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Lecture notes

Forest Management (SFM 552 )

B.Sc 3rd

Year 2nd

Semester

Prepared by:

Bishnu P Devkota

Lecturer

Kathmandu Forestry College

Kathmandu, Nepal

December 2010


1 Lecture notes on Forest Management by Bishnu P Devkota, 2010

Unit-1: Introduction and background

Definition

Forest Management is defined as the practical application of the scientific, technical

and economic principles of forestry.

Forest management is that branch of forestry whose function is the organization of a

forest property for management and maintenance, by ordering in time and place the

various operations necessary for the conservation, protection and improvement of the

forest on the one hand, and the controlled harvesting of the forest on the other.

1.1 Forest management objectives

Primary objective of good management is provision of the maximum benefit to the

greatest number of people for all time.

Forest may be managed primarily for productive purpose, for direct material benefits,

or protective purposes for, indirect benefits. It is depended upon the primary and

secondary objectives of the owners.

General objectives of Forest Management

1. Maintaining and as far as possible, raising the productive capacity of the soil and of

the forest stands consistent with the maximum site potential.

2. Promoting the protective effect of the forest, against soil erosion, avalanches floods

and protection of the physical factors, such as natural scenery, local flora and fauna.

3. Execution of silvicultural operations and regulation of felling in such a way so as to

bring the forest to a condition of as near normality as possible: in simple words,

attainment of a normal forest is one of the principle objects.

4. Satisfaction of rights of the right holder in respect of timber, firewood, grazing, etc. in

particular, and to meet the basic requirement of the local population in general.

5. Providing the maximum possible volume of valuable timber for constructional and

industrial proposes, and other forest produces for meeting the market demands and

securing the highest possible financial results.

Special Objective of Forest Management

Special objects may be laid down for different regions/locations, with different site factors

and forest types, more suited for specific purpose. Some examples are given below:

a. Badly eroded areas and steep hill slopes may be constituted into a protection

management, where the special object will be protection, afforestation, soil and water

conservation; satisfaction of only the minimum social needs of the local population,

ignoring consideration for market supplies and financial returns.

b. In the watershed of municipal water supplies, irrigation and hydroelectric generation

dams. The special objectives being the maintenance of an undisturbed protective

vegetative cover, all other forms of use must be subordinated to it.

c. In the forest areas of natural scenic beauty, woodlands near urban habitation,

recreation often being the dominant object, timber feelings, grazing and even hunting

will have to be entirely stopped. Such forests serve as „magnificent playground for

tired mankind seeking peace and spiritual strength‟.

d. Mixed miscellaneous open forests, heavily grazed and felled in the past, with low

proportion of valuable timber and industrially important species are clear felled and

converted into plantation of desired species- pure or simple compatible mixture. Such



areas have extensively been constituted into plantation of timber industrial in the inner

terai and terai region with a view to meet increasing demand for industrial raw

material for pulp, match and plywood industries, e.g. Sagarnath plantation.

Objective of forest management in context of Nepal

1. Stabilize the supply of timber, fuel wood, fodder and other forestry products

necessary for general people in their day to day lives.

2. Increase the productivity of forest products to ensure the supply of raw materials to

forest based industries, which contribute to the national economy.

3. Increase income from employment opportunities in the forestry sector for

underprivileged families.

4. Develop national parks, wildlife reserves and protected areas in order to preserve

biological diversity to maintain ecological processes and ecosystems and create

recreational areas.

5. Help maintain land fertility through the conservation of soil and other watershed

resources.

6. Adopt proper land use practices.

1.2 Forest management alternatives and analysis

There is seldom a single objective of forest management.

Owners usually have multiple objectives and they often conflict with each other.

Then, the owner must give up some or all of one objective to obtain the other. For e.g.

maximizing the forest‟s present net worth and maintaining a continuous wood flow

may conflict. The owner can smooth out wood flow by cutting some stands before or

after the age at which their present net worth is maximum. But doing this causes the

total present net worth to be less than the absolute maximum.

Some objectives may be mutually exclusive, for e.g. producing timber and

maintaining wilderness on the same land.

Actual management objectives, whether stated or unstated, are a mixture of several

management objectives. There is no one correct mixture. This depends on the owner‟s

objectives and the relative importance placed on them.

The alternatives of forest management may be viewed as the many actions that a

forest owner may take to achieve his/her objectives. These are the actions that can be

taken in the field that will cause production of one or another, or some mix, of forest

products. The actions an owner takes can include cutting, reforestation and

construction.

Cutting the forest, or not cutting it, is one of the primary tools for accomplishing

management objectives.

Cutting can manipulate the forest to obtain desired forest products at the desired point

in time.

Different kinds of cutting such as clear cutting or shelterwood cutting have different

effects on the residual stand and hence on the products.

Both the timing and type of cut are management alternatives that must be decided on.

Reforestation practices are a second major set of alternatives that must be chosen to

obtain management objectives.

Choices must be made between natural and artificial reforestation, the kind of site

preparation if any, and the species to be regenerated.

Reforestation practices affect density and species and hence forest production

possibilities.



Construction is a third major set of alternatives that must be chosen.

There are many kind of construction and each can affect the amount of an objective

obtained. For e.g. road placement not only affect timber harvest but also affects access

for recreation and hunting, aesthetic values and soil stability.

Forest management alternatives are also defined by the physical production

possibilities of the forest.

The physical production possibilities are determined by the basic biology of the

forest being managed. Thus, the alternatives flow from and are defined by different

topics of silviculture, mensuration etc.

There are various analytical techniques for choosing between alternatives. Some

techniques are general and not unique to forestry whereas some techniques have been

developed to answer particular forestry problems.

Discounting and present net worth are general techniques applied to forestry problems

whereas land expectation value is special cases of discounting developed for forestry

problems.

The simple method of discounting is calculating present value of investment.

Discounting,

Where,

Vo = the present value

Vn = the future value in n years

i = interest rate

n = the years in which the payment occurs

The present net worth criterion is one of the widely used and accepted investment

criteria recognizing the time value of money.

The PNW is the algebraic sum of the discounted costs and revenues at a specified

interest rate.

Where,

PNW= Present net worth

Rt= the revenue or positive cash flows in year t

Ct= the cost or negative cash flows in year t

t= the year in which the cash flows occurs

i= the interest rate

Analysis: An investment is acceptable if the PNW is positive and is not acceptable if it is

negative.

Land expectation value is nothing more than a special case of PNW that has certain

restrictive assumptions made on it. These are

− Land value is zero

− The land has no residual stand

− The land will be forested in perpetuity.

− The cash flows from the forest will be the same in perpetuity.

n

n

oi

VV

)1(

n

tttt

iCRPNW

0 )0.1(

0.1



Where,

Le= the land expectation value

Vo= the present value of a perpetual periodic annuity that will be every n years

n= the number of years between annuity payments


Analysis: Invest if land expectation value is greater than market value .

Analytical techniques provide guidelines for choosing between courses of action.

They tell us what will happen if all assumptions and projections used in the analysis

are fulfilled.

Analytical results must be considered guidelines and not irrevocable answer because

projections of variable (such as yield) contains errors and not always met and the

analytical models are seldom perfect.

1.3 Decision making principles and models

Forest management objectives and alternatives together form a decision making

model.

Decisions making models may have several variants, some may be more complicated

whereas some are less complicated.

The following diagram represents a general decision making model adapted in forest

management.

0.1)0.1(

)0.1(

n

n

oei

iVL



Figure 1: A rudimentary decision making model

1. Decision maker

A decision maker is at the top and is ultimately responsible for deciding which

alternative is chosen.

A decision makers decides on the basis of available data and their analysis,

consultation with staff members.

2. Objectives

In this step, objectives are identified and conflicting objectives resolved.

Sometimes decision making process often focuses on problems and causes their

resolution.

Decision maker

Objectives

Alternatives

Constraints

Decision

Choose alternatives

Do nothing More data

Exit to Implementation

Exit to Implementation



Ideally, decision maker has one or more objectives identified and provide

information for listing alternatives.

3. Alternatives

Alternatives are the different courses of action that managers may take to reach their

objectives.

In the idealized system the decision makers lists the alternative courses of action they

must take to reach their objectives.

Each alternative may partially or fully achieve the objectives.

4. Constraints

These are barriers or constraints to reaching objectives.

They are what must be given up to reach the objective or what prevent one from

reaching the objective.

Both physical and economic constrains can be identified.

Physical constraints may exist in the forest production process that do not allow

reaching some objectives. For e.g. Site quality may determine how much timber can

be grown in an area.

Economic constraint such as limited availability of fund determine investment in

forestry program or non forestry program.

The forest managers must choose those alternatives to reach the desired objective

within these constraints.

5. Decision

Once the objective is identified, alternatives are listed along with constraints on each

alternative.

Analysis can be made at this point and one of the three decisions can be made:

• Choose an alternative

• Do nothing

• Go back and obtain more data for further analysis

• Choosing an alternative from among those listed means that a course of action has

been defined. The next step is to implement the alternative.

• To do nothing, is to let things continue as they are.

• Finally more information can be sought, it can be done at any of the preceding level.

Objectives can be reformulated, new alternatives set or more data about existing

alternatives obtained and additional information on constraints can be found.

• Seeking more data brings us back to the model at these levels until an exit point is

reached- either a “no” or “alternative” decision.

1.4 Different forest management strategies in Nepal

a. Strategies for production and utilization

Reduction of consumption

Increase production

Effective harvesting and distribution

Improve pasture and livestock management

b. Conservation of ecosystems and genetic resources



Legal and institutional arrangement

Public education and extension

c. Social sustainability

Ad her decentralization policy by entrusting user for protection, management and use

Provide livelihood to poor and landless people in forestry activities

d. Private involvement in forestry

Resource base consolidation

Industrial development

e. Policy implementation

Direct human resources to priority areas

Improve policy, legal and institutional framework

Training to sufficient, motivated and competent manpower

Prioritize development program and determine observance of the priorities

Advocate people's participation and of NGOs'.

Forest Management Scenario in Nepal

Forest management in Nepal has gone through three phases, namely privatization,

nationalization and populism respectively (Hobley and Malla, 1996, MFPS, 1988).

During the Rana period, there was plenty of forest and they had not felt any thing

about the Forest. Forest was like the private property of Ranas. They could give any

part of forest to which they like. At that time, forest was exploited for supplying the

railway sleeper to India and/or for creating extra land revenue.

After the democracy in 1951, various legislative measures were enforced to ensure

clear ownership over the forest. The private Forest Nationalization Act, 1957 was a

very controversial step in the history of Forest management in Nepal. Huge tracts of

forest under communal management and private control were brought under state

property. After nationalization, local communities through out the country reacted

negatively believing that their traditional rights of access and use had been curtailed.

After experiencing the bitter hardship from the nationalization Act, the government

introduced another act, viz. The Forest Act, 1961 which was more focused on the

forest administration.

Inclusion of different forest management regimes like Panchayat Forest, Panchayat

Protected Forest, Private Forest and religious forest were the major component of this

act.

At the time de jure manager was only government. People were considered as

destroyer of the forest.

This system had not succeeded to conserve the forest.

By the mid 1970‟s the government realized that local people had to be involved in the

management of forest and started the community forest management system.

Master plan for forestry sector (1988) has emphasized the community forestry as first

priority.



To implement the master plan, the government has promulgated Forest Act, 1993

and Forest Regulation, 1995 which were become the milestone in sustainable forest

management through people‟s participation.

This legislation opens the door to implement community forestry nation wide.

Community forestry becomes more popular in mid hills of Nepal than other forest

management system.

Unfortunately, Forest management in Terai has always lacked accountability and

transparency, often sparking controversy.

Encouraged by the successful experiment of community forestry programme in hills,

government has started community forestry programme in Terai also, but this was not

success like hills.

Government has now initiated new concept of forest management named

Collaborative Forest Management (CFM) in Terai according to Forest policy 2000 by

involving all stakeholder including local users, local government i.e. VDC &DDC,

NGO‟s etc. (DoF,2003)

Current Forest Management Strategies in Nepal

Based on ownership, Nepal has two category of forest; private and national forest.

Private forests are nominal in number, and are being sole managed by private sector.

National forest is managed either by government itself or with people‟s participation.

Government of Nepal has managing its forest through Ministry of Forest and Soil

Conservation (MOFSC) with definite policy, vision and objective.

Some areas are managed as protected areas where as most of the areas are being

managed in the purpose of producing multiple forest products.

Production forests are managed by department of forest through District Forest Office

and Range offices.

Similarly, protected areas are being managed by Department of National Parks and

Wildlife Conservation through National parks, Wildlife reserves and conservation

areas.

Nepal has adopted community based forest management strategies under the

following category.

• Community forest

• Collaborative forest

• Leasehold forest

• Bufferzone forest

• Religious forest

1.5 Role of forest in economic development

1.5.1 Contribution in national economy

In Nepal, forestry sector contribute 15% to national GDP.

In developing countries, forest resources are important to the quality of life and

survival of large number of rural poor (World Bank, 2001; Nilsson, 1996).

In Nepal, rural subsistence economy depends to a significant extent on primary

products from agriculture and forest.



Subsistence farming is based on a man- cattle- forest relationship (Mahat, 1987).

Forest products such as small poles and timber are used to make farm instruments and

tools, while leaves and twigs are used as a compost making materials.

Majority of the people use forest products for cooking, heating and feeding livestock.

More than 75% of the energy needs come from the forestry sector and particularly in

the mid-hills, 94% of rural households rely on fuelwood as their primary fuel for

cooking and heating (Edmonds, 2002).

1.5.2 Role in local economy

a. Agriculture

Forest fodder satisfies about 37 % of total fodder needs of livestock in Nepal

Most of the cattle eat 2.25Kg of dry matter /Day/100Kg Body weight

About 42 % of the total TDN (Total Digestible Nutrients) requirement is estimated to

be met from the forestry sector (New ERA 1992).

Total fodder requirement : 6.08 Million ton/Year.

The annual per capita fuel wood consumption in the Hills is about 708 kg whereas it

is 689 kg in the Terai.

b. Rural enterprises

Provide raw materials to forest based enterprises such as Kutch and Kattha, resin

tapping, paper, plywood etc.

1.5.3 Role of forest in livelihood

A livelihood comprises people, their capabilities and their means of living, including

food, income and assets. Tangible assets are resources and stores, and intangible

assets are claims and access.

A livelihood is environmentally sustainable when it maintains or enhances the local

and global assets in which livelihoods depend, and has net beneficial effects on other

livelihoods.

A livelihood is socially sustainable which can cope with and recover from stress and

shocks, and provide for future generations.

Today, it is understood that forest underpins a wide ranges of goods and services for

human well-being:

storage and purification of drinking water

mitigation of natural disasters such as droughts and floods

storage of carbon and regulation of climate

provision of food, rainfall, and a vast array of goods for medicinal, cultural

and spiritual purposes.

It is estimated that 60 million indigenous people are almost wholly dependent on

forests, while 350 million people depend on forests for a high degree for subsistence

and income (World Bank 2004).

The poor rely on forest goods and ecosystem services for a range of basic needs:

food, shelter, clothing and heating.

What is the role of forest?

