ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines the market for natural resources in general and forest resources in particular over the near, intermediate, and long term. It discusses several of the competing uses of land and investigates some of their Interactions. The book analyses the impact of alternative policy mixes upon the level and type of forestry investments. It addresses the issue of the efficacy of long-term forest investments in the perspective of the 1980s. The book provides the careful reader with an excellent set of analytical tools with which to interpret land use issues. It shows that a large portion of the conversions have taken place in the Mississippi Delta where bottomland forests have been converted to croplands, particularly for soybean production. The book investigates the strategies of the private sector and the behavior of and impacts of government policy upon investment in forestry.
