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The successful rehabilitation of Wanagama teaching forests, which began in the late of 1960s, has created a distinctive forest ecosystem. Currently the forests become the habitat of Apis cerana, enterprised by the surrounding villagers to produce natural forest honey as a non-timber forest product. This paper aims to explore the adoption of smallholder beekeeping of A. cerana, the beekeepers’ socio-economic characteristics, the potential and value of forest honey production, the distribution of bee-boxes inside the forests and potential tree sources of nectar and pollen. Data collection was carried out in July - September 2019 with in-depth interview techniques to 38 beekeepers. Field observations and ground checks were carried out on the sites where beekeepers were placing the bee-boxes in the forest. In addition, an analysis of aerial photograph images taken with drone was also carried out to identify the area of trees as sources of nectar and pollen. The results show that between 1982 and 2019 the development of the adoption of the A. cerana beekeeping increased significantly. The total production of honey from 506 bee-boxes reached 658 liters or 894.9 kg in year of 2018/2019. The number of bee-boxes placed in Wanagama was mainly distributed inside Compartment of 13, 17, 14, 16, 5, and 18. Acacia mangium, eucalyptus, cajuput and mahogany were the main types of nectar-producing trees, in addition to the abundance of flowering undergrowth plants. Many of the challenges faced by honey beekeepers included climate change, the shortage of nectar and pollen sources, pests and diseases and human disturbances. This research suggests the need for a social, institutional and technical approaches to increase the forest productivity as sources of nectar and pollen. It is suggested encouraging the smallholders to adopt beekeeping as the main livelihood alternatives in future and planting more trees in Wanagama forests.

Forests are an integral and inseparable part of the lives of the people who live around them. The potential of natural resources in Indonesia are plentiful, it has a severe impact and high damage. The deteriorating condition of forests, among others are also not balanced with the ability to create plantations and adequate in accordance with the needs of industrial markets. Of the total area of Banten Province amounting to 966,292 Ha, the Area of Forest Area in Banten Province in 2017 according to the Decree of Partial Determination of Forest Areas is an area of 195,286.09 Ha. The purpose of this research is to provide a solution to the Banten Provincial Environment Agency regarding its role in overseeing and controlling the management of forest product resources to implement good environmental governance. The method used in this research is an empirical normative juridical approach, which is an approach that focuses on norms or norms, so that the problem will be assessed and analyzed by referring to the applicable laws and regulations relating to the problem of managing forest resources.

This study aimed to assess the levels of community awareness to the environmental effects of growing use of forest product for peoples’ livelihood and their management practices in Jimma Zone. Thus, local farming communities, Development Agents (DA), Agriculture and Natural resource, Forest and Environmental Protection Officials & Experts are the participant of this study. The study employed descriptive survey research design and both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collections were employed. To assess community environmental awareness survey questionnaire questions (both open and close ended) were distributed for 240 sample respondents. An interview with10 Key informant interviews were also conducted with the head of natural resource management offices of selected woredas and six development agents (DA) in sample selected kebeles and four focus group discussions (FDG) consisted of 10 members were also employed to collect qualitative data.The findings show that all the respondents aware of forest and natural resource degradation about (87%) and (75.4%) were aware of clearing of forest to expand farmland for growing population and cutting trees for fuel wood, charcoal and other forest productsrespectively. Only very few of the respondents were indicate that lack of community awareness to sustainable use and management of forest resource (44.5%)and lack of clear understanding of forest laws and regulation among the community (40.4%)as a cause of deforestation. Therefore, the assessment of community awareness to forest resource degradation survey result shows that all of the farmers in the study area have been aware of natural resource and environmental degradation. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that there is a need of modifying educational/training programs for local communities considering the existing knowledge and practices in a particular area.

Forest cover rate is the principal indice to reflect the forest acount of a nation and region. In view of the difficulty of accurately calculating large-scale forest area by traditional statistical survey methods, it is proposed to extract China forest area based on Google Earth Engine platform. Trained by the enough samples selected through the Google Earth software, there are nine different random forest classifiers applicable to their corresponding zones. Using Landsat 8 surface reflectance data of 2018 year and the modified forest partition map, China forest cover is generated on the Google Earth Engine platform. The accuracy of China's forest coverage achieves 89.08%, while the accuracy of Global Forest Change datasets of Maryland university and Japan’s ALOS Forest/Non-Forest forest product reach 87.78% and 84.57%. Besides, the precision of tropical/subtropical forest, temperate coniferous forest as well as nonforest region are 83.25%, 87.94% and 97.83%, higher than those of other’s accuracy. Our results show that by means of the random forest algorithm and enough samples, tropical and subtropical broadleaf forest, temperate coniferous forest and nonforest partition can be extracted more accurately. Through the computation of forest cover, our result shows that China has a area of 220.42 million hectare in 2018.