Support current consumption



– subsistence consumption, cash income, agricultural inputs, input to

industries, input to capital formation

– Provide safety nets

– fill gaps in response to risks (seasonality)

– safety nets in response to post shocks

Pathway out of poverty

– poverty prevention vs. poverty reduction

– poverty traps (low value added)

– low potential for economy-wide impact of industries

Forest goods and services

Provisioning Services ▪ Food, Fiber and Fuel

▪ Genetic Resources

▪ Biochemicals

▪ Fresh Water

Cultural Services ▪ Spiritual and religious

values

▪ Knowledge system

▪ Education and inspiration

▪ Recreation and aesthetic value

Regulating Services ▪ Invasion resistance

▪ Herbivory

▪ Pollination

▪ Seed dispersal

▪ Climate regulation

▪ Pest regulation

▪ Disease regulation

▪ Natural hazard

protection

▪ Erosion regulation

▪ Water purification

Supporting Services ▪ Primary production

▪ Provision of habitat

▪ Nutrient cycling

▪ Soil formation and

retention

▪ Production of

atmospheric oxygen

▪ Water cycling

1.6 Forest, society and environment

1.6.1 Social benefits of forests Contribution to over all economy

Creation of employment opportunities

Poverty reduction

Fuel wood

Industrial timber and lumber

Pulp and paper

Medicines

Mineral extraction and recreation

1.6.2 Environmental benefits of forest Protection of sites and landscapes

Spiritual and recreation value

Food webs and energy flow

Water regulation



Local and regional climate

Numerous habitats and niches

Purify water and air

Chemical cycling

Reduce soil erosion

Store atmospheric carbon

Provide wildlife habitats



Unit-2: Concept and principle of sustainable forest management

Sustainable development

The word sustainable development was first used in World Conservation Strategy

report in 1980

The primary concern of sustainable development is that planning should work with

the resources of a region.

The concept was made operational only in 1987 by Our Common Future.

Sustainable Development is defined as “meeting the basic needs of the present

without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own need.

Principle of sustainable development Living with the environment limit.

Ensuring a strong healthy environment.

-Meeting the diverse need of all people in existing and future communities

Achieving a sustainable economy

Using sound scientific responsibility

Promoting good governance

2.1 Concept and principles of sustainable forest management

Sustainable development concept was elaborated by the World Commission on

Environment and Development in 1987, and endorsed by the United Nations

Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in June 1992.

Since then, it has become the most important issue in the development aspirations of

the 1990s.

Sustainable forest management has been described as forestry‟s contribution to

sustainable development.

This is development, which is economically viable, environmentally sound and

socially beneficial and which balances present and future needs.

Sustainable forest management is considered as one of the most important

contributions which the forestry sector can make to the sustainable development

objectives of any nation, particularly those richly endowed with forest (FAO, 2000).

Sustainable development became a common theme as concerns grew over the

burgeoning world population and increasingly polluted environment.

Accordingly, it drew attention to protect and conserve the global environment and

emphasized a shift in attitudes from pure utilization towards ecological orientation

(FAO, 2000).

2.1.1 Concept, definition and principles of sustainable forest management.

Definition of sustainable forest management Sustainable forest management is the process of managing forest to achieve one or

more clearly specified objectives of management in relation to the production of a

continuous flow of desired forest products and services without undue reduction of its

inherent values and future productivity and without undue undesirable effects on the

physical and social environment (ITTO, 1998 in ITTO 2005).



Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe (MCPFE), 1993 defines

sustainable forest management as the:

„Stewardship and use of forests and forest lands in such a way, and at a rate, that

maintains their productivity, regeneration capacity, vitality and their potential to fulfill

now and in the future, relevant ecological, economic, and social functions, at local,

national, and global levels, and that does not cause damage to other ecosystems.‟

Concept of sustainable forest management Forests play critical roles in accounting for most of the terrestrial plant biomass and

in regulating global temperature by sequestering carbon.

As a public good, they contribute to stable, fertile landscapes for human settlement,

provide numerous timber and non-timber resources and are places of recreation.

For indigenous peoples they are often places of important spiritual significance.

However, the natural forests of Asia remain in a state of crisis, threatened by a

complex array of forces that undermine their ability to fulfill vital ecological and

societal functions. (www.fao.org/forestry)

The concept of sustainable forest management is introduced as a broad conceptual

instrument to assess solutions to forest loss and degradation.

Sustainable forest management is considered as one of the most important

contributions, which the forestry sector can make to the sustainable development

objectives of any nation, particularly those richly endowed with forest.

In forestry, sustainability involves the continued existence and use of forests to meet

human physical, economic, and social needs, the desire to preserve the health of forest

ecosystems in perpetuity, and the ethical choice of preserving options for future

generations while meeting the needs of the present. Determining what is sustainable is

a difficult task. A framework of criteria and indicators (visit www.itto.or.jp/c&i) of

forest sustainability can be used to foster discussions on the meaning of sustainability

for a particular time and place.

Sustainable Forest Management aims to ensure that the goods and services derived

from the forest meet present-day needs while at the same time securing their

continued availability and contribution to long-term development. In its broadest

sense, forest management encompasses the administrative, legal, technical, economic,

social and environmental aspects of the conservation and use of forests. It implies

various degrees of deliberate human intervention, ranging from actions aimed at

safeguarding and maintaining the forest ecosystem and its functions, to favouring

specific socially or economically valuable species or groups of species for the

improved production of goods and services

Many of the world‟s forests and woodlands, however, especially in the tropics and

subtropics, are still not managed in accordance with the Forest Principles adopted at

the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED, 1992).

Many developing countries have inadequate funding and human resources for the

preparation, implementation and monitoring of forest management plans, and lack

mechanisms to ensure the participation and involvement of all stakeholders in forest

planning and development. Where forest management plans exist, they are frequently

limited to ensuring sustained production of wood, without due concern for non-wood

products and services or social and environmental values. In addition, many countries

lack appropriate forest legislation, regulation and incentives to promote sustainable

forest management practices. (Ferguson 1997)

http://www.fao.org/forestry/site/24447/en

http://www.itto.or.jp/c&i



Urgent attention is needed to address the causes of forest loss and degradation. In

order to examine instruments that tackle these causes, a conceptual anchor is needed

to describe what might be considered an ideal state of forest management. The ideal

state provides a frame of reference to gauge improvements in forest management.

“Sustainable forest management” (SFM) is used for this purpose. Since the 1990s,

SFM has been at the forefront of international deliberations on forestry issues and is

now widely embraced by inter-governmental, regional, national and sub-national

conservation and development institutions. At the Second Expert Meeting on

Harmonizing Forest-Related Definitions for Use by Various Stakeholders organized

by the FAO and the IPCC in 2002, several definitions of SFM were presented. Of

these, the definition developed by the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of

Forests in Europe (MCPFE) best captures the multiple functions of forests. The

MCPFE definition, though not formulated specifically with Asian forests in mind,

does embrace the variety of critical forest functions in the region.

SFM has been the conceptual basis of an international movement to develop criteria

and indicators to assess the state of forests and their management, in which a number

of Asian countries participate. Because of the variety of forest types in Asia described

earlier, it is not possible to present a region-wide specific set of criteria for assessing

forestry practices. However, the concept of SFM can be used loosely to assess new

policies and instruments of forest management and is employed for this purpose.

Sustainable development became a common theme as concerns grew over the

burgeoning world population and increasingly polluted environment. Accordingly, it

drew attention to protect and conserve the global environment and emphasized a shift

in attitudes from pure utilization towards ecological orientation (FAO, 2000a as cited

by Shrestha and Sharma, 2004).



Traditional sustained yield, a concept which was brought by a German forester-Georg

Hartig in 1795, focused mainly on the production of commodities, but has proven

inadequate to meet the requirements of the present day society for various products

and services and other non-material benefits and this concept was broadened in 1970s

and consequently revised with a new concept of sustainable forest management. The

traditional and modern concepts of sustainable forest management are presented

below (Adopted from Shrestha and Sharma, 2004).

Conceptual Model of Sustainable Forest Management:



Principle of sustainable forest management

Principle: A fundamental truth or law as the basis of reasoning or action. Principles in the

context of sustainable forest management are seen as providing the primary framework for

managing forests in a sustainable fashion (Mendoza et al., 1999).

It is difficult to explicitly define what sustainable forest management is. However, several

recent international meetings have suggested that the following seven thematic elements

are key components.

(1) Extent of forest resources;

(2) Biological diversity;

(3) Forest health and vitality;

(4) Productive functions of forest resources;

(5) Protective functions of forest resources;

(6) Socio-economic functions;

(7) Legal, policy and institutional framework.

2.1.2 Criteria and indicators of sustainable forest management

Criteria Criteria define the essential elements against which sustainability is assessed, with due

consideration paid to the productive, protective and social roles of forests and forest

ecosystems. Each criterion relates to a key element of sustainability, and may be described by

one or more indicators.

Seven criteria are identified as essential elements of sustainable forest management.

Criterion 1, Enabling Conditions for Sustainable Forest Management, is concerned

with the general legal, economic and institutional framework without which actions

included under the other criteria will not succeed.

Criteria 2 and 3 on Forest Resource Security and Forest Ecosystem Health and

Condition, respectively, are concerned with the quantity, security and quality of forest

resources.

The remaining four criteria deal with the various goods and services provided by the

forest, including Flow of Forest Produce, Biological Diversity, Soil and Water and

Economic, Social, and Cultural Aspects.

The order of presentation of the criteria represents a logical sequence but does not

indicate priority or relative importance.

The seven ITTO criteria are shown schematically.



Indicators

Indicators are parameters which can be measured and correspond to a particular

criterion.

They measure and help monitor the status and changes of forests in quantitative,

qualitative and descriptive terms that reflect forest values as seen by those who

defined each criterion.

The indicators presented here have been carefully identified and formulated so that a

change in any one of them would give information that is both necessary and

significant in assessing progress towards sustainable forest management.

They have also been defined so that they are clear, practical and easy to monitor, and

based as far as possible on available research knowledge and statistics.

It should, therefore, be possible for countries to provide information on many of them,

although only a few countries will immediately be able to provide information on

them all.

Criterion #6 Soil and Water

Criterion #5 Biological

Diversity

Criterion #4 Flow of Forest

Produce

Criterion #3

Forest Ecosystem

Health and Condition

Criterion #1 Enabling Conditions

for Sustainable

Forest Management

Criterion #7

Economic, Social, and

Cultural Aspects

Criterion #2 Forest Resource

Security

Sustainable Management

of

Natural Tropical Forests



Countries face a considerable load in reporting to different international organisations.

This load can be eased by ensuring that the nature of the data required is as similar as

possible. Indicators have, therefore, been chosen so as to be compatible with those

being requested for FAO‟s Forest Resources Assessment (FRA-2000).

Wherever possible, quantitative indicators have been suggested but, in some

instances, this is not possible or would prove too expensive. Where this is the case,

qualitative or descriptive indicators are provided.

It is important, if the indicators are to give an accurate picture of trends, that

comparable methods should be used between one time of assessment and the next;

and that there should be a means of estimating the degree of accuracy of any data

presented.

Over time, lessons will be learnt about the collection of certain data. Ideally, all

countries should use the same methods of measurement and assessment, but this is

unlikely to be for some time. Countries should, therefore, give a description of the

methods used and an estimate of the accuracy of their figures and any difficulties

encountered in their collection.



Criteria and Indicators developed by ITTO (2005)



Criteria and Indicators developed by Canadian council of forest ministries (2000)



2.1.3 Various forest certification schemes

1985~1990 – growing concern over the state of the world‟s forests, and the

sustainability of extraction of timber and other products

So the sustainable forest management concept emerged.

To promote the sustainable forest management identifying the well managed forest,

registration and certification procedures were started.

So the public is led to believe that products labeled with the logo of sustainable

managed forest are from the environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and

environmentally viable source.

There are questions related to sustainable forest management (SFM) such as, how can

the local people manage forests in a sustainable way?

How can international population make sure that the products they are buying, is

coming from a forest managed in a sustainable way?

Criteria and Indicators developed by Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), Bhopal (2002)



To answer these questions, NGOs involved in conservation such as, Green Peace,

Worldwide Fund for Nature, Friends of the Earth, etc. thought to establish a

mechanism to encourage sustainable forest management and discourage unsustainable

harvesting.

Forest Certification is the process by which the performances of on-the-ground

forestry operation are assessed against a predetermined set of standards (Parajuli et al

2003).

Forest Certification is intended to improve forest management via market based

initiatives.

It is based on the assessment of social, environmental and economic aspects of the

forest management, according to pre set principals and criteria.

Forest certification intends to decrease negative impacts of forest management.

This is achieved by implementing agreed code of practice known as standards.

Implementation of these codes is verified by an independent or third party institution.

If forests are sustainably managed, a certificate of responsible forest management is

given to the forest managers. Forest manger can put the logo to identify the product

coming from certified forest. Consumers identify such products from the stamp used

in the product.

Forest certification intends to decrease negative impacts of forest management.

This is achieved by implementing agreed code of practice known as standards.

Implementation of these codes is verified by an independent or third party institution.

If forests are sustainably managed, a certificate of responsible forest management is

given to the forest managers. Forest manger can put the logo to identify the product

coming from certified forest. Consumers identify such products from the stamp used

in the product.

The Elements of Forest Certification



Forest Certification Systems

International/regional systems

- Forest Stewardship Council FSC

- Pan-European Forest Certification (PEFC)

National systems

– European schemes linked to PEFC

– Canadian Standards Association

– Sustainable Forestry Initiative / American Tree Farm System

– Developing countries: Brazil (CERFLOR), Malaysia (MTCC)

FSC is the dominant system globally

FSC Principles 1. Compliance with Laws and FSC Principles

Forest management must abide by all applicable laws of the country in which they

occur.

2. Tenure and Use Rights and Responsibilities

Rights to the land are clearly defined and clearly established.

3. Indigenous Peoples’ Rights

Indigenous peoples’ rights to own, use, and manage their lands are recognized and

respected.

4. Community Relations and Worker’s Rights

Maintain and/or enhance the long-term social and economic well being of forest

workers and local communities.

5. Benefits from the Forest

Encourage the efficient use of the forest’s resources and services to ensure economic

viability, and environmental and social benefits.

6. Environmental Impact

Conserve biological diversity, water resources, soils, and unique and fragile

ecosystems and landscapes, maintaining the ecological functions and integrity of the

forest.

7. Management Plan

A plan is written, implemented, and kept up to date, including statements of long-term

objectives.

8. Monitoring and Assessment

Monitoring is conducted to assess the condition of the forest, yields of forest products,

chain-of-custody, management activities, and their social and environmental impacts.

9. Maintenance of High Conservation Value Forests

Management activities enhance the attributes of high conservation value forests.

10. Plantations

Plantations should complement the management of, reduce pressures on, and promote

the restoration and conservation of natural forest

2.2 Concept and practice of sustained yield

2.2.1 Concept, definition of sustained yield

Sustained yield is defined and /or expressed variously as



The material that a forest can yield annually or periodically in perpetuity.

As applied to policy, method or plan of management (sustain yields management), it

implies continuous production with the aim of achieving at the earliest practical time

at the highest practical level an approximate balance between net growth and harvest

by annual or some what longer periods (BCFT).

The regular, continuous supply of the desired produced to the full capacity of the

forest.(Osmastan)

The yield of timber or other forest products from a forest which is managed in such

away as to permit the removal of approximately equal volume or quality of timber or

other forest produce annually or periodically in perpetuity.

Sustained yield may be annual or periodic depending on where a complete series of

age gradations or age mixed together is maintained or only an in complete series.

Periodic yield is also considered as sustained, provided the period is short.

Sustained yield is essential where large areas, especially state owned, are concerned;

this ensures continuous yield and safeguards against extinction of forest property,

which is the trust with the present generation-we have a right of use only but not to

lead to its destruction.

In case of private property, it is not practicable to maintain of complete series of age

gradations such cases the cropped is worked for intermittent yield, which is defined

as: the material or cash return obtained from time to time form a forest not organized

for continuous production.(Glossary).

Concept and Principle of Sustained Yield “Yield” signifies the flow of forest products, measured in terms of either volume or

value units, harvested from a forest at a particular time. The yield from the forest

includes all the forest products, the tangible and the intangible, including protective,

amenity, and timber and non- timber products.

Concept of sustainable yield has been evolved from the basic from the consideration

that the unborn generation may derive from the forest at least as much of the benefits

as the present generation. Sustained yield ensures stability and continuous supply of

raw materials to the industries and to meet social and domestic needs of the people.

