A stochastic frontier analysis of technical progress, efficiency change and productivity growth in the Pacific Northwest sawmill industry

Stochastic frontier analysis was employed to investigate technical efficiency and productivity growth in the sawmilling industry of the U.S. Pacific Northwest over the period 1968–2002. The results of our analysis indicate that productivity growth was strong over the 30-year study period, due almost exclusively to technical progress. The model developed in this analysis was used to examine the cause of employment declines in the sawmilling industry between 1988 and 1994. We found that that 62% of the decline was due to changes in output and non-labor input factors and 38% was due to technical change alone.     

The Optimum Length for Pulpwood: Considerations affecting the efficiency of logging

The effect of varying length of pulpwood is discussed in relationto place of conversion, loading, length of lorry, stacking spaceat roadside, method of skidding, and the preparation of loadsafter crosscutting at stump. The conclusion is reached that for Scottish upland conditionspulpwood should be prepared in 10- to 12-feet lengths in twostages, the feller preparing loads for skidding and the horseor tractor roughly piling the unbarked pulpwood at roadsidefor mechanical loading on to long-distance transport. For theFort William mill a standard length of 10 feet, with tolerancedown to 8 feet, will be adopted. Mechanization is not envisaged for some years beyond chain saw,tractor-mounted double-drum winch, and lorry- or tractor-mountedcrane with hydraulic grab, while the horse will play its partin skidding for at least the next five years. Logging teamsof four to eight men will be required and are being trained.     

Institutional quality,economic development and illegal logging: a quantitative cross-national analysis

Illegal logging is a global concern, associated with severe negative environmental, social and economic impacts, such as deforestation, degradation of biodiversity and loss of government revenues. Despite recent international efforts to combat illegal logging activities, the problem remains widespread. While the academic literature on the subject is extensive, little systematic research has been devoted to analysing the causes of illegal logging. Here, this knowledge gap is addressed with a cross-national assessment of factors hypothesized to impact illegal logging. The logistic regression analysis conducted in this study corroborates some widely held beliefs, but also provides some new insights on the factors that are important for whether illegal logging is likely to be a problem. It is shown that, besides physical-geographic characteristics, a number of factors relating to the level and speed of a country’s economic-institutional development are associated with illegal logging. These include gross domestic product per capita, economic growth, voice and accountability, rule of law and control of corruption. The findings also have implications for existing policies to tackle illegal logging activities.

     

Three-dimensional lamina architecture alters light-harvesting efficiency in Fagus: a leaf-scale analysis

Modification of foliage exposition and morphology by seasonal average integrated quantum flux density (Qint) was investigated in the canopies of the shade-tolerant late-successional deciduous tree species Fagus orientalis Lipsky and Fagus sylvatica L. Because the leaves were not entirely flat anywhere in the canopy, the leaf lamina was considered to be three-dimensional and characterized by the cross-sectional angle between the leaf halves (theta). Both branch and lamina inclination angles with respect to the horizontal scaled positively with irradiance in the canopy, allowing light to penetrate to deeper canopy horizons. Lamina cross-sectional angle varied from 170 degrees in the most shaded leaves to 90-100 degrees in leaves in the top of the canopy. Thus, the degree of leaf rolling increased with increasing Qint, further reducing the light-interception efficiency of the upper-canopy leaves. Simulations of the dependence of foliage light-interception efficiency on theta demonstrated that decreases in theta primarily reduce the interception efficiency of direct irradiance, but that diffuse irradiance was equally efficiently intercepted over the entire range of theta values in our study. Despite strong alteration in foliage light-harvesting capacity within the canopy and greater transmittance of the upper crown compared with the lower canopy, mean incident irradiances varied more than 20-fold within the canopy, indicating inherent limitations in light partitioning within the canopy. This extensive canopy light gradient was paralleled by plastic changes in foliar structure and chemistry. Leaf dry mass per unit area varied 3-4-fold between the canopy top and bottom, providing an important means of scaling foliage nitrogen contents and photosynthetic capacity per unit area with Qint. Although leaf structure versus light relationships were qualitatively similar in all cases, there were important tree-to-tree and species-to-species variations, as well as evidence of differences in investments in structural compounds within the leaf lamina, possibly in response to contrasting leaf water availability in different trees.     