Rattan cane is an important forest product only second to timber and bamboo, with higher economic value and ecological benefits. Physical and mechanical properties are more important quality performance indexes, which are highly correlated with the processing and utilization of rattan cane. The present paper describes a study of main physical and mechanical properties in different heights of rattan cane for four rattan species, and also makes a comparison of property for Calamus simplicifolius grown in different sites. The relationship between species, cane position, density and mechanical properties of the rattan in China is also discussed. The results show that the physical and mechanical properties differ among four rattan species, and they follow irregular variation pattern with height. The physical–mechanical properties have no significant difference among species except modulus of elasticity, and the same as the different geographical areas. The basic density and mechanical properties gave a more moderate correlation with quadric equation. This result will provide basic data support for property modification and commercial utilization of rattan resources.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on forest product markets and the forest product industry, and has also seriously affected the sales of forest products. This research aimed to analyze people’s preference for wood furniture and make policy recommendations. We examined the impact of the pandemic on consumers’ preferences for wood furniture from the perspective of accounting. Taking the accounting data of wood furniture enterprises as the research object, through the translog revenue function, and using the relationship between revenue and consumption in economics, we found that the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced consumers’ preferences for wood furniture, but the decline in preference is smaller for wood furniture produced by extra-large furniture manufacturers. This study contributes to the literature and in view of our research results and the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, we provide policy suggestions for the related governmental agencies and wood furniture manufacturers, in this special environment, that can reduce the negative impact of a pandemic on the wood furniture industry.

The emerging risks and impacts of climate change and extreme weather events on forest ecosystems present significant threats to forest-based livelihoods. Understanding climate change and its consequences on forests and the livelihoods of forest-dependent communities could support forest-based strategies for responding to climate change. Using perception-based assessment principles, we assessed the effects of climate change and extreme weather events on forests and forest-based livelihood among the forest-dependent communities around the Mchinji and Phirilongwe Forest Reserves in the Mchinji and Mangochi districts in Malawi. Content analysis was used to analyze qualitative data. The impact of erratic rainfall, high temperatures, strong winds, flooding, and droughts was investigated using logistic regression models. The respondents perceived increasing erratic rainfall, high temperatures, strong winds, flooding, and droughts as key extreme climate events in their locality. These results varied significantly between the study sites (p &lt, 0.05). Erratic rainfall was perceived to pose extended effects on access to the forest in both Phirilongwe in Mangochi (43%) and Mchinji (61%). Climate change was found to be associated with reduced availability of firewood, thatch grasses, fruits and food, vegetables, mushrooms, and medicinal plants (p &lt, 0.05). Erratic rainfall and high temperatures were more likely perceived to cause reduced availability of essential forest products, and increased flooding and strong winds were less likely attributed to any effect on forest product availability. The study concludes that climate change and extreme weather events can affect the access and availability of forest products for livelihoods. Locally based approaches such as forest products domestication are recommended to address threats to climate-sensitive forest-based livelihoods.

A typical case of multiple-use forest management (MFM) in Southwestern Amazon is the commercial harvesting of Amazon or Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa) seeds and of timber of other tree species. Although the Amazon nut is the most important non-timber forest product (NTFP) in the Amazon basin, the species is under serious threat due to deforestation and may also be affected by overharvesting. However, selective logging of other tree species coexisting with Bertholletia may positively affect Bertholletia populations, thus enabling a special case for MFM. For this research, we investigated the impact of the intensity of Amazon nut harvesting and timber logging on Bertholletia populations in the Bolivian Amazon. We used demographic data from 72 two-hectare transects located within 24 community-based household forests varying in the intensity of nut collection (0–100%) and timber logging (0–15% of logging-disturbed forest area). Simulated Bertholletia population size increased with logging intensity but decreased with Amazon nut harvesting intensity. Bertholletia populations were projected to grow at the average MFM harvesting scenario tested: 57.4% of nut harvesting, 5.3% of logging-disturbed area (λ100 = 1.011). Our simulations also revealed that up to 89% of Amazon nut seeds can be harvested while sustaining Bertholletia populations, under 15% of logging-disturbed area, and applying liana cutting. Modest levels of timber logging and application of liana cutting may compensate for the negative effect of Amazon nut collection on Bertholletia populations for the next century. Our study demonstrates that Amazon nut and timber production could be combined in a sustainable MFM scheme, thus increasing the economic value of managed tropical forests and its promotion to reduce the increasing pressure by deforestation.

This manuscript confirms the feasibility of using a long short-term memory (LSTM) recurrent neural network (RNN) to forecast lumber stock prices during the great and Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic recessions in the USA. The database was composed of 5012 data entries divided into recession periods. We applied a timeseries cross-validation that divided the dataset into an 80:20 training/validation ratio. The network contained five LSTM layers with 50 units each followed by a dense output layer. We evaluated the performance of the network via mean squared error (MSE), root mean squared error (RMSE), and mean absolute error (MAE) for 30, 60, and 120 timesteps and the recession periods. The metrics results indicated that the network was able to capture the trend for both recession periods with a remarkably low degree of error. Timeseries forecasting may help the forest and forest product industries to manage their inventory, transportation costs, and response readiness to critical economic events.