The principle of SY is that forest should be exploited such that annual or periodic

felling does not exceed annual or periodic growth.

It is an accepted norm in forest management and forms the core of organized forestry.

At the end of 18th

century and beginning of the 19th

century, the necessity of

Sustained yield (SY) was propounded in Europe for ensuring regular supply of timber

and fire wood.

Germany is the pioneer country of the sustained yield.

Considering forestry from the economic point of view, investment in forestry should

yield continuous return in terms of definite class of produce and in greatest possible

quantity within a reasonable time and to the best financial advantage.

The simplest method for achieving this objective of sustained yield is to maintain a

complete succession of equal areas of crops of all ages from one year old up to the

age of maturity that is complete series of age gradations.

For example: say we have 10 hectares of land and 10 years rotation .We plant 1

hectare annually and after 10 years cut 1 ha Annually of 10 years old trees. Hence

equal area will be available for felling at maturity (10 years), this is one form of crop

necessary for sustained yield management and for maintaining it perpetuity.



Such forest provides a conceptual picture of theoretical normal forest. The idea of the

normal forest is a logical corollary to the principle of sustained yield in perpetuity.

2.2.2 Pre-Requisites for Sustained Yield To get sustained yield, forest should be “integrated”, it should be healthy, energetic,

and of all ages mixed together in proper proportion or in one word it should be

Normal.

Only normal forest is able to produce equal production of its material in each year or

periods. The simplest methods of achieving this objective of sustain annual yield is to

maintain a complete succession of age from year one to the age of maturity, having an

equal or equi- productive area. Great effort is necessary to bring the forest in

normality. The following requirement must be fulfilled for sustained yield

management:

There should be a normal forest having all requirement parameters as;

A complete series of age gradations – in case of plantation forest, there should be

complete series of age gradations up to rotation age. Any gap of age will interrupted

the sustained yield.

All periodic block (PB) should occupy equal or equi-productive area –this is the case

for regular shelter wood system. All PB should be of equal or equi-productive areas

otherwise there would be variable amount of yield from different periodic blocks

instead of sustained one.

All age classes present in balanced proportion –in irregular selection forest, there

should be well mixtures of all age classes of also that in balanced proportion to ensure

the equal amount of volume production in each year at the time of harvesting.

Although there will be no specific area of harvesting, the yield in sustained manner by

clear selection of rotation aged trees distributed over the whole forest area.

Sustained yield principle is applicable only to production forests.

2.2.3 Limitations in Nepal conditions Sustained yield could not be achieved due to its following limitations:

Not possible to apply SY principle in the first rotation because density and quality of

crop are generally variable due to past management or mal-distribution of age

classes and their composition in mixture and generally comprised of old growth as

well as degraded site condition.

Virgin forest with a large proportion of deteriorating trees cannot be suitably worked

under SY principle.

Forest under afforestation programmed provides various yield until after the end of

first rotation.

Lack of technical man power

Inflexible to market conditions

In hill forests, due to variable demand, different interest groups, lively hood concepts,

geographical location, microclimatic conditions, multiple use concepts etc., it is very

difficult to achieve.

2.2.4 Yield types Yield: The volume or number of stems that can be removed annually or periodically, or

periodically, or the area over which fellings may pass annually or periodically, consistent

with the attainment of objects of management. Yield can be either final yield or intermediate

yield



Final yield: All the material that counts against the prescribed yield and which is derived

from the main felling in a regular forest. It is the sum of the main crop and the subsidiary

crop figures for the given crop age.

Intermediate yield: All materials from thinning or operations preceding the main felling in a

regular forest, or its cash equivalent.

Normal yield: The yield from a normal forest.

Sustained yield: The material that a forest can yield annually (or periodically) in perpetuity.

Total yield: The standing volume of a crop plus the total volume removed in thinning since

its establishment as a more or less even aged stand; or the sum of the final and intermediate

yields.

2.2.5 Management steps for Sustained Yield Different forest types required different types of treatments to acquire sustainable outputs

such as:

In clear felling system-cut equal volume of material from equal area annually.

In uniform shelter wood system – all the periodic blocks occupy equal or equi-

productive area

In irregular selection forest – all age classes are present therein and balanced

proportion

In higher rotation, age class may be formed like-10-20, 20-30, 30-40,40-50,etc

It is considered that for maintaining sustainable yield “variable yield today to ensure

sustained yield tomorrow”. Continuity of harvest, indefinitely, without impairment of

productivity of soil is the core method to obtain sustainable forest management.



Unit-3: Forest valuation methods Valuation is placing a value on something.

Forest valuation is the placing of a value on forest production. This may include

valuing the resources consumed in that production.

Economic value is one of many possible ways to define and measure value.

Although other types of value are often important, economic values are useful to

consider when making economic choices – choices that involve tradeoffs in allocating

resources.

Traditionally economics has been concerned with direct use values focused on

quantifying and analyzing goods and services that produce tangible benefits.

Economists however, have broadened their scope in recognition of the growing

appreciation for the indirect use, non-use, existence, bequest and option values of

ecosystems and have developed techniques to extend monetary valuations to

ecosystem services (Chee, 2004).

Measures of economic value are based on what people want – their preferences. Thus,

the theory of economic valuation is based on individual preferences and choices.

The concept of economic value is now a well established and useful framework for

identifying various values associated with forests.

The total economic value of forest consists of its use values and non-use values.

A forest use values are in turn made up of its direct use values, indirect use values and

option values. Non use values include bequest values and existence value (IUCN,

1998).

Thus, use value is defined as the value derived from the actual use of a good or

service, such as hunting, fishing, bird watching, or hiking. Use values may also

include indirect uses. For example, forest provides direct use values to the people who

visit the area. Other people might enjoy watching a television show about the area and

its wildlife, thus receiving indirect use values. People may also receive indirect use

values from an input that helps to produce something else that people use directly. For

example, forests supply water to the downstream users, who use water for drinking or

irrigation purpose.

Option value is the value that people place on having the option to enjoy something in

the future, although they may not currently use it. Thus, it is a type of use value. For

example, a person may hope to visit the forest area sometime in the future, and thus

would be willing to pay something to preserve the area in order to maintain that

option. On the similar way, forest resources may be underutilised today but may have

a high future value in terms of scientific, educational, commercial and other economic

uses. Environmental regulatory functions of the forest ecosystem may become

increasingly important over time as economic activities develop and spread in the

region (Bann, 1997).

Similarly, bequest value is the value that people place on knowing that future

generations will have the option to enjoy something. Thus, bequest value is measured

by peoples‟ willingness to pay to preserve the natural environment for future

generations. For example, a person may be willing to pay to protect the forest area so

that future generations will have the opportunity to enjoy it. Bequest values may be

particularly high among the local populations currently using or inhabiting a forest in



that they would like to pass on to their heirs and future generations their life and

culture that has co-evolved in conjunction with the forest.

Non-use values, also referred to as “passive use” values, are values that are not

associated with actual use, or even the option to use a good or service. Existence

value is the non-use value that people place on simply knowing that something exists,

even if they will never see it or use it.

For example, a person might be willing to pay to protect the forest wilderness area,

even though he or she never expects or even wants to go there, but simply because he

or she values the fact that it exists. Existence value is derived from the pure pleasure

in something‟s existence, unrelated to whether the person concerned will ever be able

to benefit directly or indirectly from it. Existence values are difficult to measure as

they involve subjective valuations by individuals unrelated to either their own or

others use, whether current or future. However, several economic studies have shown

the existence value of forests to constitute a significant percentage of total economic

value (Bann, 1997).

Economic valuation can be defined as the attempt to assign quantitative values to the

goods and services provided by forest.

Valuation is only one element in the effort to improve the management of forest

ecosystems and their services.

Economic valuation may help inform management decisions, but only if decision-

makers are aware of the overall objectives and limitations of valuation.

The main objective of valuation of ecosystem services is to generally indicate the

overall economic efficiency of the various competing uses of functions of a particular

forest ecosystem. That is, the underlying assumption is ecosystem resources should be



allocated to those uses that yield an overall net gain to society, as measured through

valuation in terms of the economic benefit of each use adjusted by its costs (Kumar &

Kumar, 2008).

3.1 Common valuation techniques

Forest Produce a great variety of goods and services for people. Forests have

value to people and contribute to meeting human needs in a number of ways.

Contribution of forest occurs through

- Direct use of forest

- Indirect use of forest

- The mere existence of the forests or of options for its future direct or

indirect use.

The value of forest to human being

- Vary from individual to individual and from group to group.

- They can change rapidly over time as individual situation and perception

change.

In valuation there are two critical points

- There are no absolute economic values other than in the perception of

individual

- These perceptions tend to be dynamic, changing as circumstances change.

Forest Valuation techniques 1. Using direct market prices for goods and services.

It involves direct observation of market exchanges (or uses available records of part

market exchanges) to determine the value in exchange of particular goods or service.

It assumes that the value of the goods and services exchanged in a market is at least

equal to the market exchange rate, although they may be higher.

2. Using indirect market price techniques.

a. Residual or derived price.

This method estimates the value of particular goods or services from the price of

goods or services established later in the production- distribution process. For eg:- the

value of forest products at the farm gate may be estimated by subtracting the cost of

transporting the products from the farm to a market where products or exchange

values are known.

It assumes that the value of the good or service at the farm gate is at least equal to the

residual value left after subtracting further production, transportation and distribution

costs from market prices.

b. Surrogate prices

This method estimates the value of a particular goods or service from the known

values on prices of substitute or comparable conditions for eg:- The economic value

of gathered fuel wood could, in principal, be estimated as equivalent to the cost of the

quantity of a alternative purchased fuel, such as kerosene which would provide the

same cooking or space heat.

c. Opportunity costs

This method estimates the value of opportunities forgone to provide a

particular good or service.



It assumes that the value is a teast equal to the value of the best alternative forgone to

obtain the desired good or service. For eg:- if dung is used as fuel, the opportunity

cost could be the decrease in crop yields forgone by using the dung for fuel instead of

as a means of condition soils.

d. Hedonic method

This method estimates values from known values of other goods and services that are

technically related to the good or services to be valued.

It assumes that the value of a good and services can be estimated from a technical

relationship. For eg:- Housing values may decline the closer one get to a loud noise

such as airport.

e. Travel Cost

This method recognizes that some good and services the consumer may have to incur

substratical cost (in time or money), to obtain the particular good or service. For eg: A

recreation experience may involve considerable travel expenses; and gathering free

firewood may require a considerable amount of time. It assumes that the value to the

consumer is at least equal to the travel costs the consumer is willing to incur to obtain

the desired good or service.

Travel cost method (TCM) is one of the oldest approaches to environmental

valuation, proposed in a letter from Harolad Hotelling to the US Forest Service in the

1930s, first used by Wood and Trice 1958, and popularized by Clawson and Knetsch

1966 (Hanley, et al. 2004). This method involves using travel costs as a proxy for the

price of visiting outdoor recreational sites. A statistical relationship between observed

visits and the cost of visiting is derived and used as a surrogate demand curve from

which consumer's surplus per visit day can be measured (by integrating under this

curve) (Hanley, et al. 2004). This method is based on the assumption that consumers

value the experience of a particular forest site at no less than the cost of getting there,

including all direct transport costs as well as the opportunity cost of time spent

travelling to the site (i.e. foregone earnings). This survey based method has been used

extensively, especially in richer countries, to estimate environmental benefits at

recreational sites (including wildlife reserves, special trekking areas and beaches).

TCM has recently been applied in several developing countries, particularly where

higher incomes and rapidly developing markets have been associated with growing

demand for amenities such as scenic views and recreational areas (EEP, 2003).

3. Using non-market price technique.

a. Contingent valuation

This method is used to estimate the consumer's willingness to pay for a specified good

or service or to accept compensation for receiving an undesired good or service.

In practice, it is usually desired from the responses of potential consumers to a

hypothetical exchange situation.

This method assumes that the consumers expressed willingness to pay in hypothetical

situation is a measure of the value to the consumer in an actual situation.

3.2 Time value of Money

Time is money, particularly when one is growing trees or investing money, because

both grow with time.



A forest stand will grow with time and with proper management, add increment each

year for many years.

Funds in a saving account will draw interest and funds invested in capital should also

be earning their interest.

Invested funds earn interest and this interest can then be invested to earn its own

interest.

The amount of money originally invested is called the principal amount, and the

amount of money to which it will grow when the interest is added is called the future

value.

The term payment indicates either a revenue (money received) or a cost (money paid)

A dollar invested today will be worth more in the future because it earns interest.

It follows that a dollar received in the future is worth less than a dollar received today

because it cannot be invested and earn interest.

The future payment is worth less because an opportunity cost of the interest payments

forgone has been incurred.

Time value of money is a concept to understand the value of cash flows occurred at

different point in time.

If we are given the alternatives whether to accept Rs. 100 today or one year from now,

then we certainly accept Rs. 100 today. It is because there is time value to money.

Every sum of money received earlier has reinvestment opportunity.

Money received at present is prefered even if we do not have reinvestment

opportunity because money that we receive in future has less purchasing power that

the money that we have at present due to the inflation.

What happens if there is no inflation still, money received at present is prefered, it is

bacause most of us have a fundamental bahaviour to prefer current consumption to

future consumption.

Thus,

i. The reinvestment opportunity or earning power of the money.

ii. The (risk of) inflation.

iii. And individuals‟ preference for current consumption to future

consumption are the reasons for the time value of money.

Reasons for time value of money.

1. Uncertainly - if an individual is not certain about future cash receipt, he prefers

receiving cash now.

2. Subjective preference - most people have subjective preference for present.

3. Investment opportunities - most individuals prefer present receipt to future receipt

because of available investment opportunities.

4. Inflation - the purchasing capacity of money may go down in the future due to the

inflation.

Importance of time value of money

1. To make investment decision - ling term assets/ capital budgeting decision - Net

present value.

2. To calculate rate of return - comparing return = Risk free rate + Risk premium.

3. To calculate cost of capital: comparing future return with cost of capital.

4. To maintain risk return trade off.

5. To make financing decisions.

: Helpful for financial managers.

3.2.1 Interest rate



Interest is the return to the owner of capital.

It is the return that the owner of the man-made assets receives for investing his

money in those assets interest can also the viewed as the cost of the capital for the

person who is using it.

Interest is the market price of money.

Components of the interest rate

The simultaneous solution of the supply and demand functions for money sets the

interest rate.

The interest rate is the price of money.

The interest rate is the base price of money that is then modified for other qualitative

component.

Risk is the first major component that modifies the interest rate. It is the amount of

certainly assigned to an alternatives outcome. An investment whose return is difficult

to predict or is unknown is risky investment. There categories - certainly, risky,

uncertainly.

Grater an investment's risk, the higher the interest rate.

Liquidity is a second interest rate component. Liquidity is the ease with which an

investment can be ended.

Liquidity is important for several reasons.

o a liquid investment allows termination of the investment if the predicted

outcome seems incorrect. It reduces risk.

o it allows changing to an investment with a higher return if one should become

available in the future.

The less liquid the investment, the larger the interest rate.

Time preference, a third component, is the degree to which an individual or

organization desire current rather than future consumption.

Individuals usually have shorter time preferences, organization longer and society the

longest.

Shorter the time preference, the higher the interest rate and the longer the time

preference, the lower the interest rate.

Transaction costs are the resources consumed in making loans or exchanging money.

Larger the loan, the smaller the interest rate because transaction costs are fixed.

The inflation rate expected also affects the interest rate. Prices including the price of

money rise each year during inflationary times.

Higher the expected inflation rate, the higher an interest rate the investor desires.

3.2.2 Discount rate

Discounting is the process of finding the present value of an amount of cash at some

future date, and along with compounding cash forms the basis of time value of money

calculations.

