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This study compares the responses of two Swedish 5-year predictive stand-level functions with the observed responses in 721 fertilization experiment plots in Norway fertilized with nitrogen (N). All plots are single-species consisting of Norway spruce ((L.) H. Karst.)or Scots pine ( L.) fertilized with ammonium nitrate (AN) or urea. The correlations between the observed and the two predicted responses were 0.34â0.40 for all plots taken together. One response function performed well on average, but underestimated the response in pine plots and overestimated the response in spruce plots. The second function overpredicted the response on the full dataset, in spruce plots and old forest, but performed well in pine plots. Both functions overestimated the growth response in high-productive plots. Higher N deposition in Norway than in Sweden may count for parts of the deviations. Testing of fertilization functions on new datasets is rare, but important part of the evaluation of functions. As the functions are not well fit for predicting the growth response in spruce and high-productive plots in our sample, new functions that include N deposition are welcome.Picea abies Pinus sylvestris

In this paper, we analyse how optimal forest management of even aged Norway spruce changes when economic values are placed on carbon fixation, release, and saved greenhouse gas emissions from using wood instead of more energy intensive materials or fossil fuels. The analyses are done for three different site qualities in Norway, assuming present climate and with a range of CO prices and real rates of return. Compared to current recommended management, the optimal number of plants per ha and harvest age are considerably higher when carbon benefits are included, and increase with increasing price on CO. Furthermore, planting becomes more favourable compared to natural regeneration. At the medium site quality, assuming 2% p.a. real rate of return and 20 euros per ton CO, optimal planting density increases from 1500 per ha to 3000 per ha. Optimal harvest age increases from 90 to 140 years. Including saved greenhouse gas emissions when wood is used instead of more energy intensive materials or fossil fuels, i.e. substitution effects, does not affect optimal planting density much, but implies harvesting up to 20 years earlier. The value of the forest area increases with increasing price on CO, and most of the income is from carbon. By using the current recommended management in calculations of carbon benefit, our results indicate that the forestâs potential to provide this environmental good is underestimated. The study includes many uncertain factors. Highest uncertainty is related to the accuracy of the forest growth and mortality functions at high stand ages and densities, and that albedo effects and future climate changes are not considered. As such, the results should be viewed as exploratory and not normative.2222

Several international policy processes with sustainable forest management (SFM) as a common goal have emerged during the past two decades. Based on an empirical study from Norway, this paper analyses the role of subjective judgments in assessing national compliance with three international forest policy processes, and the implications for determination of the effects of these processes. The Expanded Programme of Work on Forest Biological Diversity, the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe and the United Nations Forum on Forests, including its predecessors, collectively provide more than 600 recommendations for SFM. While it is nothing new that SFM encompasses value questions, this paper is a systematic review of where in a process of assessing national compliance the role of judgments is most profound. The paper shows that the multiple objectives of the forest recommendations, references to national circumstances and provisions for stakeholder involvement lead to differing opinions about the degree of conformity between international recommendations and national situation, i.e. compliance. These differing opinions mean different prospects for the international processes to have effects, because only implementation, or active responses to international recommendations, constitutes effects. The roles of judgments and values are recommended topics for further investigation. Factors influencing how compliance is assessed, and consequently the degree to which implementation is deemed necessary, require specific attention. Due consideration to substantive and methodological choices in determining national changes and in separation of other sources of influence will provide a better basis for informed discussion of compliance with and effects of international forest-related policy processes.

New and ambitious targets for renewable energy production put attention to increased supply of biomass. Harvest residues are only to a limited extent demanded by the traditional forest industries and represent an unutilized resource for increased production of renewable energy in Norway. The overall objective of this paper is to study how GIS and forest modelling can be combined to improve estimates of the supply of harvest residues, taking different environmental and economic constraints into consideration. The analyses are based on a case study of a forest area of more than 40 000 ha in Southern Norway divided into about 500 private forest properties. The study was carried out by computations of timber harvest using the forestry scenario model SGIS based on extensive forest inventory data at stand level. In the studied area energy utilization of harvest residues is not profitable below an energy price of about EUR 3.2/GJ (NOK 0.10 /kWh) when the distance from roadside to industry is 20 km. Above this level supply increases rapidly over a rather narrow price range and is nearly inelastic above EUR 4.1/GJ (NOK 0.12/kWh). We did not find significant negative shifts in the residues supply caused by changes in location of roundwood harvest over time. Exclusion of collection from stands with a site index (H) below 14 reduced the potential supply of residues by 16â27%. The optimisation method combined selection of exogenous variables in order to map observed harvesting level and is probably the best approach to map future harvest.40

The usefulness of forest sector models in forest policy analysis is discussed, mainly based on experiences from Norway. Forest sector modelling is contrasted to two alternative approaches: (i) Intuitive, verbal analysis, and (ii) econometric models. It is concluded that forest sector models, properly developed in contact with the policy makers, should be of considerable value in forest policy analysis.