Forests and the forest products industry contribute to climate change mitigation by sequestering carbon from the atmosphere and storing it in biomass, and by fabricating products that substitute other, more greenhouse-gas-emission-intensive materials and energy. This study investigates primary wood-working industries (panel, furniture, pulp and paper) in order to determine the development of carbon emissions in China during the last two decades. The input–output approach is used and the factors driving the changes in CO2 emissions are analyzed by Index Decomposition Analysis–Log Mean Divisia Index (LMDI). The results show that carbon emissions in forest product industries have been declining during the last twenty years and that the driving factor of this change is the energy intensity of production and economic input, which have changed dramatically.

The development of economic forestry industry is an important support in the process of rural revitalization strategy and precise poverty alleviation, as well as enrichment of the people. As the market of economic forestry products is close to a perfectly competitive market, brand effect is crucial under homogeneous competition, and economic forestry product enterprises and other business entities need to win and maintain sustainable competitive advantages through brand management. Currently, in the field of economic forest, products such as Chinese wolfberry, jujube, blueberry, fungus, walnut, tephrosia, hazelnut, and chestnut and forest foods and product brands with certain market recognition have emerged, but for most small- and medium-sized economic forest product enterprises, forest product brand cultivation and construction are still in the initial stage. Under the rapid development of the Internet, different types of Internet platforms, which provide new tools and possibilities for branding, the way of corporate brand marketing, and customer management services, have also undergone significant changes. In the market with serious homogenization and increasingly fierce competition, how to establish brand-consumer connection through the Internet platform, strengthen the intensity of consumer participation and connection to the brand, give play to the brand effect, and enhance the brand value in the long term, so as to obtain a new way to win a sustainable competitive advantage, has become an important proposition for all kinds of enterprises, including economic forest product enterprises. Combining the competitive characteristics of economic forestry products and the development of the Internet, the model of brand value enhancement of economic forestry products based on virtual brand communities is constructed. The model takes the experience value obtained by consumers in the virtual brand community as the antecedent and studies the path relationship from experience value, community identity, brand fit, and consumer brand value creation to brand value in four dimensions, utilitarian experience value, emotional experience value, social experience value, and learning experience value, and takes community integration and community support feeling as the moderating variables.

1. Forest landscape restoration (FLR) has gained momentum globally and guidance is needed to identify those species, sites and planting methods that increase restoration success. Incorporating native Non-Timber Forest Product (NTFP) species in FLR approaches provides an opportunity to simultaneously deliver ecological and economic benefits. The Brazil nut tree is one of the most valuable Amazonian NTFP species and could fulfil a cornerstone role in Amazon FLR. However, the factors defining establishment success within Brazil nut restoration activities remain unknown. 2. Here, we evaluate the effect of management practices, restoration site (pastures, agroforestry, secondary forest and canopy gaps in old growth forest) and environmental conditions on the establishment success (tree growth, survival and fruit production) of Brazil nut restoration projects implemented by smallholders in the Peruvian Amazon. We performed a field study at 25 restoration sites of 1–38 years in age, where we conducted measurements on 481 trees and interviewed 21 smallholders. We used mixed effect models to identify drivers of performance. 3. Twenty years after planting, diameter growth in secondary forests was 38%, 34%, and 24% higher than in canopy gaps, pastures, and agroforestry sites, respectively. Survival rate was similar for trees planted in pastures and secondary forests, but 15–20% higher there than trees planted in agroforestry sites, and 7–12% higher than in canopy gaps. Fruit production was 262% higher for reproductive trees in secondary forest sites compared to pastures, but production probability did not differ between restoration sites. These results show that secondary forests are the most suitable sites for planting Brazil nut trees. 4. In addition to restoration site effects, we also found significant effects of management practices. Survival rate increased with application of fire for clearing and weeding and economic investments and decreased with potentially inefficient herbivore protection. Fruit production was lower for trees planted further away from smallholders’ homes. These results show that smallholders’ management has a substantial effect on establishment success. 5. Our findings suggest a significant importance of post-planting maintenance of trees to increase success of FLR projects. Further, our study shows that evaluation of past restoration activities can guide future forest restoration in tropical landscapes., Forest Ecology and Management, 498, ISSN:0378-1127, ISSN:1872-7042