V0 = Vn/(1.0+i)n

Where,



Vn = Future value of a single payment in year n

V0 = Present value of single payment

i = the interest rate

n = the year in which the payment occurs.

The discounted value of a cash flow is determined by reducing its value by the

appropriate discount rate for each unit of time between the times when the cash flow

is to be valued to the time of the cash flow. Most often the discount rate is expressed

as an annual rate.

3.3.3 Inflation adjustment

Inflation is important in investment analysis because the dollar provides the

investment returns are different from those that paid for the investment. They are not

comparable because, during inflation, dollars received in later years will not by as

much or dollar received today.

Inflation effects become more serious the greater the inflation rate. For e.g. in 5 years

a dollar is worth $ 0.86 at 3 percent inflation but only $ 0.54 at 13 percent inflation.

The seriousness of inflation effect is increased in forestry investments because they

take many years to complete.

Inflation is a continuous long-term increase in the general level of overall price level

increase. It is not sufficient for just the price of food, or houschgior clothing to

increase.

The average of all prices must increase. The price increase must also cause a net

increase.

Increase general prices followed by decreased general prices would not be considered

an inflationary period. The general price level at the end of the period must be higher

than at the beginning.

The time period needed to consider a period as inflationary is not strictly defined but

is usually understood to be several years.

Measuring price changes

Price changes are measured by price indices.

The price index is simply the ratio of the price in a time period to the price in a base

time period.

Algebraically,

PIn = Pn/P0*100

Where,

PIn = the price index in year n

Pn = the price in year n

P0= the price in year zero, the base year.

E.g. The price of sal log/ cft in 1960 was Rs. 95

In 1975, the price rose rose to NRs. 295.

The 1975 price index is

PI75 = 295/95*100

=310.53



The price increase shown by the index is interpreted as the percentage increase i.e.

310.53% in the above example between 1960 and 1975.

This is the percentage increase over the entire time period and not the annual

compound increase.

The annual compound increase is

= 0.07847

= 7.84%

Price indices measuring inflation must reflect prices in the whole economy. this is

accomplished by devising a market basket of individual goods, services, and or

commodities that are priced every time period.

The market basket defines every time period that the index measures. the there major

price indices are the Gross National Product (GNP) deflator, the Consumer's Price

Index (CPI) and the Products Price Index (PPI).

Correcting PNW for inflation

There are several ways in which cash flows can be corrected for inflation.

Cash flows are originally stated in year zero or constant dollars, inflated to current

dollars in the year they occur, and are the discounted back to present value using the

market interest rate.

3.3 Decision Making criteria. 3.3.1 Present net worth

The present net worth criterion is one of two widely used and accepted investment

criteria recognizing the time value of money.

The PNW is the algebraic sum of hte discounted costs and revenues at a specified

interest rate.

In formula form,

PNW

where,

PNW = the present net worth

Rt = the revenues or positive cash flows in year t.

Ct = the costs or negative cash flows in year t.

t = the year in which the cash flow occurs.

i = the interest rate, usually the alternative rate of return or the cost of

capital.

The PNW is interpreted as the present value of the investment's gain or loss at the

specified interest rate.

An investment is acceptable if the PNW is positive and is not acceptable if it is

negative. This is so because the investment is earning more than the alternative

rate of return when PNW is positive.

0.153.31015

t

n

t

tti

CR

0.1

0.1

0



The investment earns less than the alternative rate of return when PNW is

negative. It is better to invest in your alternative with a negative PNW because

you will earn more money.

Another way of looking at PNW is that all costs are charged interest from the

time they are incurred until the end of the investment and all revenues earn

interest from the time they are received until the end of the investment.

The algebraic sum of the costs and revenues, with interest is then discounted to

year zero. This is the PNW.

Advantages

i. Net present value method of evaluating the investment proposal recognizes the time

value of money.

ii. It considers all cash flows over the entire life of the project.

iii. It is in consistence with the objective of maximizing the wealth of the firm that leads

to the welfare of the owners of the firm.

Disadvantages

i. It is difficult to use.

ii. It uses cost of capital as discount rate. But cost of capital is quite difficult concept to

understand and measure in practice.

iii. It may not give satisfactory answer when the project being compared involve different

amount of cash outlay.

iv. It may mislead when dealing with alternative projects or limited funds under the

condition of unequal lives.

v. This method emphasis the comparison of NPV and disregards the initial investment

involves. Thus, this method may not give dependable results.

3.3.2 Benefit cost ratio

It is the ratio of present value of net cash benefit to the present value of net cash

outlay.

It is calculated by dividing the present value of future cash inflow after tax by present

value of cash outlay.

Bc Ratio = PV of future cash inflows after tax/ PV of initial cash outlay.

Accept or Reject rule

Accept the project with Bc ratio greater than 1.

Reject the project if the Bc ratio is less than one.

3.3.3. Land expectation value

Land expectation value is another decision criterion also known as faustm ann

formula, land rent, soil expectation value.

Land expectation value is nothing more than a special case of PNW that has certain

restrictive assumptions made about it.

These are;

i. Land value is zero.

ii. the land has no residual stand.

iii. the land will be forested in perpetuity.

iv. the cash flows from the forest will be the same in perpetuity.



Le = Vo×(1.0+i)n ×1.0/(1.0+i)

n - 1.0

= Vo×(1.0+i)n /(1.0+i)

n - 1.0

where,

Le = the land expectation value

V0 = the present value of a perpetual periodic annuity that will be received every n

years.

n = the number of years between annuity payments.

i = the interest rate.

The land expectation value is accepted if it si grater than market price and rejected if

it is less than market price.

3.3.4. Internal rate of return (IRR)

IRR is the rate of return that an investment projects earns.

It is that rate which gives the project's NPV zero. It is the rate when applied to

discount the future cash inflow makes the PV equal to the initial cash outlay, i.e zero

NPV.

It is used when the cost of the project and annual cash inflows are given or known but

unknown rate of earnings is to be determined.

It is a discount rate that makes the PV of future cash inflows of the project equal to

the cost of project.

IRR has been defined as the maximum rate of interest that could be paid for the

capital employed over the life of an investment without loss on the project.

-Charles T. Horngren.

The method considered net cash flow not the net income.

IRR is found out by Trail and Error method and by interpolating between tried rates.

IRR is the interest rate that equlizes the present value of hte costs and revenues.

It is the value of i that causes the following equation to be true.

Where,

IRR = the internal rate of return.

Rt = the revenues or positive cash flows in year t.

Ct = the costs or negative cash flows in year t.

t = the year in which the cash flow occurs.

i = the interest rate when the equation is true and is the IRR.

Accept, Reject and Ranking of the investment project.

Accept the investment if the IRR is greater or higher than cost of capital.

Reject the project with lower IRR than require rate of return.

n

ttt

t

n

t

t

iC

iR

0

0

0.1

0.1

0.1

0.1



Rank the projects form higher to lower IRR.

Merits

1. It considers the time value of money.

2. It takes into account the total cash inflows and outflows.

3. It does not use the concept of the required rate of return/ cost of capital.

4. Provide a rate of return which indicates whether the proposal is profitable or not.

5. It is theoretically a sound method.

Demerits

1. It involves tedious calculation base on trial an error method.

2. It gives multiple rates if the cash flows are non-conventional (investment in last

year) and create confusion.

3. It is generally difficult to understand and use in practice due to complicated

computational problems.

4. Projects selected base on higher IRR may not be profitable one.

5. Single discount rate ignores the varying future interest rate.

3.4 Risk and uncertainly evaluation.

There are three different conditions under which decisions are made. These are

certainly risk and uncertainly.

Certainly exists if there is only one outcome for each alternative. The outcome for

each alternative is known; thus choosing the alternative automatically defines the

outcome.

Risk exists if a probability distribution can be attached to the different states of

nature and hence to the different outcomes.

The state of nature cannot be predicted for each occurrence but the number of

times each state of nature will occur if the decision is made frequently can be

predicted.

The probability distributions can come from different sources. They may be based

on historical evidence and records or they may be obtained subjectively by asking

experts for their opinion about the likelihood of states of nature occurring.

Uncertainly exists if there are no information about the probability distributions of

the states of nature. This means that not even a subjective estimate of the

probabilities can be made by experts.

Many people believe that uncertainly does not exist under this strict definition.

These people believe that subjective probability distributions can be assigned if

the analyst knows enough about the system to identify alternatives and states of

nature and to predict outcomes for them. They feel it is highly unlikely that all this

information is known but that at a minimum, subjective probabilities are not.



Table: Decision matrix.

Alternatives

States of nature

S1 S2 S3

A1 011 012 013

A2 021 022 023

A3 031 032 033

3.4.1 Risk management

Risk can be defined as the chance that the actual return can be other than

expected return.

Risk refers to the variability in the returns form an investment. Higher

variability implies higher risk.

Attitudes towards risk

Risk and return are two important considerations for investment. All investors prefer

higher return to lower return and lower risk to higher risk.

Based on investor's attitude towards risk, there are three types of investors.

1. Risk averters - investor prefers the investment with less risk to one with more

risk, assuming both investment offer same expected return. Risk aversion is

the attitude of rational investors. A risk avert investor expects to earn higher

rates of returns on investment of higher risk and lower rates on lower risk

investments.

2. Risk neutral - who don not require changes in their required rate of return for

the changes in risk.

3. Risk seekers - who could reduce their required rate of return for increased risk.

Decision Making

The Riskiness of an investment is the amount of certainly with which the return

on that investment, including recouping the initial investment can be predicted.

Riskiness, is defined as the variability of the returns from a proposed investment.

It is measured by either the variance, or the standard deviation of a probability

distribution of the distribution of the returns on that investment.

The variance of an assets return from historical sample return can be calculated.

Where,

2

j =Variance of asset j

2

12

1

n

rrn

t

jjt

j



n= the number of observations (periods) in the sample

rjt = the return on the asset j in period i

jr

= the expected return on the asset j

By Standard deviation

The distribution may be either empirically or subjectively determined. Some

evaluation techniques use simulation based on very limited subjective data.

The distributions of expected returns for four investments are shown in figure below

These are normal distributions.

The investment return is measured on the x axis by present net worth. The high points

of the distribution are the mean and provide the best estimate (the point estimate) of

the investment's return.

The y axis measures the probability that he indicated investment return will occur.

The point estimates for investments (A and B) are both Rs. 5000. The investor would

be indifferent between these two investments if risk were not considered.

The distribution show that investment A is far less risky than investment B.

Investment A will never be less than about Rs. 4000 nor more than about Rs. 6000,

while there is a chance that investment B will return o rupees.

Ordinary, the investor is assumed be a risk averter and would choose investment A

rather than investment B.

2

1

2

1

)(

n

rErn

t

jjt

jj

PNW

Pro

bab

ility

Investment C Investment D

0 5 4 10

Thousands Rupees

Pro

bab

ility

Investment A

Investment B

5 0 10

Thousands Rupees

PNW



The investor who was not a risk averter that is, was a gambler of the choose

investment B because of the chance of receiving a return as high as Rs. 10,000.

The return for investments C and D are different. The point estimate for investment C

is Rs. 4,000, while for D it is Rs. 5,000.

Investment D would be chosen if risk were ignored. The distributions show that

investment C with lower return is less risky than investment D with the higher return.

The decision is ambiguous because the higher return is for the riskier investment.

The standard deviation or variance for each distribution could be calculated and used

as quantitative guidelines of each investments riskiness, however they do not provide

a final decision.

The choice between these investments depends on how much risk the individual

investor is willing to take.

The distribution or their means and standard deviations can be estimated either

empirically or subjectively.

Empirical estimation is based on actual observations of past investments. Studies can

be mad and means and variances calculated. However there must be many

investments with similar to those on which the calculations were based.

Subjective estimate by the managerial personal families with the proposed investment

may be possible if a normal distribution of returns can be assumed. A 'best estimate'

of cash flow is obtained and used as the distribution mean.

Variability can be estimated by obtaining judgmental estimates of the likelihood of

the cash flow being more or less than the mean.

3.4.2 Decision making with uncertainly

Decision models for decision making with uncertainly usually require developing

a decision or pay off matrix.

Alternatives

States of nature

S1 S2 S3

A1 12 8 2

A2 7 5 5

A3 0 10 15

In the above table, if alternatives 1 are chosen a less of 12 units will occur for state

of nature S1, a loss of 8 units for S2 and a loss of 2 units for S3.

The minimum criterion, also called the maximum criterion, takes a pessimistic

view of life and seeks to avoid the most objectionable circumstances. The

criterion is called minimum because of minimizes the chance of the maximum

loss. It implicitly assumes only the best possible outcomes will occur and picks

the best among them.

The criterion is to choose the best possible outcomes for each alternative and then

to choose the alternative with the best among these.

The best outcomes in the decision matrix (above table) are S3 for A1 (loss =2), S2

and S3 for A2 (loss =5) and S1 for A3 (loss = 0). The criterion instructs to pick A3



(loss = 0). The criterion instructs to pick A3 because this has the least loss that is

the highest payoff.

The minimax regret criterion incorporates the idea of opportunity cost into the

decision making process.

The decision matrix is recalculated to show the amount of "regret" and would

occur in each state of nature if the wrong alternative were chosen.

The alternative with the minimum loss in each state of nature is chosen as the

most desirable and subtracted from all other outcomes for the state of nature. The

resulting decision matrix decision matrix is then minimaxed.

In the above table, if S1 prevailed, the best alternative is A3 because that has the

least loss.

This loss value is then subtracted from all other outcomes in S1 to show the

amount of regret.

Table: Decision matrix for minimax region criterion.

Alternatives

States of nature

S1 S2 S3

A1 12-0=12* 8-5=3 2-2=0

A2 7-0=7* 5-5=0 5-2=3

A3 0-0=0 10-5=5 15-2=13*

*Maximum amount of regret for each alternative

The rationale is that the decision maker would have no regret if he choose A3 and

S1 prevailed because that is the best he could do.

The difference bet A3 and the other alternatives is the amount of regret incurred if

one of these alternatives were chosen instead of A3.

The procedure is repeated for the other state of nature, S2 and S3.

The maximum amount of regret for each alternative is identified in the matrix by

asterisks.

A2 is chosen as the course of action because it has the minimum amount of regret.

The principle of insufficient reason statues that you should assign equal weight to

each state of nature and choose the alternative with the highest payoff if you know

absolutely nothing about the probabilities of occurrence.

The criterion require taking the mean payoff for each alternative, which in the first

table is A1 = 7.3333, A2 = 5.667; and A3 = 8.333.

A2 is chosen because it has the highest payoff (least loss). This criterion is very

close to placing a subjective probability distribution on the state of nature.



Unit-4: Rotation

4.1 Concept and types of rotation Agricultural crops are sown, they ripen and are harvested once or twice a year, at the

same time; their period of maturity is easily determined

Forest Crop:-

• The main forest product (timber) takes a long time to mature.

• Maturity of the tree is generally estimated by the age, size, and growth vigour

• Beyond age/size, quality of timber starts falling off.

• Maturity of timber depends on natural condition of growth and economic condition

4.1.1 Concepts definitions

Definition

The period which a forest crop takes between its formation and final felling is known

as rotation or production period.

Rotation or production period is the interval of time between the formation of a

young crop by seedling, planting or other means and its final harvesting ( Osmaston).

Rotation is the period which elapses between the formation of a wood and the time

when it is finally cut over ( Jerram).

Concept of rotation in regular crops The term rotation is correctly applicable to regular crop only.

In clear- feeling system and plantation, rotation is definite period of interval between

the year of formation and final felling.

In regular forest in general, entire crops of trees of a sizeable area are felled at a time

(regeneration period in Regular Shelter wood System) when ready for feeling.

There is more or less, a clear production period which can be planned in advance to

give timber, which satisfies the object of management.

In Shelter wood system, rotation is fixed for the whole working circle as a unit, as the

average length of time between the establishment of crops and their harvesting.

