National Forests and Grasslands in Texas Fingertip Facts Summary

August 2, 2018

On the U.S. Forest Service (FS) website (www.fs.usda.gov/main/texas/home), National Forests and Grasslands in Texas (NFGT), there is a January 2017 pamphlet entitled, “NFGT Fingertip Facts”. This is a great document to read and learn about federal public lands that we own and the FS manages in Texas.

 Originally, in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, NFs were established to protect watersheds and wood supply. The U.S. Congress established the NFGT after the Texas Legislature passed a resolution which requested that East Texas lands and watersheds be restored that were damaged by abusive “cut and run” logging. NFs/NGs are managed using the multiple-use philosophy. Management includes uses like grazing, wood, wildlife, watershed, energy, wilderness, and recreation. Some of the information from the “Fingertip Facts” pamphlet includes:

 

  1. The NFGT consists of 675,816 acres (about 1,055.96 square miles) of federal public land administered by the FS out of its Lufkin, Texas office and managed by the 5 district ranger offices.

 

  1. The NFGT includes: Angelina National Forest (NF), 153,334 acres (48,684 acres in Angelina County, 21,023 acres in Jasper County, 64,389 acres in San Augustine County, and 9,238 acres in Nacogdoches County); Davy Crockett NF, 160,467 acres (93,155 acres in Houston County and 67,312 acres in Trinity County); Sabine NF, 160,798 acres (64 acres in Jasper County, 95,454 acres in Sabine County, 4,287 acres in San Augustine County, 59,212 acres in Shelby County, and 1,781 acres in Newton County); Sam Houston NF, 163,030 acres (47,801 acres in Montgomery County, 60,632 acres in San Jacinto County, and 54,597 acres in Walker County); Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) National Grassland (NG), 20,309 acres; and Caddo NG, 17,873 acres (for both NGs, 61 acres in Montague County, 20,252 acres in Wise County, and 17,873 acres in Fannin County).

 

  1. These NFs/NGs were established by the U.S. Congress in 1934, 1935, and 1937.

 

  1. There are 5, designated wilderness areas in the NFGT. These include: Turkey Hill, 5,473 acres and Upland Island, 13,331 acres in Angelina NF; Big Slough, 3,639 acres in Davy Crockett NF; Indian Mounds, 12,369 acres in Sabine NF; and Little Lake Creek, 3,855 acres in Sam Houston NF.

 

  1. There are 5, Wildlife Management Areas (WMA’s) in the NFGT that are cooperatively managed by the FS and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. These WMA’s include: Bannister, 25,658 acres in Angelina NF; Alabama Creek, 14,561 acres in Davy Crockett NF; Moore Plantation, 25,455 acres in Sabine NF; Caddo, 16,150 acres in Caddo NG; and Sam Houston, 162,984 acres in Sam Houston NF.

 

  1. There are 34, developed recreation sites in the NFGT. Twenty-six are managed by the FS and the rest are managed by private concessionaire, county, or river authority.

 

  1. There is 1 experimental forest (2,600 acres), Stephen F. Austin Experimental Forest, in the NFGT which is managed as part of Angelina NF.

 

  1. There are 4 scenic areas in the NFGT. These include: Big Creek, 1,920 acres and Winters Bayou, 1,587 acres in Sam Houston NF and Beech Ravines, 1,020 acres and Upper Colorow Creek, 230 acres in Sabine NF.

 

  1. There are 299 oil/gas wells in the NFGT. About 203,339 acres have reserved/outstanding private mineral rights on federal NFGT (30.09%) lands.

 

  1. There are 2, research natural areas in the NFGT. These include: Mill Creek Cove, 225 acres in Sabine NF and Cross Timbers, 380 acres in the LBJ NG.

 

  1. There are 70 active grazing allotments which cover 17,438 acres and support 5,000 animal unit months (one animal unit is a cow with or without her calf) in the LBJ and Caddo NGs. There is no grazing on the 4 NFs in the NFGT.

 

  1. There are 49,800 acres of protected streamside management zones in the NFGT.

 

  1. The NFGT budget is about $15 million and this funds about 140 employees.

 

  1. For trails, there are about 176 miles of hiking trails, 144 miles of multi-use non-motorized trails, 85 miles of motorized trails, and 24 miles of mountain bike trails in the NFGT.

 

  1. For the federally endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker (RCW), there are about (FY 2016 data) 274 clusters (woodpecker homes) in Sam Houston NF; 88 clusters in Davy Crockett NF; 67 clusters in Angelina NF; and 55 clusters in Sabine NF.

 

Brandt Mannchen

August 1, 2018

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