The forest-based sector plays diverse roles among the emerging bio-based industries. The goal of this study is to examine how forest product markets could develop in the face of a growing bioeconomy and which interdependencies occur between traditional and emerging forest-based sectors. Therefore, we analyze the development of dissolving pulp together with lignocellulose-based textile fibres and chemical derivatives in a partial equilibrium model. For this purpose, we extend the product structure of the Global Forest Products Model (GFPM) and analyze three different bioeconomy scenarios from 2015 to 2050. The simulation results show that, in a scenario where the world is changing toward a sustainable bio-economy, wood consumption patterns shift away from fuelwood (&minus, 30% by 2050) and classical paper products (&minus, 32% by 2050) towards emerging wood-based products. In this context, the dissolving pulp subsector could outpace the continuously shrinking paper pulp subsector by 2050. To develop in this way, the dissolving pulp subsector mainly uses released resources from the decreasing paper pulp production. Simultaneously, wood-based panels are finding increasing application (+196% by 2050) and thus are taking over potential markets for sawn wood, for which production growth remains limited. Our results also show that, until 2050, the production of many wood-based products will take place mainly in Asia instead of North America and Europe.

Fast-growing Eucalyptus spp. forest plantations and their resultant wood products are economically important and may provide a low-cost means to sequester carbon for greenhouse gas reduction. The development of advanced and optimized frameworks for estimating forest plantation attributes from lidar remote sensing data combined with statistical modeling approaches is a step towards forest inventory operationalization and might improve industry e ciency in monitoring and managing forest resources. In this study, we first developed and tested a framework for modeling individual tree attributes in fast-growing Eucalyptus forest plantation using airborne lidar data and linear mixed-e ect models (LME) and assessed the gain in accuracy compared to a conventional linear fixed-e ects model (LFE). Second, we evaluated the potential of using the tree-level estimates for determining tree attribute uniformity across di erent stand ages. In the field, tree measurements, such as tree geolocation, species, genotype, age, height (Ht), and diameter at breast height (dbh) were collected through conventional forest inventory practices, and tree-level aboveground carbon (AGC) was estimated using allometric equations. Individual trees were detected and delineated from lidar-derived canopy height models (CHM), and crown-level metrics (e.g., crown volume and crown projected area) were computed from the lidar 3-D point cloud. Field and lidar-derived crown metrics were combined for ht, dbh, and AGC modeling using an LME. We fitted a varying intercept and slope model, setting species, genotype, and stand (alone and nested) as random e ects. For comparison, we also modeled the same attributes using a conventional LFE model. The tree attribute estimates derived from the best LME model were used for assessing forest uniformity at the tree level using the Lorenz curves and Gini coe cient (GC).We successfully detected 96.6% of the trees from the lidar-derived CHM. The best LME model for estimating the tree attributes was composed of the stand as a random e ect variable, and canopy height, crown volume, and crown projected area as fixed e ects. The %RMSE values for tree-level height, dbh, and AGC were 8.9%, 12.1%, and 23.7% for the LFE model and improved to 7.3%, 7.1%, and 13.6%, respectively, for the LME model. Tree attributes uniformity was assessed with the Lorenz curves and tree-level estimations, especially for the older stands. All stands showed a high level of tree uniformity with GC values approximately 0.2. This study demonstrates that accurate detection of individual trees and their associated crown metrics can be used to estimate Ht, dbh, and AGC stocks as well as forest uniformity in fast-growing Eucalyptus plantations forests using lidar data as inputs to LME models. This further underscores the high potential of our proposed approach to monitor standing stock and growth in Eucalyptus—and similar forest plantations for carbon dynamics and forest product planning info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Bilberries (Vaccinium myrtillus L.), raspberries (Rubus idaeus L.), blackberries (Rubus fruticosus L.) and cowberries (Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.) are the most important forest berries collected in the Czech Republic (CZ). The average annual value of these collected berry species is estimated to be worth more than EUR 86 million at 2018 prices. The data concerning the collection and use of forest fruits have been systematically collected in a highly detailed structure since 2008, which enables the application of the advanced statistical methods used in this paper. The results of the analyses inter alia demonstrate that collecting forest berries is not only an important recreational activity, but it has an important economic effect. Therefore, this article also deals with the collection of forest fruits, especially bilberries, as a potentially important non-wood forest product (NWFP) for sustainable forest management and also analyses the external factors influencing the total annual amount of collected forest berries. A deeper knowledge of the customer and his or her behaviour&mdash, customer insight&mdash, are prerequisites for the proactive management of forest ecosystems. The first step to &ldquo, berry picker insight&rdquo, is to learn more about the demand, its structure and factors which influence this demand. Thus, one of the research questions concentrates on the analysis of the sociodemographic characteristics of the berry picker that are relevant for explaining the amount of collected forest berries in the Czech Republic. Knowledge of these factors can contribute to a more effective application of marketing methods for shaping and influencing the demand so that, in terms of time and place, it is more in line with the supply, which is limited by the natural conditions, growing season and production potential of forest ecosystems.