Some limitations Rate of growth will vary with site variation, even for the same species.

It involves sacrifice of immature trees/crops, as some will not have reached

exploitable size.

Accident, such as fire, disease, wind-throw may happen, necessitating felling earlier

than planned.

To obtain desired profits, stand will have to be felled finally at various times

depending on their rate of growth.

Concept of rotation in irregular forest In uneven aged (irregular) Selection forest, trees are selected individually on their merit for

felling, depending on:

Qualities of size, vigor and suitability for markets.

Adjustment of proportion of different sizes.

Silvicultural principles, e.g. removals of inferior stems in favor of better ones.

Such a system clearly has greater flexibility, and enables forester to adopt feelings to

suit different rates of growth caused by variation in site or species.



Moreover, forest is a perpetual entity and never suffers complete clearance of trees

on any part of the area, except periodical thinning. Therefore,

Size being the criterion for felling, age is known, and

There being no final harvesting, there is no rotation as defined above.

However, one could say that its rotation period is equal to that of the average age of

the exploitable size trees removed- the exploitable age, at which they attain the size

required to fulfill the objects of management.

Maturity in selection forests is related to size, and exploitable size is fixed for

removal of individual trees.

Size should be used as a standard for exploitability, and not age.

4.1.2 Types of Rotations

Rotation is an important factor in the regulation of yield and proper management of

the forest as a whole.

It depends mainly on the objects of management.

Types of rotation

1. Physical Rotation It is the rotation, which coincide with the natural lease of life of a species on given

site.

The natural life span of trees varies greatly with species and site factors. This rotation

is applicable only in case of protection and amenity forest, park lands and roadside

avenues.

It is very variable, fairly long and also indefinite.

It is also interpreted as the rotation in which the age up to which the trees remain,

sound, or produce viable seed in high forest and in coppice crops, can put forth

reliable coppice shoots.

This rotation is not of any relevance to economic forestry.

2. Silvicultural Rotation It is the rotation through which a species retains satisfactory vigor of growth and

reproduction on a given site.

It can neither be lower than the age at which trees start producing fertile seed in

sufficient quantity, nor beyond the age when they stop doing so.

It is not only long but has very wide range of limits.

It is useful in forest managed primarily for aesthetic and recreational purpose, where

large old trees with accompanying regeneration provide scenic beauty.

It is similar to physical rotation.

3. Technical rotation It is the rotation under which a species yields the maximum material of a specified

size or suitability for economic conversions or for special use.

It aims at producing the maximum material of specific dimension/quality for specific

purpose, such as railway slippers, saw logs etc.

Since trees in a crop may yield different assortments of material, and the trees may

attain given size at different times, it provides no point for fixing the rotation.



4. Rotation of maximum volume production It is the rotation that yields the maximum annual quantity of material: i.e the age at

which the mean annual increment ( M.A.I) culminates.

MAI refer to the stand but not that of individual trees. The length of the rotation will

coincide with the year when the average or volume increment per unit area reaches

the maximum i.e . the age indicated by the point of intersection of CAI and MAI.

This rotation is particularly suitable for adoption where the total quantity of woody

material is important and not the size specifications, eg. firewood, raw material for

paper industries.

If rotation is r, final yield Yr and volumes of thinning at various ages Va, Vb, Vc etc.

then the age at which

is the maximum, is the rotation of maximum of volume production.

5. Rotation of highest income/revenue It is the rotation which yields the highest average annual gross or net income

irrespective of the capital values of the forests.

It is calculated without interest and irrespective of the time when the items of income

or expenditure occurs.

Mean annual net income/unit area

Where, Yr = value of final felling (final yield) per unit area

Tr = Value of thinning during rotation period R, per unit area

C = Cost of formation of stand, per unit area.

e= annual cost of annual administration/ maintenance, per unit area

r = rotation (year)

The rotation at which the net revenue as calculated is maximum, is the rotation of

highest revenue/income

This rotation is important from the overall national point of view.

6. Financial rotation

It is the rotation which yields the highest net return on the invested capital.

It differs from the rotation of highest net income in that all items of revenue and

expenditure are calculated with compound interest at an assumed rate, usually the rate

at which the gov. is able to borrow money.

It is the rotation which gives the highest discounted profit, usually at its

commencement.

r

vYrIAM

...

R

eCTrYr



Is the rotation which is most profitable.

It is rotation which gives the net return on capital value.

4.1.3 Choice and length of rotation

For considering the choice of most suitable rotation under different social, silvicultutal

and economic conditions, the above mentioned types may be subdivided into three main

groups, which satisfy three broad objectives.

1. Rotations controlling the supply of certain services- i.e the silvicultural and physical

rotations.

2. Rotation controlling the output of material forest products in form or quality- i.e the

technical and maximum volume production rotations.

3. Rotation controlling the financial returns, i.e the rotation of maximum gross or net

income and financial rotation.

Before making a choice of suitable rotation, the forester has to carefully consider the

following:

i. Objective of management

ii. Silvicultural requirement of the species‟

iii. Productivity of site

iv. The market demand and /or rational requirements

v. Socio-economic policy of the state/labor conditions employment‟s etc

vi. Financial and economic aspects

Length of Rotation

The length of rotation depends on;

Rate of growth:-Species, Fertility, Thinning

Silvicultural characteristics of the species:- Life span, Seed production age etc.

Response of the soil:-Exposure, Biotic influence etc.

Economic Considerations:- Cost, Price, Time

Social condition:- socioeconomic, employment, Policy

Why Rotation is Important?

It is a part of planning and hence ease in management

It fixes the time of harvest for specific purposes.

It guides to provide maximum benefits from a limited resources.

Regulation of Yield

It fixes the size/quality of trees for specific purposes

4.2 Rotation determination methods

4.2.1 Biological Criteria:- Insects, Disease, Fire, Mean Annual Increment

4.2.2 Financial / Economic Criteria:- Money Yield Table, Forest Rent, Land Expectation

Value, Present Net Worth, Internal Rate of Return, Financial Maturity

4.2.3 Social /Environmental Criteria:-Weather,

Labor available, User‟s need

4.2.2 Financial / Economic Criteria



1. Mean Annual Increment (MAI) The MAI is the total volume per acre divided by the age of the stand at that time.

MAI= YA /A

Where, MAI= mean annual increment

A= the stand age

Y= yield or volume of wood that will be harvested at age A

The MAI criteria does not directly consider the value of the products produced.

It does not take into account direct production cost.

2. Money Yield Table Different prices over time are often assumed for the money yield table.

Money yield table is used to maximize total revenue in a single rotation, but not over

time.

Neither production cost nor the time value of money is taken into account.

3. Forest Rent It is the average net income per year and is calculated by subtracting cost per acre by

revenue per acre, divided by age.

FRA = TRA TCA

A

Where,

A = Age of the stand

FR = Forest rent in year A.

TR = Total Revenue from harvesting the stand at age A, the money yield table

TC = Total cost of growing the stand to Age A.

4. Land Expectation Value Land expectation value is nothing more than a special case of PNW that has certain

restrictive assumptions made on it. These are

− Land value is zero

− The land has no residual stand

− The land will be forested in perpetuity.

− The cash flows from the forest will be the same in perpetuity.

Where,

Le= the land expectation value

Vo= the present value of a perpetual periodic annuity that will be every n years

n= the number of years between annuity payments


The criteria consider all cost and revenue except land cost.

If maximum Le is found at year 20 which is indicated as the rotation age.

Time value of money is considered, which is important in determining rotation age.

Le has shorter rotation than MAI criterion

5. Present Net Worth

0.1)0.1(

)0.1(

n

n

oei

iVL



The difference between the PNW and the Le criterion is that land and its subsequent sale

are included in PNW and the analysis is made for a single rotation.

It considers all future costs & revenue as well as time value of money.

PNW is perhaps the most widely accepted single criterion for management, and

hence recommended single criterion for rotation determination.

Where,

PNW= Present net worth

Rt= the revenue or positive cash flows in year t

Ct= the cost or negative cash flows in year t

t= the year in which the cash flows occurs


6. Financial Maturity A timber tree or individual tree is financially mature when the increase in selling

value in the periods between cuts is equal to the alternative rate of return (ARR)

These calculations are done prior to each time a stand or tree might be cut and cover

the period until the next time a cut might occurs.

It offer by the authors as a field guide

Rotation and conversion period The term Conversion is defined as “a change from one silvicultural system or one (set

of) species to another”.

Conversion period is “the Period during which a change from one silvicultural system

to another is effected and/or from one species to another”.

Rotation and conversion period are basically two entirely different terms.

Conversion period is indicated where a change in silvicultural system is contemplated,

or where a forest is brought under scientific management for the first time, and no

rotation can be calculated or applied straight away for various reasons.

While it is necessary to fix a rotation in case case of regular forests, it is not so with

conversion period, the latter is fixed where it is considered necessary to minimize

sacrifice.

Conversion period is fixed only when a change has to be made from one system to

another whereas rotation is a must for the scientific management of any forest.

Conversion period is usually less than rotation, may be sometimes even more than

rotation, but when equal, it is not distinguished. The greater the differene between the

n

tttt

iCRPNW

0 )0.1(

0.1



conversion period and rotation, greater is the sacrifice and more difficult it is to bring

the forest on to the conetemplated rotation at the end of conversion period.

Conversion period is usually kept less than rotation when it is desirable to remove the

mature crop earlier than the rotation period due to;

i. Crop not likely to survive the full rotation period.

ii. Crop has suffered from some injury.

iii. Crop is very openly or irregularly stocked.

iv. Crop is putting on small increment

v. Advance growth is already present on the ground and , therefore, time required for

replacement of mature crop by new one can be shortened.

Conversion period is a very important consideration. When conversion period is short,

the conversion proceed with a fast pace or speed; on the other hand, if it is long, the

conversion is slow. The following considerations affect the decision about the length

of conversion period.

i. Sacrifice of immature crop

ii. Proportion of the over mature growing stock with negative increment.

iii. Gap between the age of first converted crop and the exploitable age at the end of

conversion period.

Purpose of conversion 1. Change in crop composition

Increasing yield of the existing forests

to meet the sharply increasing demand of industrial materials

• paper industry

• Packing case industry

• Cigarette industry

2. Change in silvicultural system

Change in mode of regeneration

Change in the character of the crop without change in mode of regeneration

Advantage of particular system

Failure of an existing system

Advances in silvicultural knowledge and perfection of regeneration technique

Development of communications and increase in demand

Some examples of conversion in Nepal

1. Conversion of coppice forest to high forest (Sal) in Shankar Nagar, Butwal by

Department of Forest Research and Survey

2. Conversion of natural forest to plantation forest (degraded sal forest) in Sagarnath by

Sagarnath Forest Development Project.



Unit-5: Forest regulation

Forest regulation determines the what, where, and when of timber harvesting on the

managed forest.

The regulation decisions indicate what species and how much of them should be cut.

The heart of any forest regulation plan is to indicate the time period, most commonly

the 5-year period in which the timber should be cut.

Forest regulation decisions are far-reaching and ubiquitous, they determine both the

timber and non-timber products obtained from the forest.

A regulated forest is one that yields an annual or periodic crop of about equal volume,

size and quality.

Forest regulation consists of manipulating forest lands and growing stock to best

achieve the forest owner‟s yield objectives.

The necessary condition for a regulated forest is the periodic yield, not the quantity

or degree of site utilization.

Regulating a forest is often a main forest management objective. The regulated forest

is desired to obtain a sustained yield of forest crops.

However, depending on the current forest condition, sustained yield may not occur

for many years.

Regulation of a forest may cause opportunity costs in other management objectives,

such as even current wood flow, maximizing PNW, or maintaining scenic vistas.

Thus, forest regulation consists of manipulating forest lands and growing stock to

best achieve the forest owner‟s yield objectives.

5.1 Concepts and approaches 5.1.1 The normal forest concept

A normal forest is an ideal state of forest condition, which serve as standard for

comparison of an actual forest estate, so that the deficiencies of the later are brought

out for purposes of sustained yield management.

On the given site, and for a given object of management, it is a forest which has an

ideal growing stock, an ideal distribution of age-classes of the component crop and is

putting on an ideal increment.

From such a forest, annual or periodic yields equal to the increment can be realized

indefinitely, without endangering future yield and without detriment to the site of

perfection, serving the purpose of good scientific management.

“ A forest which, for a given site and given objects of management, is ideally

constituted as regards growing stocks, age class distribution and increment, and from

which the annual or periodic removal of produce equal to the increment can be

continued indefinitely without endangering future yields. A forest which by reason of

normalcy in these respects serve as a standard of comparison for sustained yield

management "(Glossary of Technical Terms).

Normality Concept not absolute: related to treatment and rotation As a result of growth of trees, harvesting and other unforeseen influences, the

condition of forest changes.

Even if normality ideal condition is achieved in a forest, it is seldom possible to

preserve it for a long time.



There is no absolute normality, remaining unaltered everywhere in the forest, and for

all time, but only a relative one which corresponding best to the circumstance for the

time being.

The Normal forest is purely an artificial conception developed to meet the needs of

forest management.

No virgin forest is normal. The nearest approach to theoretical normality is made in

plantation, which are entirely artificial.

There is no such thing as absolute normality is related to both rotation, and the system

of management.

What is normal increment, normal age-classes and normal growing stock for a forest

on a sixty-year rotation is obviously not normal for a hundred-year rotation.

Similarly, the data for normality may vary for a coppice forest, an even aged high

forest and a selection forest, although the species, the site and the rotation may be the

same in all classes.

The normal forest is created not by nature, but by progressive scientific treatment. It is

a mathematical abstraction, on which all methods of yield regulation are based.

The normal forest and its management can be demonstrated by assuming a 25 hectare

forest on a 25 year rotation with 25 stands, each 1 year older than the next. The site is

equal on all stands.

Each stand is cut on January 1 of its 25th

year and instantaneously regenerated.

In figure 1, stand A1 is one year old in 1975, 2 years old in 1976, 3 years old in 1977

and 25 years old in 1999.

The sequence starts in 1975. A normal age class distribution exists because there are

25 stands, each varying in age by an equal interval, the oldest being equal to the

rotation age. Their productivity is equal because the site and stocking are equal on

each stand.

On January 1, 1976, stand E5 is cut, because it has reached rotation age, and is

instanteously regenerated to normal stocking.



This harvesting sequence continues in perpetuity. The oldest stand is cut each year

and regenerated. The flow of wood from the forest is constant and equal because each

stand is the same or equally productive.

A normal forest and a regulated forest are not the same thing. The difference is that

all normal forests are regulated but not all regulated forests are normal.

A normal forest is a sufficient condition for regulation but it is not a necessary

condition. A forest may be regulated but not normal.

A normal forest is a maximum concept (maximum increment) and deals with an even

aged forest.

A regulated forest may be even or uneven aged and need not produce maximum

increment. Thus a normal forest is a special case of a regulated forest.

Normality in regular/even aged forests The clear felling system, in which all age gradations from one year to rotation age are

present, each occupying equi-extensive/equi-productive areas, in which the rotation

age coupe is felled and regenerated every year, offers the simplest example of a

conventional normal forest, capable of giving annual sustained yield.

Figure 1: Map of normal forest over time. Number in cells are stand age.

1975 1976

1999 1977



It is not at all necessary, though desirable, that each age-gradations be in one compact

area, it may be scattered among other age gradations throughout the forest, provided

the total area is correct.

Except when the rotations are very short, as in coppice system and /or plantations of

some fast growing species, it is seldom practical to distinguish between age

differences of only one year, specially where regeneration is mainly natural. In such

cases, five, ten or even more age gradations may be grouped together to form an age

class.

Shorter the regeneration period, narrower will be the age class range and more even

aged the stand; conversely, longer the regeneration period, wider will be the age class

range and less even aged the stand.

