Management of the Clemson Experimental Forest

The Clemson Experimental Forest is managed for sustained yield of forest products including timber, clean water, clean air, wildlife, species and habitat diversity. The forest personnel, equipment, supplies, roads, and recreation facilities are solely supported by revenue generated by the forest.

A continuous forest inventory (CFI) system was initiated on the Forest in 1958. Permanent measurement locations were established at 2000 feet grid intervals over the entire Forest. Preliminary point sample volume measurements were taken in 1958 and at five-year intervals beginning in 1961. The CFI data are utilized to adjust allowable harvest, evaluate forest health and estimate effects of management treatments on the Forest. 

The Management Alternative Research Project (MARP) was initiated in 1978 to evaluate the long-term effects of three common management strategies on large forest areas.  The management scenarios are (1) commercial management for maximization of monetary returns from forest investments, (2) multiple-use, where monetary returns are balanced with other resource priorities and (3) protection management for maximization of environmental quality. MARP involved nearly 12,000 acres of the Forest with treatment areas of approximately 1,000 acres. Other specific research projects areas totaling approximately 2,000 acres were incorporated within MARP treatments where applicable or to other University forestlands. The MARP project was dropped as a project in 2003. MARP objectives will be continued as demonstration areas within the forest, but overall management will reflect multiple use forestry objectives.

The Clemson Experimental Forest hosts study sites for research and teaching by Clemson faculty, other institutions and agencies.

The CEF is a member of the American Tree Farm System and certified under the Sustainable Forest Initiative.

Management Plan For The Clemson Experimental Forest (PDF, 10MB, 47 pages).
If you need assistance with this file please let us know: rhardee@clemson.edu

The Clemson Land-Use Project: A Jewel of the 'New Deal' - S. K. Cox, H. T. Irwin and T. J. Straka 

Natural Resource Inventory

Agreement between Clemson University and SCDNR for the Establishment and Operation of a Wildlife Management Area

Map of Clemson Wildlife Management Areas