The Eastern Cape Province harbours 46% of South Africa’s remaining indigenous forest cover, and is one of the country’s poorest and least developed provinces. Forest resources thus represent a vital component of rural livelihoods in this region. Consequently, forest management policies aim to balance the needs of resource users with the ecological integrity of forest ecosystems. In a recent study, forest bird ranges were shown to have declined in the Eastern Cape over the past 20 years, despite increases in forest cover over the same time period, indicating that habitat degradation may be driving forest bird losses. Given that harvesting of forest products represents the primary human disturbance in forests in the Eastern Cape today, insight is needed regarding the link between resource use and habitat modification. We report on effects of harvesting of three key forest products – poles, timber and medicinal bark – on habitat structure at the ground, understorey and canopy layers in indigenous forests in the province. Harvest activities had considerable impacts on habitat structure, depending on the nature and extent of harvesting. Bark and timber harvesting resulted in canopy gaps, whereas pole harvesting reduced tree density, resulting in understorey gaps. Overall, harvest activities increased the frequency of canopy disturbance, and density of understorey layer foliage. Unsustainable bark harvesting practices increased the mortality rate of canopy trees, thereby increasing dead wood availability. By providing insight into human-mediated habitat modification in forests of the Eastern Cape, this study contributes to the development of ecologically informed sustainable resource management policies. Significance: Unregulated harvesting of forest products in state-managed indigenous forests of the Eastern Cape results in habitat modification. The nature and extent of habitat modification is dependent on the type and intensity of resource use, indicating that resource use may be sustainably managed. Timber and medicinal bark harvesting activities result in canopy disturbances, thereby altering natural canopy gap dynamics, with concomitant impacts on understorey habitat structure. Changes in forest habitat structure associated with high levels of resource use are likely to have ramifying effects on forest biodiversity.

Pine straw, the uppermost forest floor layer of undecayed, reddish-brown pine needles, is raked, baled, and sold as a landscaping mulch throughout the southeastern United States. Loblolly (Pinus taeda, L.), longleaf (P. palustris, Mill.), and slash (P. elliottii Engelm. var. elliottii) pine are the three southern pine species commonly raked for pine straw. The value of pine straw as a forest product is large. Private landowner pine straw revenues have steadily increased throughout the southeastern United States over the past two decades and now total more than USD 200 million. Information is limited on the short- or long-term effects of pine straw removal on foliage production or stand growth in southern pine stands. Results from most published studies suggest that annual pine straw raking without fertilization on non-old-field sites reduces straw yields compared to no raking. Old-field sites often do not benefit from fertilization with increased pine straw or wood volume yields. Though fertilization may be beneficial for pine straw production on some sites, understory vegetation presence and disease prevalence may increase following fertilization. This review addresses pine straw removal effects on pine straw production and stand growth parameters based on recent studies and provides fertilization recommendations to maintain or improve pine straw production and stand growth and yield.

This paper sheds light on the state of our knowledge of relationships between plant diversity and tropical forests ecosystem services. We systematically reviewed the empirical evidence of relationships between three ecosystem services: carbon stock and sequestration, timber provisioning and non-timber forest product (NTFP) provisioning, and three dimensions of plant diversity: taxonomic, functional and structural. We carried out meta-analyses to assess their validity across spatial scales and plot sizes. We found that indicators of all three dimensions of plant diversity have reported relationships with at least two of the studied ecosystem services, but there has been limited and inconsistent use of plant diversity indicators and little attention for relationships with timber and NTFP services. Nevertheless, we found that tree species richness showed robust significant positive correlations with carbon stock across the tropics, and that the geographical extent of the study area had a significant negative effect on the strength of this relationship, where the strength of the relationship decreased with increasing geographical extent. This paper reveals a knowledge gap for services other than carbon stock and shows that at local to regional spatial scales, synergies can be achieved between policies focused on biodiversity conservation and maintenance of carbon stocks.

The increasing rate of land use intensification and the rising evidence of climate change impacts raise concerns about the viability of valued non-timber forest product (NTFP)-providing trees. This calls for the assessment of the current status and future trajectories of their populations. Using population data collected from three land-use types (e.g., grazing lands, riverine areas and natural forest) in western Tigray, we evaluated the vulnerability of the multipurpose baobab tree (Adansonia digitata L.) to human disturbances and climate change. The study was based on the premises that integrating ecological science with modeling tools and local knowledge would enhance the overall effectiveness of conservation strategies and community support. Therefore, based on field-based inventory, ecological niche modeling and a socioeconomic study, we characterized and mapped baobab current and future population distribution and documented local knowledge on the uses and management of the species. The characterization of the population structure showed that baobab stands were denser with larger-sized and taller trees in riverine areas and natural forest compared to grazing lands, suggesting adverse effects of human disturbances on its populations. Moreover, positively skewed size-class distributions with negative slopes in all land-use types indicated a low recruitment of juvenile trees to the adult stage. Climate change simulations using Maximum Entropy Algorithm (Maxent) revealed that future temperature increases would lead to significant reductions (41–100%) in baobab suitable habitats due to range contraction. The intensive harvesting of baobab leaves, branches and bark and lack of conversation practices as indicated by local communities, in combination with the risk of local extinction under future climate warming constitute serious threats for the viability of the species in western Tigray. The results suggest immediate interventions, such as planting baobab at up to 65 m higher in altitude, designing appropriate leaf and bark harvest strategies and protecting seedlings from livestock, will help guarantee the persistence of the species populations.