Normality in irregular/unevenaged forests The number of trees in each size class can ascertain normality of an uneven-aged

selection forest; it must have a normal series of size-gradations of the normal even-

aged.

In addition, it must have the normal volume and normal increment, as well as the

amount of irregularity per unit area that is deemed to be most satisfactory.

About irregular selection forests, some people even think there can be no normal

selection forest; this of course is incorrect. It is true that it is easy to visualize a

normal forest of pure, even-aged, density stocked stand, each age occupying separate

areas arranged in a sequence.

5.1.2 Yield tables and yield regulations Yield table is a tabular statement which summarizes on per unit area basis all the

essential data relating to the development of a fully stocked and regularly thinned

even aged crop at periodic intervals covering the greater part of its useful life.

It differs from the volume table in the sense that while the volume tables gives the

volume of an average tree by diameter and/or height classes, yield tables gives

different parameters of a crop such as number of trees, crop height, crop diameter,

crop basal area, volume of standing crop, volume removed in thinnings, MAI, CAI

etc. It gives all the quantitative information regarding development of a crop.

Yield table is not applicable to uneven aged forest because in its present form it has

been compiled from even aged pure crops and therefore applicable to them alone.

Yield tables have not been prepared so far for unevenaged crops because of the

difficulties involved and the main difficulty is that there is no one representative

average age.

Some tables have been prepared for such crops but they show the ratio of increment

(current or mean annual) to help in deciding the policy of management.

Kinds of yield tables Yield tables are further classified on the basis of the grades of thinning and whether the

outturn is expressed in volume or value.

(a) On the basis of the number of grades of thinnings used 1. Single yield table: It is an yield table in which parameters have been given only for

one grade of thinning which is usually c grade.

2. Multiple yield table: These are yield tables in which data are given for different

grades of thinnings.

(b) On the basis of volume/value given



1. Volume yield table: It is an yield table which expresses outturn in terms of volumes.

2. Money yield table: It is an yield table constructed from volume yield table in which

outturn is expressed in terms of money in stead of volume.

(c) On the basis of applicability

1. Normal Yield Table A normal yield table is based on two independent variables, age and site (species

constant), and applies to fully stocked (or normal) stands.

It depicts relationships between volume/unit area together with other stand parameters

and the independent variables.

2. Empirical Yield Table In contrast to normal yield tables, empirical yield tables are based on average rather

than fully stocked stands.

The resulting yield tables describe stand characteristics for the average stand density

encountered during the collection of field data.

Application and use of yield table 1. Determination of site quality or fractional site quality.

2. Estimation of total yield or growing stock.

a. Estimation of total yield or growing stock at present age.

b. Estimation of total yield or growing stock at some future age of a stand

3. Determination of increment of stand.

4. Determination of rotation.

5. Preparation of stock map by site qualities.

6. As a guide to silvicultural thinnings

a. Number of stems corresponding to a given age.

b. Number of trees corresponding to a given crop diameter.

Yield regulation A term generally applied to the determination of the yield and the prescribed means of

realizing it.

It means the fixing in advance, usually for a short period – the working plan period –

the amount of timber or other produce which may be removed from the forest,

annually or periodically (Amatya and Shrestha, 2002).

Yield regulations involved two functions i. Calculation/ determination of amount of yield and prescribing the means of achieving

it.

ii. Construction of a cutting (felling) plan

Correct regulation of yield is one of the main functions of sound forest management.

The objects of regulating yield, in short, are To cut each crop or tree at maturity

To obtain maximum yield of the desired produce

To cut, approximately, the same quantity of material annually or periodically and

To limit the area to be felled to that which can be regenerated.

The yield is usually regulated for the period of the working plan.

5.2 Regulating plantation forest (even aged forest) 5.2.1 Concepts

Even aged forests are „those forests which are composed of even aged woods‟.



The term even aged used in this definition is applied to a stand consisting of trees of

approximately the same age.

Differences up to 25% of the rotation age may be allowed in cases where a stand is

not harvested for hundred years or more (Khanna, 2004).

Even aged forests and their management predominate in forestry for two good

reasons.

First, the most important commercial tree species are generally intolerant and hence

are found and best managed in even aged stands.

Second, economies of scale make it less expensive to reproduce and harvest even

aged stands.

Even aged management is keyed to the periodic birth and death of stands as

determined by rotation age.

While rotation age is surely the dominant decision, many others are needed to

characterize the structure, quality, and growth of stands on each unit of area.

Decision needed in even aged management (Davis and Johnson, 1987) 1. Rotation length: The interval between one regeneration harvest and next regeneration

harvest. The stand age at final harvest and the rotation interval between harvests are

the same if new trees are successfully established the same year as the existing stand

is harvested. If the establishment is delayed, age of harvest is less than the rotation

and if advanced regeneration is considered as final crop for next rotation then age of

final harvest is more than rotation age.

The regulatory rotation age is the number of years between final harvest cuts. This is

the number of years that would be used in cash flow analysis.

The cutting rotation age is the age of the timber stand when it is cut.

Cutting rotation age may be less than ( in clear cut system where land is left fallow

for 1 or more years before stand establishment), equal to (new stand established

immediately) or greater than (reproduction is established prior to harvest, shelterwood

system) the regulatory rotation age.

2. Commercial thinning: The number and timing of entries and the amount and kind of trees

removed at each intermediate entry prior to regeneration harvest.

3. Species for regeneration: Species and genetic stock selected to regenerate each stand type

in the forest.

4. Site preparation and regeneration method: The combination of pre and post harvest

treatments scheduled to establish the desired species and control early growth.

5. Other cultural treatment: Pre-commercial thinning, release and fertilization.

In a simplest case, a regulated even aged forest is composed of single species in a uniform

site giving equal growth under same management intensity with each age class forming one

stand type.

5.2.2 Application Strategies for Even Aged Forest Regulation

Given the existing forest and a conception of the fully regulated forest that we would

like to achieve, classical timber management scheduling addressed the questions of

how many area and much volume to cut.

Over the years of forest management history, several methods for determining cut

were developed. Most of these methods fall into one of following two categories.

A. Area Control



The principle of area control is very simple: harvest and regenerate the same number

of area each year or period that would be harvested in a fully regulated forest.

The resultant volume harvested is defined by the timber on the area scheduled for

cutting each year.

The unmodified area control method is best suited if productivity and stocking are the

same in all areas of forest.

However, site and stocking rate in a forest are seldom equal and unmodified area

control can cause large fluctuation in annual volume harvested.

A hypothetical 7000 ha Teak forest, with age distribution is as shown in table 1, is

used as an example.

Assume that rotation of that forest is 70 years. One hundred hectares would be desired

in each age from 1 to 70 years.

Table 1: Age-distribution for hypothetical teak forest

Age class Ha Age class Ha

1-10 750 41-50 1250

11-20 250 51-60 0

21-30 250 61-70 1250

31-40 750 71+ 2500

Total 7000



The regulation objective is to rearrange these age classes to obtain a normal or near

normal age distribution by manipulating the cutting schedule. A comparison between

the actual and desired age class distribution can be made by noting that seven age

classes are desired; therefore 1000 ha (7000/ 7 age classes) are desired in each age

class.

Years to cut = Sum of ha to be cut(41-50 to 71+ age classes)/Ha to be cut

every year

= (2500+1250+1250) / 100

= 5000 / 100

= 50 years

Thus, it would take 50 years to cut all ha from those in oldest stand back down to

those currently in the 41-50 age class.

Calculating the age distribution of uncut stands is uncomplicated. The current age

distribution can be thought of as occurring at time period zero (t = 0) and age

distribution 50 years in the future at t = 50 will be examined.

Table shows the age distribution after 50 years of harvest.

Age distribution calculations at t=50

Age class at t=0 Age class at t=50 Area in ha

1-10 51-60 750

11-20 61-70 250

21-30 71-80 250

31-40 81-90 750

41-50 1-10 1000

11-20 250

51-60 0 0

61-70 11-20 750

21-30 500

70+ 21-30 500

31-41 1000

41-50 1000

After a full rotation, the forest is completely regulated, with an equal number of areas

in each age class. Following are some advantages and disadvantages of area control

method.

Advantages i. It is easy and simple to apply.

ii. Leads to absolute regularity of age gradations.

Disadvantages



i. It is very rigid; every change of rotation will necessitate re-division of the coupes.

ii. Prescribe felling without considerations of the crop condition.

B. Volume Control Volume control is a method of determining the annual cut or harvest by specifying the

volume of wood to be cut each year.

There are many formulas that can be used to determine volume to harvest, e.g.,

Hundeshagen‟s formula, Von Mantel‟s formula, Austrian formula, etc.

Volume control calculations usually require knowing total growing stock volume and

better suited for uneven aged forest management. It does not specify the location

where the given volume of wood to be harvested.

1. Method Based on Current Growing Stock and Potential Growth One elementary approach to volume control requires only an inventory of the existing

forest and the potential growth of the managed forest of the future.

Growth is assumed to be proportional to its inventory in the same ratio that growth is

proportion to inventory in the regulated forest.

Hundeshagen’s Formula In general, forest stands are assumed to have normal or full stocking, which is seldom

in practice, and therefore yield tables estimates must be adjusted for under stocked

forest.

Hundeshagen‟s formula is simply a proportion in which the yield is assumed to have

a straight line relationship with growing stock.

Where,

Ya= Actual yield

Ga= Actual growing stock

Yr= Yield in fully stocked forest at rotaion age

Gr= Growing stock in fully stocked forest at rotation age

2. Method Based on Growing Stock Only

Von Mantle’s Formula Von mantle‟s formula is sometimes called as triangle formula because of its

derivation and which is an extension of Hundeshagen‟s formula and eliminates the

need of yield table. Basic assumption for this formula is that, in a regulated forest,

growing stock increases in a straight line with age. The existence of rotation age as a

variable implies that the formula be used only on even aged stands. Growing stock

can then be expressed as a right angle triangle. The formula is,

Where,

Gr = Volume of growing stock at rotation age R = Rotation age Yr = Yield at rotation age

3. Method Based on Growing Stock and Its Increment

Gr

Yr

Ga

Ya

2

RYrGr



Current growing stock is rarely sufficient to establish an adequate volume control

without considering current increment; the two measures have often been combined

for yield regulation.

Austrian Formula This formula combines increment with a means of adjusting the volume of the

growing stock either upward or downward. The formula in general terms is,

Where,

I = annual increment

Ga = Present growing stock

Gr = Desired growing stock

a = adjusted period in years, which may be a full rotation

Hanzlik Formula This formula was originally developed to meet a common problem in the even aged

Douglas-fir stands of the Pacific Northwest: initiating management in unregulated

forests that had contain mostly old growth. The formula is,

Where,

Vm = Volume of merchantable timber above rotation age

R = Rotation adopted for future stand in years

I = Forest Increment

Some terminology Working circle: A forest area (forming the whole/ part of a working plan area) organized

with a particular objective and subject to one and some silv. system and same set of working

plan preparations. (Plantation w.c.,Regn. w.c.)

Felling series: A forest area forming the whole/part of a w.c. to

1. Distribute felling and regeneration and suit local conditions

2. To maintain/create normal distribution of age classes. (when w.c. is undivided, it is

F.S.)

Coupe: In clear felling system, a F.S. is divided into a number of annual coupes (annual

felling areas), equal to no.of years in rotation. Size of each coupe= A/R ha (A=area (ha) of

F.S. R=Rotation)

Cutting sections: A sub-division of F.S. for regulating cuttings in some specified manner.

-A planned separation of fellings in successive years (4/5 years)

(To avoid fellings for danger of fire, insect attack in successive coupes)

Even Aged Forest Regulation under Different Silvicultural Systems Silvicultural system is a method of silvicultural procedure worked out in accordance

with accepted sets of silvicultural principles by which crops constituting mature

forests are harvested, regenerated, tended and replaced by new crops of distinctive

forms (Khanna, 2004).

Two silvicultural systems (i.e., clear felling system and shelterwood system) in high

forest system produces even aged forest condition, so yield regulation under these two

systems are dealt here.

a

GrGaICutAnnual

.

IR

VmCutAnnual ..



A. Yield Regulation in Clear Felling System Clear felling system is that silvicultural system in which equal or equi-productive

areas of mature crop are successively clear felled and regenerated and the crop

obtained is regular / even aged in which age gradations are determined by area.

Yield regulation can be obtained by two methods under clear felling system.

1. Annual Coupe by Gross Area This is the oldest and simplest form of regulating yield from a forest and was first

applied in France in the 14th

century. Initially it was applied to coppice crops worked

on short rotation up to 20 years.

Here in this system, the area of forest or the felling series (say A ha.) is divided into a

number of annual coupes equal to the number of years in the rotation (R). Area of one

coupe to be felled in every year is A/R ha.

This method of yield regulation will ensure equal sustained yield in the second and

subsequent rotation (if there are no unforeseen accidents), though it may not in the

first. Annual coupes, so formed, which are equal in ground area, are known as equi-

extensive coupes.

Applications: It was first applied to coppice crop worked on short rotation, up to 20 years,

subsequently, with the introduction of coppice with standard system; this method was

applied to coppice with reserves. This method is now equally applicable to high forest

worked on clear felling and artificial regeneration as in Nilambur (Kerala) Teak

plantation.

In India, this method is widely adopted in plantations particularly those coppiced for

fuel wood.

This method regulates the final yield i.e. felling in areas to be finally felled at rotation

age and regenerated. It doesn‟t take into account intermediate yield from cleaning,

and thinning in the younger crops.

This method is widely used in areas where there is profuse regeneration.

2. Annual Coupes by Reduced Area Since the density and site quality may vary from coupe to coupe, reduction factors

should be applied for equalizing annual yield and areas allotted to each coupe, made

equi-productive rather than equi-extensive.

This method gives better result than above method and also a modification to

implement in different site qualities.

B. Yield Regulation in Regular Shelterwood System Regular shelterwood system is that system in which the mature crops are removed in

series of operation and the resulting forest is even aged in which age classes are

recognized by area.

1. Yield Based on Area Allotments by Periods This is similar to regulation by fixed area but is less rigid.

It differs in that the felling area is not permanently fixed on the ground, in the order of

felling, but instead compartments or sub compartments are allotted to various periods

of rotation.



Rotation is divided into a number of convenient periods (depending on regeneration

period, 10-30 years).

Area allotted to various periods is known as period blocks (PBs.). All PBs are of

equal or equi-productive areas.

This method is also known as „Periodic Block Method’. Allotment to PBs may be

permanent (Fixed PBs), Revocable, Single or Floating.

i. Permanent Allotment Method The method consists of permanent allocation areas in all the PBs. This arrangement of

PBs is possible in forests where regeneration presents, no difficulty and accidents do

not upset the time schedule.

Where,

P = regeneration period

A = Area of Felling Series.

R = Rotation.

The area may be Gross area where crop and growth condition are uniform in regular

forest or reduced area, for quality. In this method, instead of annual coupes, we have

periodic coupes and annual yield is fixed by volume.

ii. Revocable Allotment Method In this method rotation is divided into periods (suitable regeneration period) and the

felling series into corresponding PBs.

The compartments are allotted according to their average ages, and if necessary,

adjustments are made to equalize the area of various PBs.

Only the regeneration block (PB I) is of immediate importance and it is definitely

allotted whereas the other PBs may be re allotted at each revision, if necessary

according to the crop condition at that time.

The chief feature of this method is that the allotment of PBs, made in one period, may

be changed in the next.

It is more realistic and flexible. For this reason, periodic blocks may not necessarily

be self- contained. They may sometimes be scattered.

iii. Single Allotment Method In this method, the area is allotted to the current regeneration block only.

In this case, the period, as also the area of single PB, is still fixed.

The only gain in elasticity lies in the fact that the remaining PBs are not allotted.

