these four subsections. Public agencies administer 50 percent of the land with the state portion being 1.24 million acres or 22 percent. Approximately 1.17 million acres of the state land is timberland that will be considered for wood products production and other resource management objectives in this plan. Other state lands totaling 70,000 acres include State Parks and Scientific and Natural Areas, which will not be considered under this plan.

In addition, the federal government owns 300,000 acres (5.5 percent) that are managed by the U.S. Forest Service as part of the Chippewa and Superior National Forests. Aitkin, Crow Wing, Cass, Itasca, Beltrami, Koochiching, St. Louis, and Carlton counties own and manage 1.23 million acres (22 percent). Private owners control 2.7 million acres (49 percent). Of that, industry owns 700,000 acres. For more details about land ownership, the Preliminary Issues and Assessment document.

Land Ownership

St. Louis Moraines, Tamarack Lowlands, Nashwauk Uplands, and Littlefork-Vermilion Uplands: 5,522,474 Acres

Forest Cover Types

Recently, a Gap Analysis Program (GAP) classification was completed for all lands in these subsections by the DNR Division of Forestry using satellite imagery. Based on those data, 66 percent of the land area (non-water) is covered by forest. Aspen and birch cover types comprise 49 percent of this forest. Three percent of the subsection land area is cropland. Based on the DNR forest inventory of timberland that will be considered in this plan; aspen, birch, and balm of Gilead comprise 271,000 acres and non-forested lowlands comprise 225,000 acres. For details about cover types, refer to Chapter 3 of the Preliminary Issues and Assessment document.