Mursidah, Lahjie AM, Masjaya, Rayadin Y, Ruslim Y. 2020. The ecology, productivity and economic of swiftlet (Aerodramus fuciphagus) farming in Kota Bangun, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 21: 3117-3126. Swiftlet nest is a high-value non-timber forest product produced from the saliva of swiftlet birds. While the demands for this commodity continue to increase in global market, careless harvesting techniques have diminished the swiftlet population and the production of swiftlet nests, threatening its sustainability. One effort to solve this problem is by developing swiftlet farming which involves building swiftlet. This research aimed to analyze the ecology, productivity, and financial feasibility of swiftlet farming of different-sized swiftlet houses in Kota Bangun Subdistrict, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. This research used qualitative and quantitative analysis methods. Data were collected using purposive sampling to determine the location, sample of swiftlet houses, and interviews with respondents. Quantitative analysis on the financial performance of swiftlet farming was analyzed using the net Benefit-Cost Ratio (net B/C), Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR) and Payback Period (PP) methods. The results showed that swiftlet nest production in Kota Bangun begins in the third year and ends between 27 and 45 years later, depending on the age and size of the house as well as the quality of the timber. The swiftlet house with a size of ​​512 m2 had the net B/C of 4.06, NPV of IDR 1,403.79 million, IRR of 30%, and PP of 5.44 years. The swiftlet house with a size of ​​1,600 m2 had the net B/C of 2.27, NPV of IDR 1,774.83 million, IRR of 24.09%, and PP of 9.4 years. Our study suggests that swiftlet farming is financially highly feasible, especially for the swiftlet house with a size of 512 m2.

China&rsquo, s collective forestland tenure reform has dramatically affected the business environment of domestic forest product firms. This study examines the impact of the said reform on the expected values of these firms, via the reaction of investors (as seen on the stock markets) towards the issuance of related policies. Based on signaling theory and the assumption that the Chinese stock markets are efficient in terms of work form, this study adopts an event study method and examines five policies during the 2003&ndash, 2009 period. The numbers of forest product firms used in the examinations herein differ among the policies and range from 21 to 29. This study found that the policies have differentially affected the expected values of forest product firms and that the impact on firms lacking forestland holdings is generally more significant than that on firms that hold forestland. The findings of this study enhance our understanding of the effect of collective forestland tenure reform on the value of forest product firms, they also have implications on forest product firms as they work to adapt to the reform.

Eastern deciduous forests in the United States have supplied marketable non-timber forest products (NTFP) since the 18th century. However, trade is still largely informal, and the market scope and structure are not well understood. One exception is American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.). Ginseng’s legal status as a threatened species requires that buyers apply for a license and keep sales records that are submitted to a state authority. Other marketable medicinal plants collected from the same forests, known colloquially as ‘off-roots’, are not similarly tracked. To study the characteristics of off-root trade in the eastern deciduous forests of the United States, registered ginseng buyers in 15 eastern states were surveyed in 2015 and 2016 about business attributes, purchase volume, and harvest distribution for 15 off-root species selected for their economic and conservation value. Buyers voluntarily reported harvesting 47 additional NTFP species. The most frequently purchased off-root species were the roots and rhizomes of two perennial understory plants: black cohosh (Actaea racemosa L.) and goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis L.). Survey data were used to develop a buyer typology and describe the off-root market structure and material sourcing. The buyer typology included four distinct categories: side or specialty (small), seasonal venture (medium), large integrated or dedicated business (large), and dedicated bulk enterprise (regional aggregator). Market activity was mapped across the study area, demonstrating that most off-root trade is concentrated in central Appalachia, an area with extensive forests and a struggling economy. Study methods and data improve non-timber forest product market insights, are useful for forest management, and can support efforts to advance sustainable NTFP supply chains.

The gravity model of trade is one of the most common approaches in modern econometrics. In its basic form, the model assumes that income and distance between two partners most likely play a major role in the occurrence of trade. Despite the long history of the gravity model and its high, universal explanatory potential, its application for the forest sector is not broad and refers only to the traditional definition of the gravity approach. However, this traditional approach is not able to explain all aspects of trade at a disaggregated sector level. Consequently, the present study aims to close this research gap and reveal influencing factors for the appearance and the intensity of forest product trade by applying the structural gravity approach. This is done via linear and non-linear estimation methods for the forest sector on the whole and for thirteen forest products in detail. Three major results were found: first, the traditional gravity approach overestimates the impact of the overall income on forest sector trade. Second, the appearance of wood market trade is not always influenced by the same factors as the quantity traded. Third, with increasing processing level, determinants of forest product trade seem to be influenced by different factors.