Role of homestead forests in household economy and factors affecting forest production: a case study in southwest Bangladesh

Empirical information regarding the role of homestead forests in household economy is essential in understanding the importance of these resources. Identification of the factors that affect homestead forest production and understanding forest owners' attitudes toward key forest management issues have great significance in making appropriate policy responses to manage these resources on a sustainable basis. In Bangladesh, homestead forests are claimed to play an important economic role in rural livelihoods, but no reliable quantitative information exists. This study was undertaken to investigate the role of homestead forests in the household economy, examine if forest production and income vary across landholding size classes, to explore the relationships of homestead forest production with species richness, education level, and household size, and to assess the attitude of homestead forest owners toward key forest management issues. Results show that homestead forests contribute 15.9% of the household income and generate 51.4 man-days of employment per household per year. Production of homestead forests significantly varies across landholding size classes. It was observed that forest production depends significantly on species richness of homestead forests and the education level of forest owners. However, no such relationship was found between forest production and household size. The study revealed that farming families depend more on forest income than nonfarming families. Attitudes of forest owners toward key forest management issues differ significantly across landholding size classes. For example, although the majority of the forest owners prefer fruit species to timber species, the percentage of respondents decreased as the landholding size class increased, while the opposite trend was observed for timber species. The findings of this study suggest that diversification of forests and extension of education amongst forest owners would improve forest production. Furthermore, forest policy should address the concerns of the forest owners in different landholding classes and focus on their specific requirements to enhance sustainable forest management.     

A multiple criteria analysis of factors affecting markets of engineered wood products with respect to customer preferences: a case study of particleboard and MDF

Of considerable importance and a principal goal in business is the creation of customer satisfaction. Evalu- ation of end user preferences for producers of particleboard and medium density fiberboard (MDF) requires indices for the assessment of markets and modification of product quality. However, only sporadic research has been carried out in this field. Therefore, the goal of this survey was to identify indices with respect to the points of view of: 1) consumers in order to select particleboard and MDF, 2) suppliers in order to consider production strategies, improve product quality, improve competitive ability of domestic producers in the market and help industry to be more customer oriented. This survey consisted of two stages. In the first stage, factors affecting customer preferences in the selection of particleboard and MDF were determined using a Delphi method, with the help of experts and a group of principal users of these prod- ucts. Then these factors were categorized in three groups: qualitative, technical and technological and marketing factors. Furthermore, questionnaires were prepared and distributed among consumers and responses evaluated and weighted by using an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) using expert choice software. Our results show that at both stages, the consistency ratio was less than 0.1, indicating that all results and judgments were stable and acceptable. The results obtained from questionnaires about particleboard rank the priorities for factors in the selection by consumers as follows: nail and screw holding ability, homogeneity in structure, edge strength of panel, durability and bending strength. The most important factors for MDF were machinability of panels, homogeneity in structure, nail and screw holding ability, edge strength of panel, durability and bending strength.     

沙漠地区樟子松生长的多元统计分析及影响因子研究

应用SPSS统计软件包分析引种多年的樟子松的生长 ,对沙漠地区樟子松的生长规律及影响因子进行研究 ,并对所建立的多种生长模型进行对比分析 ,认为模型Y=e( 7.38- 16 .6 4/t) (R2 =0 .9990 6 )能够精确地反映樟子松的高生长规律。樟子松生长规律周期性强 ,即每年 4月至 6月为高生长期 ,4月至 9月为胸径生长期 ,其生长趋势由缓慢到快速 ,然后减缓。连年生长具有较强规律性 ,1～ 5龄生长较为缓慢 ,6龄以后进入生长旺期。影响樟子松生长的气候因素主要分为三类 ,即温度、水分和日照 ,其中温度和水分是主导因子。     

