GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1991

H	1 

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 1592*

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Sponsors: Representatives Culp; Albertson, Bowman, Brawley, Brown, Colton, N.J. Crawford, Dockham, Gottovi, Greenwood, Isenhower, James, Mercer, Privette, Russell, Stewart, and Thompson.

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Referred to:  Rules, Appointments and Calendar.

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June 4, 1992

A JOINT RESOLUTION HONORING THE LIFE AND MEMORY OF GIFFORD PINCHOT AND COMMEMORATING THE ONE HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF FORESTRY IN NORTH CAROLINA AND IN THE UNITED STATES.
Whereas, Gifford Pinchot was born on 11 August 1865 in Simsbury, Connecticut; and
Whereas, Gifford Pinchot was graduated from Yale University in 1889, and studied at the National Forestry School in Nancy, France, with additional studies in Switzerland, Germany, and Austria; and
Whereas, upon his return to the United States in 1892, Gifford Pinchot began the first systematic forestry work in the United States at Biltmore, the estate of George W. Vanderbilt in North Carolina; and
Whereas, in 1896 Gifford Pinchot was made a member of the National Forest Commission of the National Academy of Sciences, which worked out the plan of forest reserves in the United States; and
Whereas, in 1897 Gifford Pinchot became the confidential forest agent to the Secretary of the Interior of the United States; and
Whereas, in 1898 Gifford Pinchot, chief of the Division of Forestry, which in 1905 became the United States Forest Service of the United States Department of Agriculture; and
Whereas, Gifford Pinchot remained chief of the United States Forest Service until 1910, during which time the entire forest service system and its administration was established and placed on a firm footing; and
Whereas, during that time Gifford Pinchot also served as a member of the Public Lands Commission, which he initiated, and the Inland Waterways Commission; and
Whereas, Gifford Pinchot, through his distinguished government service, his enthusiasm, and his promotional work, firmly established the practice of forestry on a scientific and professional basis in the United States, and did much to advance the conservation movement in general; and
Whereas, Gifford Pinchot continued in a long and distinguished career of public service until his death in 1946; and
Whereas, Gifford Pinchot, by virtue of his employment at Biltmore in North Carolina, was the first practicing forester in the United States, and the birthplace of forestry in the United States is thus in the mountains of North Carolina; and
Whereas, in the one hundred years since 1892, forestry has risen to great importance in North Carolina; and
Whereas, North Carolina contains more than 18.7 million acres of commercial forestland valued at more than $11,000,000,000 and which, through forest-related industries, provide jobs for more than 150,000 North Carolinians; and
Whereas, the annual value of timber harvested from our woodlands and delivered for processing exceeds $480,000,000 and the annual shipments of lumber, furniture, paper, and other forest-based products exceeds $12,000,000,000, making forestry and forest-based industry the second largest industry in the State; and
Whereas, the practice of forestry as promoted by Gifford Pinchot and those who have followed in his footsteps protects, preserves, and promotes not only forests but water quality, recreation, wildlife, fertile soils, and aesthetics; and
Whereas, the values inherent in sound forest practices are realized not only in economic terms but in the preservation of the priceless natural resources which are both our common heritage and our legacy to those who come after us; Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the Senate, the House of Representatives concurring:
Section 1.  The General Assembly of North Carolina wishes to honor the life and memory of Gifford Pinchot.
Sec. 2.  The General Assembly of North Carolina declares the year 1992 to be the Centennial of Forestry in North Carolina and in the United States.
Sec. 3.  The General Assembly of North Carolina urges the citizens of the State to commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of forestry by appropriate observances and to remember the importance of our forests to our economy and to our way of life.
Sec. 4.  This resolution is effective upon ratification.