The volume, value and distribution of the nontimber forest product (NTFP) trade in the United States are largely unknown. This is due to the lack of systematic, periodic and comprehensive market tracking programs. Trade measurement and mapping would allow market actors and stakeholders to improve market conditions, manage NTFP resources, and increase the sustainable production of raw material. This is especially true in the heavily forested and mountainous regions of the eastern United States. This study hypothesized that the tendency to purchase medicinal NTFPs in this region can be predicted using socioeconomic and environmental variables associated with habitat and trade, and those same variables can be used to build more robust estimates of trade volume. American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) dealers were surveyed (n = 700), because by law they must acquire a license to legally trade in this species, and therefore report a business address. They also record purchase data. Similar data are not reported for other medicinal species sold to the same buyers, known colloquially as &lsquo, off-roots&rsquo, Ginseng buyers were queried about trade activity in eleven commonly-harvested and previously untracked medicinal NTFP species in 15 states. Multinomial logistic regression comprised of socioeconomic and environmental predictors tied to business location was used to determine the probability that a respondent purchased off-roots. Significant predictors included location in a particular subregion, population and percentage of employment in related industries. These variables were used in a two-step cluster analysis to group respondents and nonrespondents. Modeled probabilities for off-root purchasing among respondents in each cluster were used to impute average off-root volumes for a proportion of nonrespondents in the same cluster. Respondent observations and nonrespondent estimations were summed and used to map off-root trade volume and value. Model functionality and estimates of the total volume, value and spatial distribution are discussed. The total value of the species surveyed to harvesters was 4.3 million USD. We also find that 77 percent of the trade value and 73 percent of the trade volume were represented by two species: black cohosh (Actaea racemosa L.) and goldenseal (Hydrastis canqdensis L.)

In forestry applications in Turkey, forest enterprise depots (FEDs) are permanent main places where forest products such as logs and round timbers are stored and presented for sale to the market. The principal functions of FEDs are receiving, classifying, protecting, preparing the forest products for the sales and tracking the stock movements. According to Communiqué No 288 on the Production of Fundamental Forest Products published by General Directorate of Forestry in Turkey, it is obligatory to conduct stocktaking twice a year in FEDs for tracking and controlling the stock movements. The capabilities of using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in tracking stock movements in FEDs have not been extensively studied yet in the current literature. This study aimed to test UAVs in determining volume of round timber storages inside a FED named "Göl", located in Gölyaka District (Düzce, Turkey). A UAV flight was conducted and volume of round timber storage was calculated from point cloud, and compared to stock records for validation of UAV-based measurements. It was found that UAV-based volume measurements of the stock were quite compatible with available stock records. This study concluded that UAVs could be used in tracking stock movements in FEDs in an effective way.

Timber Legality Assurance System or Sistem Verifikasi Legalitas Kayu (SVLK) is implemented and recognized as a certification for timber products exported from Indonesia. SVLK applied to all the forest product chains included the smallholder Forest Management Unit (FMU). It has been a particular concern to smallholder FMU on achieving the compliance of SVLK at least at two points: 1) the capability and knowledge for the technical process; and 2) the challenges to meet the certification cost. Researches have been done on the capability, challenges and opportunity, cost and benefit, strategies, and how the absence of smallholders FMU certification on supply chain affected timber product legality uncertainty. Meanwhile, a concern on smallholder FMU’s willingness to pay (WTP) certification as one of the main constraints of SVLK implementation is still unseen. A case study in KTH Enggal Mulyo Lestari aims to reveal the actual willingness to pay to fulfill the SVLK certification cost. Research conducted by Focus Group Discussion followed by a questionnaire. This study’s findings illustrate that the WTP of smallholders FMU is still under the certification costs minimum standard stipulated on regulation. Some partnerships with the wood industries, local government and non-government organizations are suggested in this article.