This method is only a step to the method of Floating PB, in which neither the area of

the PB nor the period is fixed in advance.

iv. Floating Periodic Block (FPB) Method This method consists of the allotment of areas ripe for regeneration and exploitation

to one PB.

There is no pre-determined limit as to the size of the PB as formed, nor to the length

of the period .

All wood which are over matured, mature or nearly so, and are ready for regeneration

or in which regeneration has already appeared, may be included in the FPB.

PR

APBofArea ....



In an even aged forest, which is normal or nearly normal, the extent of wood requiring

inclusion in the FPB will be of correct proportion corresponding to the regeneration

time required.

In abnormal forest, a very large proportion may require to be included in the FPB

because of the presence of large extent of over mature woods, and the presence of

advance growth over a large part of the forest. In such circumstances, the area of FPB

is limited on grounds of practical convenience.

The gradual evolution of FPB system from the fixed PB system may be summed up as

follows;

i) Fixed, self- contained PBs with permanent boundaries.

ii) Fixed, scattered, PBs with permanent boundaries.

iii) PBs, scattered or self contained, with boundaries subjected to revision at intervals-

Revocable Allotment Method.

iv) Single PB, scattered or self- contained, with fixed period.

v) Floating PB, passing gradually, over the whole forest.

Each step aimed at greater freedom and elasticity in selection of areas for regeneration

according to Silviculture requirements, without sacrificing the basic principles of

forest management.

The FPB method is also called as Quartier Bleu Method. For calculating the annual

yield, Duchaufour devised a method particularly applicable to the Quartier Bleu

Method of regeneration. He applied the following formula;

Period of exploitation/ Rotation = area of Cpts. in FPB/ Area of F.S.

Alternatively, P/R= FPB/F.S.

So, P= R* FPB/FS

Advantage of the FPB method i. This method closely relates felling to the Silvicultural requirements of each crop.

Only those crop which are in need of regeneration or in which regenerations felling

have already been started, are put in FPB.

ii. No artificial period, in the sense of the time limit for completion of regeneration, is

laid down in any area. The period found by calculation is for regulating the annual

yield, and has no bearing on the intensity or frequency of felling in any particular

crops; these will depend entirely on the progress of regeneration.

Disadvantage i. It works satisfactorily only in those forests which have a more or less normal

distribution of age class.

ii. It is not suitable for irregular forest.

5.3 Regulating natural forest (uneven aged forest) Uneven-aged Forest

An uneven-aged stand is a stand where there are considerable differences in the age of

the trees present and where three or more age classes are represented (Society of

American Foresters, 1958 cited in Leschner, 1984)).

There are three kinds of uneven-aged forests. The first is the “true” all-aged forest,

where all ages and all sizes of trees are found intermixed in the same stand. This is the

classical concept of an uneven-aged stand and is seldom found on the gourd.



The second kind of uneven-aged forest is one composed of small and irregular groups

of more or less even-aged trees. This is the most commonly found situation on the

ground.

The last kind of forest is a mosaic of readily distinguishable even-aged stands spread

throughout the forest. All ages and sizes are present but the individual stands are

predominantly one age and one size (Davis, 1966 cited in Leschner, 1984).

Yield Regulation A term generally applied to the determination of the yield and the prescribed means of

realizing it. It means the fixing in advance, usually for a short period – the working plan

period – the amount of timber or other produce which may be removed from the forest,

annually or periodically (Amatya and Shrestha, 2002). The objects of regulating yield, in

short, are

To cut each crop or tree at maturity

To obtain maximum yield of the desired produce

To cut, approximately, the same quantity of material annually or periodically and

To limit the area to be felled to that which can be regenerated. The yield is usually

regulated for the period of the working plan.

Cutting cycle and Reserve growing stock A cutting cycle is the planned interval between major felling operations in the same

stand, and reserve growing stock is the growing stock in the forest that is reserved

(uncut) to produce the growth for future cuts.

The concept of cutting cycle and reserve growing stock is presented in the following

figure.

In fig., point a is the volume just before harvest, point b is the volume just after

harvest, distance c is the amount of harvest, distance d is the amount of reserve

growing stock and distance e is the cutting cycle.

Regulating the Uneven-aged Forest Concept of regulation of uneven-aged forest means thoughts and ideas how to

regulate or manage properly the uneven-aged forests, and practice means

implementation of such important thoughts and ideas to manage the uneven-aged

forest in a systematic and scientific way and on perpetual basis. Many attempts were

made in the past to manage such forests or to regulate the forest, some of which could

be successful for long-term basis.



Decision needed while regulating uneven-aged forest (Davis and Johnson, 1986) 1. Cutting cycle- number of years between harvest entries on each acre.

2. Reserve growing stock level- residual volume or basal area per acre of the stand

immediately after harvest.

3. Stand structure- number of trees per acre by species and diameter that make up the reserve

growing stock.

4. Sustainability procedures-constraints established on harvesting and regeneration to ensure

maintenance of the stand structure and thus perpetuation of the harvest over all future

cutting cycles.

5. Other cultural treatment-release and fertilization.

6. Species for regeneration-species and genetic stock selected for each stand type in the

forest.

7. Site preparation and regeneration method. Combination of pre and post harvest treatments

scheduled to establish the desired species and control their early growth.

Strategies for uneven-aged forest regulation Given the existing forest and a conception of the fully regulated forest that we would

like to achieve, classical timber management scheduling addressed the questions of

how many hectares and how much volume to cut. Over the years of history forest, a

great many methods of for determining the cut were developed in various parts of

world.

The yield can, broadly, be prescribed in three ways, viz. by area, by volume or by area

and volume combined. In case of yield by area, the entire area, irrespective of the

growing stock, forms the basis of calculation. In case of yield by volume, the volume

of growing stock, the increment or both volume of growing stock and its increment,

may form the basis.

There are basically two models for regulating uneven-aged forest of which are

follows:

A. Conceptual Model for regulating uneven-aged forest The conceptual regulation model is a forest divided into a series of stands that are

regularly harvested on the cutting cycle. The stands all provide an equal volume for

harvest and thus may vary in size depending on site productivity. There are as many

stands as there are years in the cutting cycle, in the simplest case, so that, there may

be several stands, each harvested in the same year, but the sum of the volume

harvested from all stands in each year is the same.

This model can be shown graphically as a series of overlapping cutting cycles. One

cutting cycle for each stand occurs each year and there is a continuous flow of wood

(Fig.2)



Conceptual Model for regulating uneven-aged forest

Maps of uneven-aged forests might look like those in fig. 3 on a 5-year cutting cycle.

Map „a‟ shows five single stands, each of which is cut once every 5 years. Stands 3, 4

and 5 are lower on the slope, border of stream and are more productive. Therefore,

they occupy a smaller area than stands 1 and 2, which are near the ridge top and have

lower productivity. Map „b‟ is a stylized view of multiple stands. Each cell represents

1 stand and there are 25 stands on the forests. Each is the same size, if we assume

there is equal productivity and 5 are cut every year. The numbers in the cell indicate

in which of

the 5 years

the harvest

occurs.

The hectares harvested annually are simply calculated if equal site productivity and

constant reserve growing stock are assumed.

Annual hectares harvested = total ha. in forest /Years in cutting cycle

Limitations of Conceptual model This conceptual model leaves four key questions about the regulated forest unanswered.

These are:

a) How much reserve growing stock should be carried?

b) What should the diameter distribution on the stand be?

c) What should the species composition of the stand be?



d) What should the cutting cycle length be?

a) Volume of Reserve Growing Stock The amount of growth is highly, but not solely, dependent on the reserve growing

stock volume. This is demonstrated by the simple equation;

Growth = growing stock × growth percent

The growth percent is also a function of growing stock volume because, after a point,

the denser the stand, the slower the growth. Thus, beyond a certain point, the larger

growing stock, the smaller the growth percent. In any event, there is no widely used

simple formula to estimate the “proper” level for uneven-aged stands.

b) Diameter Distribution A basic premise of uneven-aged management is that the stand contains trees of all, or

many, age classes and sizes.

The relationship would be a straight line from a purely optimal view (Fig. 4a).

However, many younger trees (those usually with the smaller diameters) do not

survive as result of either mortality or cutting.

Thus, many smaller trees are needed in order to obtain larger ones in the future. These

results in the famous J-shaped curve (Fig. 4b) associated with Meyer (1953).

The J-shaped curve is based on the work of a French forester named De Liocourt.

He believed that the desirable diameter distribution in the stand could be described by

the relationship:

where

X = the number of trees in diameter class„d‟ during time period„t‟ and q= a constant;

0<q<1

This relationship simply states that, in any time period, the number of trees in a

diameter class is some constant proportion of the number of trees in the next smaller

diameter class. It will result in the J-shaped curve when plotted on the pair of axes.

Figure 4: Diameter distributions in uneven-aged stand; a) desired and b) actual

In fact, Hann and Bare (1979) and others cited in their work suggest that the J-shaped

distribution should be questioned and that some other distribution might be better for a given

set of management objectives.

c) Species Composition

1 tdtd qXX



The basic question in species composition is balancing the species that will reproduce

and grow well on the site with those that are desirable for reaching the management

objectives.

The site limitations help define a set of species from which individual species can be

chosen to fulfill management objectives.

Species desirability can be affected by such things as marketability, the owner‟s

aesthetic values, and production of food and shelter for wildlife. However, once again,

there is no simple formula or procedure to determine the most desirable species

composition.

d) Cutting cycle length There are also many factors affecting the cutting cycle length. The final choice is a

balance of these factors, as weighted by management objectives.

Some of the more important factors are species composition, financial needs and site.

The silvicultural characteristics of the particular species planted affect the length of

the cutting cycle in several ways.

Fast growing species can have a shorter cycle and slow growing species a longer

cycle.

The cutting cycle length affects the tree species and the diameter distribution.

In general, shorter cutting cycles allow better biological control because diseased or

infested trees can be cut more often.

B. An Optimizing Model for regulating uneven-aged forest Adams and Ek (1975) developed this model that answers the most of the preceding

major questions in a quantitative manner for individual stands in an uneven-aged

forest.

The model is based on individual tree stand growth and yield models.

Individual tree growth and yield models start with a known stand structure, often a

map of trees in a stand, and „grow‟ the trees from one diameter class to another until

the individual trees are cut or removed by mortality.

Yield is estimated by „stopping‟ the model at the desired time period and adding up

the volume in the trees still present.

Growth is the difference between yields in two time periods. This model is also used

to solve the transition problem between unregulated and regulated stands.

The Adams-Ek model uses an individual tree model, the solution of the program

produces a starting diameter distribution, stated as the number of trees in each

diameter class, which maximizes harvestable growth.

Harvestable growth may be defined as either timber volume or timber value. Thus, the

major question of optimal diameter distribution is answered.

The constraints in stocking level can be iteratively solved for several different

stocking level.

The amount of the harvestable growth can then be noted for each of these different

stocking levels and the highest level chosen.

The maximum harvestable growth calculated as a function of different stocking level,

defines the stocking level.

The optimal stocking level is the one with the largest harvestable growth. Thus, the

major question of optimal stocking level is answered.

The determination of an optimal cutting cycle length is slightly more complex but

follows the same basic scheme.



The growth model can “grow” the stand year by year until the desired growth period,

which is equal to the cutting cycles, is reached.

However, the model can be stopped at any one of the intermediate years, for example

years 1, 2, 3 and 4 for a 5-year growth period, and the growth and yield estimated in

that year. This is done for all the years equal to and less than the number of years in

the cutting cycle.

The calculations are iterated for the different stocking levels, in each of the years.

This results in a set of growths for different length cutting cycles and, within each of

these cutting cycle lengths, a growth figure for each of the different stocking levels.

The maximum growth within any cycle length be chosen, thus defining optimal

stocking for that cycle length.

The maximum growth between each cycle length is selected, thus defining both the

optimal stocking level and cycle length.

This model is used to solve the transition problem between unregulated and regulated

stands.

Hann and Bare (1976) reviewed and suggest that five „problem areas‟ exist that keep such

models from being fully operational. These problem areas are:

1) better computer and algorithm capacities,

2) interfacing stand simulators and nonlinear programs.

3) Better uneven-aged growth and yield simulators;

4) determining optimal species mix; and

5) scheduling cuts forest wide rather than in just a single stand.

Limitations The major question of species composition is still left unanswered.

Time consuming during data computation.

The possibility of an infeasible solution may exist.

The following formulae are mainly used for regulating uneven-aged forests (Prakash,

R., 2001).

a) Yield based on growing stock only:

1) Von Mantel’s Formula and its Modification:

Where,

Y= Yield,

Vo= Volume of Growing stock >71/2 ft girth,

Vr= volume of remainder of the enumerated stock and

R= Rotation

2.French Method of 1883:

Where,

Ya= annual yield, Vo= volume of old class, t1= increment per unit per annum of old class,

and r = Rotation.

b) Yield based on increment only:

1) Increment Method



Where,

Y= annual yield,

V= present volume, Vn= volume „n‟ years ago

a= volume removed during the previous „n‟ years.

2) The Swiss Method

Where,

X= volume of the diameter classes below the fixed dia. limit.

Y= volume of the diameter classes above the dia. limit and upto the limit upto which the c.a.i.

is considered satisfactory.

Z= volume of the dia. classes above the satisfactory dia. limit (i.e. surplus G.S.)

i = the c.a.i of various dia. classes.

c.c. = the period during which the volume of the oldest dia. classes should be removed, or

cutting cycle.

3. Biolley’s Check Method:

Where,

Ya = annual yield; V2 = present G.S. volume; V1 = G.S. volume „n‟ years ago; N = volume

of trees cut; and P = volume of recruitment in „n‟ years.

c) Yield based on Growing Stock and Increment:

1. Hufnagl’s Diameter Class Method:

Where,

n1, n2, n3 and n4 are the number of trees in the lowest to the highest dia. classes (in

ascending order); a1, a2, a3 and a4 are the mean ages of trees in each dia. class; and V1, V2,

V3 and V4 are the volumes of average trees in each dia. class.

5.4 Allowable cut methods The allowable cut is the amount of timber considered available for cutting during a

specified time period, usually one year.

It is the amount of timber the forest manager would like to have cut and thus is a

target or guideline that the manager attempts to reach.

However, there are many external reasons why the allowable cut is not reached in a

particular year



1. Fluctuations in forest products market

2. Cyclical weather conditions can effect annual cuts for several consecutive years.

Extremely wet cycles and dry cycles can effect the timber harvest.

3. Wood labour availability

Allowable cut are generally developed for large geographical area and for long time

periods

Allowable cut is a large area concept when calculated for working circles

5.4.1 Area control

• Area control requires cutting equal areas or equiproductive areas annually or

periodically

• For example, a 6000 ha forest on a 60-year rotation would have 100 ha annual cut

• Annual allowable cut =6000/60 = 100ha/yr

• Volume of annual allowable cut is estimated by looking up yield in the appropriate

table and multiplying by the number of hectares.

• Suppose, yield at 60 years is 45 cu.m/ha

• Thus, annual allowable volume = 100 ha x 45 = 4,500 cu.m.

• Thus, allowable cut (at 5-years) =100ha x 5 years

• Allowable volume cut =4,500 x 5 years =22,500 cu.m.

• Allowable cut estimation becomes more complex if the ha in the forest have different

productivity levels. This requires cutting of equal productivity rather than equal area

• Suppose, forest was a pure, natural unthinned stand of Shisam on a 30-year rotation.

Site indices (SI) were unequal and distributed as shown below

SI Ha (Ai) Cu.m/ha (Yi) Total yield (YiAi) Eq.ha

----------------------------------------------------------------------

1 100 19.9 1990 1.389

2 250 23.4 5850 1.182

3 375 27.4 10275 1.009

4 225 32.3 7267 0.856

5 75 39.5 2963 0.700

------ ---------

1025 28,345

Unmodified area control requires cutting 34.17 ha (1025/30 =total area/rotation) each

year.

