This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WABE and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization.
When you cut a whole tree trunk down into the neat two-by-fours and one-by-sixes sold at a lumber yard, a lot of wood chips, bark and sawdust are left over. That excess, known as pulpwood, typically gets turned into paper products.
But now the mills are closing, and forest landowners are weighing whether they can afford to keep growing, especially as housing and solar developers knock on their doors, eager to buy and clear their land.
Read this story now for free
To continue reading, sign up for our newsletter and get unlimited access to WABE.org
You can select your preferences for news and local content. We will never share your email address. Learn how your newsletter sign-up will support WABE and Public Media