Final answer:
Forests around the world have been harvested for lumber, necessitating nearby sawmills to efficiently process logs into lumber and by-products for shipping to markets.
Step-by-step explanation:
Trees were typically cut down in forested areas and then sent to sawmills nearby to be made into lumber. During the Industrial Revolution and the westward expansion of the United States, many old-growth forests were felled and processed locally. The need for efficiency and the high cost of transporting logs demanded that sawmills were built close to where the trees were harvested. This ensured that logs could be turned into lumber and then stacked and shipped efficiently to markets. Logging and the subsequent milling into lumber are activities that have transformed forests around the globe, from the British Isles to tropical regions and the United States. The process also involves utilizing by-products like sawdust and wood chips to make other wood products, thereby maximizing resource use.