绿色发展背景下中国林业生态效率评价及影响因素实证分析——基于DEA分析视角

【目的】为解决我国生态林业可持续性发展问题,平衡林业资源环境与林业绿色生产之间的矛盾,提升林业资源利用效率和环境效率。【方法】基于绿色发展背景,以我国生态林业生产为研究对象,挖掘整理2013—2017年我国31个省份林业生产数据,建立包含绿色生态指标的DEA模型,全面评价我国林业生态效率。选取影响林业生产的关键性因素,建立线性回归模型,分析我国林业生态效率影响因素。通过实证分析找到提升林业生态效率的政策切入点。【结果】我国在节约资源投入、提升期望产出、限制非期望产出方面有所改善,大部分地区呈现规模效率递增状态,反映出区域内林业产出的增长速度略快于资源、能源的消耗速度,在控制资源消耗、环境污染并保证林业产量的前提下,可适当扩大林业生产规模,以规模效益带动林业经济效益发展。回归结果显示:林业旅游休闲对我国林业生态效率具有正向显著性影响,在加快推动林业一二三产业融合发展的同时,需要严格控制监测林业生态建设保护、森林生态补偿、林业防治方面的投入。【结论】政策建议如下:1)控制资源消耗、环境污染与旅游规模化生产协同发展;2)加快推动林业一二三产业联动发展;3)严格控制监测林业生态建设保护、森林生态补偿、林业防治方面的投入,为我国乃至世界生态林业的绿色可持续发展提供经验和借鉴。     

Retrospective analysis of factors affecting the distribution of an invasive wood-boring insect using native range data: the importance of host plants

Journal of Pest Science - Climate is a critical factor considered in predicting the potential distributions of species. However, the distribution of susceptible host plants is another important...     

Nonparametric multivariate analysis of variance for affecting factors on the extent of forest fire damage in Jilin Province,China

Forest fires are influenced by several factors,including forest location, species type, age and density,date of fire occurrence, temperatures, and wind speeds,among others. This study investigates the quantitative effects of these factors on the degree of forest fire disaster using nonparametric statistical methods to provide a theoretical basis and data support for forest fire management.Data on forest fire damage from 1969 to 2013 was analyzed. The results indicate that different forest locations and types, fire occurrence dates, temperatures, and wind speeds were statistically significant. The eastern regions of the study area experienced the highest fire occurrence,accounting for 85.0% of the total number of fires as well as the largest average forested area burned. April, May, and October had more frequent fires than other months,accounting for 78.9%, while September had the most extensive forested area burned(63.08 ha) and burnt area(106.34 ha). Hardwood mixed forest and oak forest had more frequent fires, accounting for 31.9% and 26.0%,respectively. Hardwood-conifer mixed forest had the most forested area burned(50.18 ha) and burnt area(65.09 ha).Temperatures, wind speeds, and their interaction had significant impacts on forested area burned and area burnt.     

Carbon emissions due to land-use change and logging in Cambodia: a modeling approach

Land-use change and forestry in the tropics have caused huge carbon emissions to the atmosphere. The magnitude of these emissions, however, remains debatable. Therefore, there is a need to further develop appropriate methods that would reduce the estimation uncertainties. From a modeling perspective, this report is aimed at estimating carbon emissions from deforestation and logging activities in Cambodia just after it opened its door to the world. Recently available land-use and forest inventory data were used to develop simple models capable of estimating the change of carbon stocks in, and carbon emissions from, dryland and edaphic forests. This study estimated the annual deforestation rate to be 0.1 million ha between 1973 and 2003, or about 0.7%. Between 1993 and 2003, annual carbon emissions amounted to about 13.7 TgC, owing to deforestation and logging. The emissions calculated here are higher than those reported by the Cambodian government, which claimed that Cambodia was once a net sink of carbon. The models developed in this study will be a useful tool for further study of carbon emissions in tropical countries where selective logging is practiced. Part of this article was presented at the International Symposium on the Role of Forests for Coming Generations: Philosophy and Technology for Forest Resource Management, October 2004, Utsunomiya, Japan     

