Peer Review Agenda
U.S. Forest Service Research & Development (R&D) provides research information to the public that is reliable, accurate, and presented clearly. We require all scientific manuscripts to be reviewed by qualified personnel, including written reviews by at least two peers, competent in the subject matter and with demonstrable objectivity. The Forest Service R&D scientists are further required to incorporate review comments, and when appropriate obtain statistical review before submitting a manuscript to the publications control officer. A set of standard guidelines is made available to reviewers containing review criteria including, but not limited to factual accuracy, quality of information, clarity, consistency, references, effectiveness, and overall merit. For manuscripts containing influential information and highly influential assessments, we adhere to additional applicable requirements embodied in U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Research Guidelines/Peer Review, based on The Office of Management & Budget's (OMB) Information Quality Bulletin for Peer Review (PDF, 238 KB).
Plans Under Review
Forest Resources Report of the United States, 2022: Update to the 2017 Forest Resources Report (159 KB)
Completed Peer Review Plans
Characterizing climate- and fire-driven habitat vulnerability for an old-forest species
Direct Effects of Albedo Offset Half of US Forest Carbon Storage Benefits (PDF, 88 KB)
Canada lynx habitat in the southern Rocky Mountains, USA: Anthropogenically protected but naturally disturbed (PDF, 84 KB)
Rapid declines in southern Sierra Nevada fisher habitat driven by drought and wildfire (PDF, 117 KB)
Summary document for the 2020 Resources Planning Act (RPA) Assessment
Wicked problems and sticky wickets: defining and inventorying mature and old-growth forests
Classifying Mature Federal Forests in the United States: The Forest Inventory Growth Stage System
Frequent burning and limited stand-replacing fire supports Mexican spotted owl pair occupancy
A climate adaptation strategy for conservation and management of yellow-cedar in Alaska
Northern Spotted Owls and Barred Owls in the Eastern Cascades, Washington
Tongass National Forest Timber Demand, Projections for 2015 to 2030
Summary document for the Update to the 2010 Resources Planning Act (RPA) Assessment