>>1128170Oh, I'm a forester too. But we have hardwood pulp markets without paper markets. Actually, in Northern Maine, we've never had a paper mill. Ever. Yet we are still able to sell hardwood down to 3 inches, and I've been able to implement some amazing thinnings because of it.
Softwood pulp is a meme, though. Our sawmills take softwood down to 4 inch tops, and when you are harvesting softwood down to 3 inches, the economic limit is with the productivity of the harvester/buncher, not the market itself.
Anyway, paper only has an impact right now because so many economies were geared toward it, but things adjust for the better with time. Trust me.
