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Abstract
The forest sector in the US South has for many decades been an essential component of the regional economy. This dissertation focuses on the forest sector in the US South and explores different aspects related to timber prices and conservation easements. The first section of the dissertation investigates the spatial dependency and spillover effects of pine sawtimber prices across the US South. The findings reveal a strong positive spatial dependency in sawtimber prices across states, with a significant spillover effect of independent variables. In the second section, different time series econometric models and artificial neural networks are developed and compared to forecast pine sawtimber prices in the TimberMart-South 22 timber regions. The results suggest that artificial neural networks outperform classical models in predicting turning points and offer more accurate forecasts. The third section examines the spatial relationships of conservation easement attributes by analyzing working forest conservation easements managed by three easement-holding organizations in Georgia. The results reveal that different easement holders strategically target neighboring lands with similar goals, land use, and recreational opportunities. Overall, the dissertation aims to provide insights into the forest sector in the US South, and the challenges it faces while offering potential solutions to conserve and manage forestland sustainably.