Increased harvest is high on the forestry and climate policy agenda in several countries. By carrying out a national-wide survey of forest owners, we explored to what extent private non-industrial forest owners in Norway are willing to increase harvest due to elevated hypothetical prices. The results indicate that owners who have not harvested timber for sale in the last 15 years do not respond to large price shifts. Instead, ownership objectives and knowledge of a key policy instrument predict willingness to enter the timber market among these owners. The willingness among owners who have sold timber the last 15 years depends on these factors, in addition to price, forest area, income, and gender. Female owners were significantly less willing than male owners to increase harvest. Once the decision to harvest was taken, the stated timber supply volume per area unit decreases with productive forest area among both active and inactive owners. With regard to sources of information, owners who have not harvested timber the last 15 years use the information sources to a lesser extent than other owners do. Forest policies and extension services should acknowledge that for stimulating forest owners outside the timber market to supply wood, factors other than price are important and that alternative information pathways should be explored for reaching these owners. Key words: roundwood supply, timber supply, Scandinavia, boreal forests, wood mobilization, family forest owners, information sources. L'augmentation de la recolte est en tete de liste de l'agenda politique de plusieurs pays en matiere de foresterie et de climat. Grace a un sondage national aupres des proprietaries forestiers, nous avons cherche a comprendre quel interet les proprietaries forestiers prives non industriels norvegiens auraient a recolter davantage de bois en raison d'une augmentation hypothetique des prix. Les resultats demontrent que les proprietaires n'ayant pas recolte de bois a des fins lucratives au cours des 15 dernieres annees ne sont pas influences par d'importants changements de prix. L'interet de ces proprietaires a entrer sur le marche du bois serait plutot predit par les objectifs de leur propriete et la connaissance d'un instrument politique cle. Parmi les proprietaires ayant vendu du bois au cours des 15 dernieres annees, l'interet depend de ces facteurs, en plus du prix, de la superficie de leur foret, de leurs revenus et de leur sexe. Les proprietaires de sexe feminin etaient significativement moins interessees a accroitre leur niveau de recolte que les proprietaires de sexe masculin. Une fois que la decision de recolter a ete prise, le volume d'approvisionnement declare par unite de surface diminue avec la superficie de foret productive tant parmi les proprietaires actifs qu'inactifs. En ce qui concerne les sources d'information, les proprietaires qui n'ont pas recolte de bois au cours des 15 dernieres annees utilisent moins les sources d'information que les autres proprietaires. Les politiques forestieres et les services d'assistance technique et de vulgarisation devraient reconnaitre que d'autres facteurs que le prix sont importants pour stimuler les proprietaires forestiers hors du marche a fournir du bois et que des voies alternatives d'information devraient etre explorees pour atteindre ces proprietaires. [Traduit par la Redaction] Mots-cles: approvisionnement en bois rond, approvisionnement en bois, Scandinavie, forets boreales, mobilisation du bois, proprietaires de forets familiales, sources d'information., Introduction Wood mobilization is high on the policy agenda in the European Union (European Commission 2012) and Norway (Norwegian Ministry of Food and Agriculture 2011) for meeting socioeconomic and climate-change [...]

: Forests are important contributors to the global carbon cycle and mitigate climate change through carbon sequestration and the supply of wood that substitutes for fossil fuels and greenhouse gas (GHG)-intensive building materials. However, current climate policies only partially credit forest carbon sequestration and bioenergy policies are handled independently of forestry. Using Norway as a case study, we analyze two sets of simulated carbon tax/subsidy policies, one crediting forest carbon sequestration while maintaining predetermined harvest levels and utilization of wood, and another targeting GHG fluxes in the entire forest industrial sector allowing harvest levels and wood markets to change in response to the policy. Results indicate that GHG emission reduction potentials differ substantially between the two policies, being several times higher for the latter than the former policy at a given carbon price. This suggests that (i) previous research efforts in Europe have not captured the full mitigation potential as they have not included adaptations in the harvest level and the wood market and (ii) climate policies should target GHG fluxes in the entire sector to utilize its potential contribution for mitigating climate change. Resume: Les forets contribuent largement au cycle global du carbone et attenuent les effets des changements climatiques en sequestrant le carbone et fournissant du bois, un substitut aux materiaux de construction issus d'energies fossiles et qui emettent des gaz a effet de serre (GES). Toutefois, les politiques climatiques actuelles creditent seulement partiellement la sequestration forestiere du carbone et les politiques bioenergetiques sont gerees independamment de la foresterie. En prenant le cas de la Norvege, nous avons analyse deux politiques simulant la taxation du carbone et le subventionnement: alors que la premiere politique credite la sequestration forestiere du carbone tout en maintenant des niveaux de recolte predetermines et l'utilisation du bois, la seconde cible les flux de GES dans l'ensemble du secteur industriel forestier et permet aux niveaux de recolte et au marche du bois de fluctuer en consequence. Nos resultats indiquent que le potentiel de reduction des emissions de GES differe substantiellement entre les deux politiques, s'averant grandement superieur avec la seconde politique relativement a la premiere, pour un prix donne du carbone. Ces resultats laissent entrevoir que (i) les efforts passes de recherche en Europe n'ont pas su etablir correctement le plein potentiel d'attenuation des forets n'ayant pas considere l'adaptation possible des niveaux de recolte et du marche du bois et (ii) les politiques climatiques devraient cibler les flux de GES dans l'ensemble du secteur forestier de sorte que sa contribution potentielle a attenuer les changements climatiques soit prise en compte. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction The importance of the forests' role in the global carbon cycle is well documented, e.g., by IPCC (Watson et al. 2000; Nabuurs et al. 2007) and Lorenz and Lal [...]