Estimating leaf-level parameters for ecosystem process models: a study in mixed conifer canopies on complex terrain

Ecosystem process models are often used to predict carbon flux on a landscape or on a global scale. Such models must be aggregate and canopies are often treated as a uniform unit of foliage. Parameters that are known to vary within the canopy, e.g., nitrogen content and leaf mass per area, are often estimated by a mean value for the canopy. Estimating appropriate means is complicated, especially in mixed-species stands and in complex terrain. We analyzed sources of variation in specific parameters with the goal of testing various simplifying assumptions. The measurements came from mixed-species forests in the northern Rocky Mountains. We found that, for three important parameters (nitrogen concentration and content, and leaf mass per area), a sample taken near the vertical center of the crown provided a good estimate of the mean values for the crown. Altitude (700-1700 m), solar insolation (4200-5400 MJ m(-2) year(-1)) and leaf area index (1-11) had negligible effects on the parameters; only species differences were consistently detected. The correlation between mass-based photosynthetic rates and mass-based nitrogen concentrations was much weaker than the correlation between area-based photosynthetic rates and area-based nitrogen concentration. Comparison of photosynthesis-nitrogen relationships for a wide variety of conifer species and sites revealed a broad general trend that can be used in models. These results suggest important potential simplifications in model parameterization, most notably that canopy means can be estimated with ease, that complex terrain is a minor source of variation in these parameters and that use of one photosynthesis-nitrogen relationship for conifer species does not result in large errors. Species-to-species variation, however, was large and needs to be accounted for when parameterizing process models.     

Forestry in British Columbia: a Study of Environmental Issues

This paper is an account of a tour of British Columbia fromJanuary to March 1993, hosted by logging companies, the Ministryof Forests and representatives of the environmental movement.Overall 85 per cent of BC's forests are under public ownershipalthough the forest is largely managed by logging companiesunder various forms of long-term tenure. The Ministry of Forestshas a remit to regulate the industry, approve sustainable AnnualAllowable Cuts and account for environmental values. A significantbody of public opinion believes that the Ministry falls farshort of its stated objectives. Forests were visited on VancouverIsland and in the southern and central interior. The Ministryis promoting an image of integrated resource use but I foundlittle evidence of this. Allowable Cuts are not locally sustainableand integrated resource planning is either poor or non-existent,with little effort being made to balance objectives. Interestgroups are participating in the Commission on Resources andthe Environment (CORE) process that is seen by many as the lasthope for a peaceful settlement of conflicts. A recent Governmentannouncement allowing all but 33 per cent of one of the lastundisturbed watersheds on Vancouver Island to be logged couldeasily end CORE'S chances of a successful conclusion.     

Soil physical factors affecting the growth of sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus L.) in a silvopastoral system on a stony upland soil in North-East Scotland

Tree growth and soil physical properties were compared on two grazed plots planted with sycamore at 5 and 10 m square spacing on an upland Scottish site. Both plots received fertilizer and stocking density of ewes and lambs was adjusted to maintain a constant sward height.Mean tree height in 1990 and height increment (1988–90) were significantly greater in the 5 m spaced plot (P<0.05). Although matric potential under the trees was generally greater than in the grassed rows between trees, mean penetration resistance (37–107 mm depth) was significantly greater (P<0.01) under the trees. Even when the soil was close to field capacity, less than 10% of penetrometer readings were < 1 MPa under the trees, in comparison to 44% in grassed areas between trees. This demonstrates that surface compaction due to preferential treading by sheep near the base of trees was sufficient to have seriously reduced tree root growth. Penetration resistance under the 5 m spaced trees was significantly less (P<0.05) than under the 10 m spaced trees. A technique for estimating the probability of root deflections by stones (in 35 mm depth intervals), Ps, from penetrometer readings was used. A significant relationship (P<0.1) was found between tree height increment and depth to Ps0.4 in the 10 m plot.     