Aim of study: This study explores the adoption of information and communications technologies (ICTs) and current and potential ICT use in forest products industry. Based on the perceptions of the respondents, the paper investigates the underlying factors affecting the adoption of ICT. Area of study: Case study is conducted in Düzce province where nearly all types of forest product enterprises are conducting business operates. Material and method: Face-to-face interviews were conducted with owners and/or engineers of forest products companies. A questionnaire was developed with three main sections, including 20 questions and 81 judgments. Data on the study parameters were coded and analyzed using SPSS software.Main results: The three major constructs of these factors, based on the purposes of ICT use, were identified as business productivity, information exchange and customer communications. Increased access to current industry news was the principle benefit expected by the respondents from the Internet use, followed closely by enhancement of the company image and facilitation of banking transactions. According to the study, information and communications applications were more common than e-business and e-commerce use in the forest products industry. Research highlights: The forest products industry should plan to develop and implement ICT strategies focusing on increased business productivity, competitiveness and profits, in addition to efficient customer and supplier communications and expanded markets., Çalışmanın amacı: Bu çalışma, orman ürünleri endüstrisinde bilgi ve iletişim teknolojilerinin (BİT) benimsenme düzeyi ile mevcut ve potansiyel kullanımını incelemektedir. Makalede katılımcıların algılarına dayanarak, BİT'in benimsenmesini etkileyen temel faktörleri araştırılmaktadır. Çalışma alanı: Vaka çalışması, hemen hemen her türlü orman ürünü işletmesinin faaliyet gösterdiği Düzce ilinde gerçekleştirilmiştir.Materyal ve yöntem: Sahipler ve/veya mühendislerle yüz yüze görüşme yapıldı. 20 soru ve 81 yargı içeren üç ana bölümden oluşan bir anket formu geliştirilmiştir. Çalışma parametreleriyle ilgili veriler SPSS yazılımı kullanılarak kodlanmış ve analiz edilmiştir.Temel sonuçlar: BİT kullanım amaçlarına göre; işletme verimliliği, bilgi alışverişi ve müşteri iletişimi olarak tanımlanan üç faktörlü yapı belirlenmiştir. Katılımcıların internetten beklediği temel fayda mevcut endüstri haberlerine erişimin artması olup, ardından şirket imajının iyileştirilmesi ve bankacılık işlemlerinin kolaylaştırılması faydaları gelmektedir. Çalışmada, orman ürünleri endüstrisinde bilgi ve iletişim uygulamalarının, e-işletme ve e-ticaret kullanımından daha yaygın olduğu belirlenmiştir. Araştırma vurguları: Orman ürünleri endüstrisi, etken müşteri ve tedarikçi iletişimi ile genişleyen pazarlara ilaveten, daha yüksek işletme verimliliği, rekabet gücü ve kârlara odaklanan BİT stratejileri geliştirmeli ve uygulamalıdır.

The wide extension area occupied by babassu palm (Atallea speciosa Mart. Ex Spreng) is usually considered as an important obstacle for agricultural activities, such as crop production and pasture maintenance in Brazil. This study aimed to evaluate the non-wood forest product use and income generated in an Integrated Crop-Livestock-Forestry (ICLF) system using babassu palm as the main forestry component in a rural area of Pindaré-Mirim, a municipality of Maranhão state, in the Amazon Eastern Region, Brazil. In order to rise a well-balanced agroforestry system in numerous rural areas of the country, three main questions were addressed in this study: 1) What is the production of babassu fruits in the system? 2) Is the babassu extractivism income economically suitable for traditional communities of women babassu breakers? 3) Which commercialization scenario of NWFP could generate more income? Data on phenology and fruit production, processing of all fruit components, and commercialization of babassu products were collected in two 12-month seasons of palm production (2017/2018 and 2018/2019). The mean fruit production reached 2,345.49 kg ha-1 season-1, resulting in an estimate of income generation ranging from R$ 8,206.96 ha-1 season-1 to R$ 36,628.54 ha-1 season-1, depending on the commercialization scenario. These numbers were compared to the statewide monthly income per household of R$ 605.00 and to the per capita monthly income of 54% of the municipality of less than R$ 499.00. The real field data and the estimates for two seasons of using babassu palm, as the innovative forestry component in ICLF system, demonstrated that babassu NWFP could generate substantial income for the surrounding user communities. Such innovative agricultural system may contribute to change people understanding, diversifying agrarian production, improving the socioeconomic household welfare, and reducing the long-term conflicts between livestock activities and babassu palm existence in Brazil. Made available in DSpace on 2020-10-08T09:14:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ILPF.pdf: 780417 bytes, checksum: 7a8994fb85cecef33c7f6cbfd600d281 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2020

This work analyzes the effect of forest on the economy of Central African Republic, using the data from secondary source within the period of 1970-2015. The study employed error correction model (ECM) as econometric methodology to estimate the co-integration relationship among economic growth, agriculture value added, forest rent (in percentage of GDP) and forest product variables ( logs, roundwood, wood fuel and sawnwood), it also estimates long run and short run relationship between variables. Augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) unit root test were employed. The result shows that forests play an important role in the world’s economy; they support both the economic growth and the ecosystem protection. The co-integration relationship result (using Engel-Granger) shows economic growth forest products variables (logs, roundwood, wood fuel and sawnwood) and other variables included in the model were co-integrated and therefore long run relationship exist among them. Testing the short run relationship shows the existence of short run relation between variables. The long run model shows logs production which the main exportable wood product in CAR having a positive and significant effect on the economy but we noticed that the affectation percentage is to low (0.08% change to GDP). This is due to the lack of control or traceability of the product and the luck of strong institutions (corruption) in the forestry sector.