A forest of grazing and logging: Deforestation and reforestation history of a boreal landscape in central Sweden

Detailed spatial changes in foreststructure in a central Swedish landscape were examinedusing geographic information system techniques. First,the influence of grazing and burning on forest densityand structure in the 19th century landscape wereanalyzed. Then, the development of the landscapeduring the 20th century, together with the impactof modern forest management methods on foreststructure, were analyzed using historical sources. In1907, over 20% of the 2200 hectare study site wassparsely-wooded (12 m³ ha^–1) with old trees.These areas have been reforested with single-storiedmiddle-aged and old pine stands (66 m³ ha^–1in 1989) during the 20th century. Firesuppression and changes in land use from subsistence-to-industrialforestry, facilitated Norway spruceregeneration as undergrowth in open Scots pine standsafter logging. This natural regeneration has, to alarge extent, been cut down and replaced by pineafforestation. During the second half of the 20thcentury, the standing timber volume has steadilyincreased, while the mean age of the forest hasdecreased. Today's young dense forests will result inhigher timber values in the coming decades, but theforest has lost a range of ecological niches.     

Traditional mule logging method in Hyrcanian Forest: a study of the impact on forest stand and soil

We inventoried plant regeneration and soil compaction along mule trails to evaluate damage to forest stands and regeneration follow-ing mule hauling before and after operations in Kheyrud Forest in the...     

Assessing the effects of site factors on the productivity of a feller buncher:a time and motion analysis

We evaluated,for the first time in Turkey,the productivity of a feller buncher during clear-cut operations of two Brutian pine stands located in Canakkale,northwestern Turkey with different diameter classes and terrain conditions.In the first stand with 24.6 cm average DBH,the feller buncher cut full trees and moved them to roadside.In the second stand with 34.3 cm average DBH,the feller buncher cut trees in two stages due to their larger diameters and the relatively steep and rough terrain conditions of the site.The effects of specific stand features,DBH and tree height measurements were assessed through statistical analysis in relation to productivity.The results indicate that the average productivity for the first stand was about 118 m^3h^-1,while it was about 80 m3h-1 in the second stand.Even though tree diameter and volume were higher in the second stand,productivity decreased by32.3%due to extra time spent on the two-stage cutting operation.The results revealed that harvesting operations should be planned carefully and the right equipment selected by accounting for different tree sizes,terrain conditions and machine specifications in order to better understand their effects on production.     

Energy and carbon dioxide (CO2) balance of logging residues as alternative energy resources: system analysis based on the method of a life cycle inventory (LCI) analysis

Using the method of a life cycle inventory (LCI) analysis, the energy balance and the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission of logging residues from Japanese conventional forestry as alternative energy resources were analyzed over the entire life cycle of the residues. The fuel consumption for forestry machines was measured in field experiments for harvesting and transporting logging residues at forestry operating sites in Japan. In addition, a total audit of energy consumption was undertaken. It involved an assessment of materials, construction, and the repair and maintenance of forestry machines as well as the costs associated with an energy-conversion plant. As a result, the ratio of energy output to input was calculated to be 5.69, indicating that the system examined in this study could be feasible as an energy production system. The CO₂ emission per MWh_e (e: electricity) of the biomass-fired power generation plant was calculated to be 61.8kgCO₂/MWh_e, while that of coal-fired power generation plants in Japan is 960kgCO₂/MWh_e. Therefore, the reduction in the amount of CO₂ emission that would result from replacing coal with biomass for power generation by as much as 3.0 million dry-t/year of logging residues in Japan was estimated to be 1.66 million tCO₂/year, corresponding to 0.142% of the national CO₂ emission. This study provides evidence that Japan could reduce its domestic CO₂ emission by using logging residues as alternative energy resources.