However, this would result in unequal volumes each year

For example, cutting in SI1 results in about 680 cu.m. annual cut (34.17 x 19.9)

whereas cutting in SI5 results in about 1350 cu. m. annual cut (34.17 x 39.5)

The allowable cut can be modified for equal productivity by using mean yield and

calculating equivalent ha

Mean yield per/ha

Yi= yield per ha in ith site class

Ai=no. of ha in ith site class

¯Y =28345/1025 = 27.65 cu.m/ha

Equivalent ha: EAi (SI1) = 27.65/19.90 =¯Y/Yi=1.389 ha

EAi (SI5) = 27.65/39.50 =0.70 ha

Ai

AiYiY

)(



Annual cut for SI1 = 34.17 x 1.389=47.46 ha

Annual cut for SI5 = 34.17 x 0.7 =23.93 ha

In terms of volume cut, results will be the same

SI1 = 47.46 ha x 19.9=944.45 cu.m

SI5 = 23.93 x 39.5 = 945.24 cu.m

Mean =34.17 x 27.65 = 944.80 cu.m

Advantages

It is simple (uncomplicated).

The area on the ground to be harvested is readily identified, “Harvest the oldest stand

first”.

It can readily produce a regulated forest.

It seems particularly well suited to even aged management, which is the most

prevalent form of forest management.

It is widely applicable.

Disadvantages

Unmodified area control can cause large fluctuations in the volume harvested.

Area control must be combined with some type of volume control when applied to un-

even aged stands.

5.4.2 Volume control Volume control requires cutting equal volumes annually or periodically

The allowable cut is determined by one of several formulas, and this volume is then

cut each year.

1. Hundeshagen’s formula

Where,

Ya = actual yield, or in this case, allowable cut

Ga= actual growing stock

Yr = yield in a fully stocked forest

Gr = growing stock in a fully stocked forest

Hundeshagen‟s formula is used to estimate allowable cut in the same manner in which

it was used to estimate yield.

The ration Yr/Gr is formed from a yield table or yield function that is applicable to the

forest in question.

The value for Yr is read directly from the yield table and the value for Gr may be

estimated by summation formula.

The procedure for determining annual allowable cut is to estimate the total growing

stock on the forest or stand in question and then to simply multiply that estimate by

the ratio.

2. Von Mantel’s formula

Where,

Ya= actual yield or in this case , allowable cut

Ga = actual growing stock

R= rotation age

a

r

ra G

G

YY

R

GY a

a

)(2



(Both these formulas do not consider growth)

3. Meyer’ Amortization formula

Where,

Vn= growing stock volume at future time n

V0= growing stock volume today (time zero)

It= compound growth percent on entire stand, including ingrowth

Im=compound growth percent on the cut portion of the stand

a=annual cut

n=number of years in the estimate period

Basically it says future volume (Vn) is equal to current volume (V0) less the cut

Allowable annual cut can be estimated by solving the above equation.

4. Austrian Formula (Simplified version of Meyer‟s formula)

Where ,

Ga =present growing stock

I = annual increment

Gr =Desired growing stock

a=adjustment period(cutting cycle)

5. Hanzlik formula Developed for old growth in the Douglas fir region

Where,

Vm= Volume of overmature timber

R=rotation age

I=annual growth averaged over rotation

5.4.3 Combined area and volume control

A combination of area and volume control, with perhaps a bit more emphasis on area

control is often found in practice.

Here the combined procedure in the light of even aged management is discussed,

although it is equally applicable to uneven aged management.

The first step is obtaining inventory data. A series of cover type maps are used, often

developed from an overlay on aerial photos.

Information recorded about each stand varies by organizational needs but certainly

would include species or species association, age class and level of stocking.

Estimates of volume or yield might also be included.

m

n

mn

ni

iaiVV

1)1()1(0

1Im)0.1(

)())1(( 0

n

mn

n iViVa

a

GrGaICutAnnual

.

IR

VCutAnnual m .



Estimated site quality and silvicultural condition and treatment needs are also

included.

In the second step, individual stands are arrayed in descending order with those to be

cut first at the top.

The rotation age is estimated to define the age classes for data collection.

First in the array may be over mature stands, and those with an over mature over

story needing release, this is followed by under stocked mature stands, fully stocked

mature stands. Finally, the immature stands may be simply aggregated because they

will be cut for many years.

The array is rearranged in an age class distribution, stand by stand as in even aged

regulation.

Variables to identify the stand such as its size in hectares, volume, probable yield are

kept readily accessible when making the array.

In the third step, some preliminary cut estimates are made. Unmodified area control

might be used as the first approximation because it will always lead to a fully

regulated forest. The first array in step 2 might be used to determine sequence of cut.

A proportionate hectare is made. Concurrently some type of volume control estimate

using the formula is made.

This might be modified by other socio-economic factors as well.

As a fourth step, an iterative adjustment process is followed.

Eg. Forest contains- 120000 hectares

60 year rotation

Under unmodified are control annual cut= 120000/60 ha

= 2000 ha

It may also have been determined that the annual cut is 5m3/ha or 10000 m3, as the result of

volume control calculations or in light of the procurement departments assessment of open

market wood availability.

Fifth, the cut from the first 2000 ha of stands arrayed in step 2 is added to see how

close it comes to 5m3/ha (10000m3). It would probably be less than the desired

volume because of the over story and understockd stands. Therefore, some of the

mature, well stocked stand might be harvested to increase the cut. The procurement

department might also be asked to reassess their estimates or if they could open a new

procurement area to help alleviate the undercut.

PNWs may also be calculated for each of the alternatives.

An acceptable solution may be found on the first iteration. Conversely, several

additional iterations may be required to find an acceptable compromise between the

biological and financial requirements.

The end result will be a cutting budget, which is a plan, specifying which stands will

be cut, when they will be cut, and how they will be cut.

The cutting budget ties down the planned action to specific hectares on the ground;

which of many stands to be cut and when.

The cutting budget is a guideline and is followed flexibly.

The cutting budget will also explicitly or implicitly indicate how the stand is to be cut.

Eg. Clear cut or selection cut.

The time period covered by the cutting budget is arbitrary, but is usually in 3 to 5

years increments.

Changing technology and merchantability standards will change the yields from the

stands.



Unit-6: Forest policy National Forest Policy

Government of Nepal approved a new National Forest Policy (NFP) in 1989 that

provides guidelines for legal, institutional, and operational improvements and

development of the forestry sector to meet new challenges.

The Policy gives priority to the forest products that can best contribute to the basic

needs of the people such as fuelwood for cooking, timber for housing, fodder for

domestic animals and medicinal plants for health.

It directs that forests near villages should be managed with the people's participation.

The Policy suggests that promoting the establishment of permanent users as managers

of the forest resource will gradually eliminate current uncontrolled use of the forests.

The Policy directs that wood production on farms and commercial plantations,

especially in suitable parts of the Terai, should be promoted to enhance wood supply

to urban areas within the cash economy.

The Policy provides the macro-level framework for "ecological capability based long

term forest planning" to conserve the forests, soil, water, flora, fauna and scenic

beauty on a sustainable basis.

It requires the preparation of an environmental impact evaluation before

implementing any development program. At the local level, the Policy suggests

decentralized planning with the active participation of users, communities and all

stakeholders, with priority participation given to poorer sections of society.

Master Plan for Forestry Sector The Master Plan for the Forestry Sector (MPFS, 1989), prepared between 1986 and

1988 and approved in 1989 provides a 21-year policy and planning framework for the

forestry sector. The long-term objectives of the Master Plan for Forestry Sector

include the following:

to meet the people's basic needs for forest products on a sustained basis

to conserve ecosystems and genetic resources

to protect land against degradation and other effects of ecological imbalance

to contribute to local and national economic growth

The Master Plan for the Forestry Sector guide's forestry development within the

comprehensive framework of six primary and six supportive programs to achieve its

objectives.

Primary Forestry Development Programmes of MPFS 1. Community and private forestry

2. National and leasehold forestry

3. Wood-based industries

4. Medicinal and aromatic plants

5. Soil conservation and watershed management

6. Conservation of ecosystems and genetic resource

Supportive Forestry Development Programmes of MPFS 1. Policy and legal reforms

2. Institutional reforms

3. Human resource development

4. Research and extension

5. Forest resources information system and management planning



6. Monitoring and evaluation

The main feature of the Master plan is an integrated and programme-oriented

approach. The idea to employ a program approach to support these six primary

program and six supportive programs was a turning point in Nepal‟s history of

forestry sector policy.

Forestry Sector Legislation Forestry legislation used to be formulated to resolve past problems related to

protection rather than to meet present and future needs for better management and

increased production.

As a result, legislation, which included several major acts and their associated rules,

was not in accordance with the spirit of the new forestry sector policy, which was

arrived at through the master planning process.

This discrepancy was particularly noticeable in the case of community forestry. Policy

is now very oriented toward "people's participation" in contrast to previous legislation

such as the Forest Act of 1961, which originally aimed to prevent (the villagers) from

entering forests.

Other early forestry laws are identified below. 1. The Forest Protection Special Act of 1968 and the Forest Products (Sale and

Distribution) Rules of 1971 strictly regulated people's rights to forest products.

2. The Panchayat Forest Rules and the Panchayat Protected Rules of 1978 allowed

communities to manage barren or degraded lands for forest production. These rules

needed improvement before they could effectively promote community forestry in the

spirit of decentralisation.

3. The Leasehold Forest Rules of 1978 allowed only barren or very degraded areas to be

leased. In practice, this policy encouraged the cutting of trees so that a lease for the

area could be applied for.

4. The Private Forest Rules of 1984 entitled owners of private forests to a free supply of

planting materials and to technical assistance from the District Forest Offices

provided their forest was duly registered.

5. The National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act of 1973 defines a national park and

provides for three other kinds of reserves: strict natural reserves for scientific studies

only, wildlife reserves (in effect similar to national parks), and hunting reserves.

Government of Nepal may, "if it so deems necessary," declare any area to be a part of

a park or reserve, and may take over the ownership of any area so declared. This act

and the rules made under it aim to protect wildlife and control hunting, but they have

not been successfully enforced. Thus, in 1994 an additional provision for the

establishment of conservation areas and buffer zones was made.

6. The National Parks and Wildlife Act was amended so that the revenues of a national

park would be shared with the local communities located within the buffer zone

surrounding that park.

7. The Soil and Watershed Conservation Act of 1982 allows HMGN to declare any area

as a protected watershed.

The preceding policies are now being implemented under the Forest Act of 1993 and

the Forest Rules of 1995. The act and its regulation are a result of past experiences

which demonstrated that people's participation is necessary for the management of

forests. The act and rules, however, does require periodic revision as the

implementation of forestry resource management proceeds. The Forest Act of 1993



and the Forest Rules of 1995 aim to develop the forestry sector through

decentralisation and the participation of individuals and groups.

6.1 Policy formulation process Constitutional regulations providing TOR to MFSC

The creation of a technical sub-committee by the departments or ministry to draft a

revised forest policy

Inter-agency workshops to review the draft policy prepared by the technical sub-

committee

Depending on the magnitude of policy, a multi-stakeholder national workshop to

review the draft policy

Promulgation of the draft policy by the cabinet

Soliciting the views of other ministries or agencies on inter-sectoral linkages

A final draft to be submitted to the cabinet for approval

Existing Policy Framework

NFP (1976) and MPFS (1988-2010) provided conservation orientation and a human

face to forestry

MPFS: 12 programs and 8 objectives

Legitimized by the “Forest Act 1993” and “ Forest Rules 1995”

Challenges

Both successes and gaps

Successes in CF and PAS

Ever increased threats of deforestation and degradation.

− Encroachment and conversion

− Illegal extraction and smuggling

− Poaching

− Forest fire

− Uncontrolled grazing

Commitment to maintain 40% forest

Challenges and issues on

− Inclusive policy making

− Technical capacities

− Gender and social inclusion

− Choices of forest governance modalities

− Numerous local, national and international initiatives

Opportunities

Various forest management modalities (community based)

Varied stakeholders

Multi-stakeholder process from community to policy levels.

PAS

Integrated watershed management models

Landscape approach to forest and biodiversity conservation.

Valuable forest resources

Community organizations

Green enterprises: employment and income

Payment of environmental services

REDD



Need of Policy Revision

Facing challenges and opportunities within and outside the sector

Witnessing substantial political, economic and social transformations

World wide trend on decentralization

Political system been replaced twice

A number of new policies and priorities embodied in the periodic plans

Significant changes in social composition, population pattern, infrastructure

development, attitudes, aspirations and needs

Current and emerging issues, trends and critical problems

Forest and Biodiversity loss

Invasive and exotic species

Redefinition of rights, roles and responsibilities

Competing forest uses

Law enforcement

Policy formulation

Trees outside forests

Lack of awareness and national commitment

Institutional status quo

Public-private partnerships:

Environmental emergencies



Unit-7: Forest resource management plan

7.1 Forest resource management plan

7.1.1 Concept, definitions, objectives and limitations for forest management plan

Definition A working/management plan is a written scheme of management aiming at continuity

of policy and action and controlling the treatment of a forest. It is an instrument of

forest management.

A working plan document is a means of enforcing systematic, obligatory and

mandatory regulations for continuous management of a given forest property. It is not

confined to silvicultural and management aspects of the forest only, but it also covers

other activities such as general administration, grazing and watershed management,

permanent improvement, preservation of environment, forest production, soil and

water conservation, wildlife and recreation etc. It is a complete plan for the next

working plan period (Ram Prakash, 1986).

A management plan is usually a written statement of how the landowner hopes to

manipulate the forest to obtain objectives (Leuschner 1984).

Objectives The objectives of any forest management plan differ widely according to the nature of

the forests and the local conditions. However some of the common objectives may

include;

Creation of an ideal condition of the forest which meets the aims of the owner (in case

of private forest) or maximum benefit to the greatest number of people for all times

(public forest).

Allow marshalling of the capital, men and materials needed to implement the plans at

the right place and time.

Provide continuity for the management.

Critical analysis of the problems

Standard for the comparison

Goals The goals of forest management plan can be identified as ecological or socio

economic in nature (USDA, 2004). However they may differ according to the place

and time.

Ecological goals Mitigate the impacts of forestry practices on biological diversity, wildlife, water

quality and quantity, forest soil and hydrological cycles.

Maintain an acceptable range of native commercial tree species and their genetic

diversity on the forest area.

Reduce the risk of significant loss of productive forest from insect and disease.

Maintain and enhance site productivity.

Protect sensitive sites.

Manage the forest on sound scientific principles.

Maintain or increase the forest productive landbase.

Socio-economic goals



Reduce significant loss of forest product from fire, disease/insect and illegal

harvesting.

Actively participate in forest policy decision making.

Contribute to the economic stability of local community and the country.

Guiding principles of forest management plan The plan should be based on sustainable forest management.

Open and consultative process in detail planning.

Should be based on sound scientific forest management principles.

Adaptive and multiple uses.

Landscape level management.

Limitations of Management plan Caused by change- Changes in internal, external and physical factors make plan outdated.

Accuracy- Sometimes variables are simply immeasurable, funds & time constraint.

Organizational inflexibilities- Organization for which plan is made may be inflexible.

Other organizational inflexibilities: policies, financial limitations.

External inflexibilities- political climate, labor availability, rate of technology change and

unforeseen market conditions.

Planning require a good deal of skilled labor, time and money

7.1.2 Components of forest management plan It is impossible to describe a uniquely correct management plan format, however it is

possible to identify components found in many management plans.

1. Management objectives and policies

2. Forest description

Forest organization and subdivision

Forest inventory data

Growth and yield functions

Maps

Subdivisions and compartments

Roads

Cover types

Narrative description

Physiography

Soils

Cover types

3. Economic expectations

Demand

Timber products

Recreation

Hunting and fishing

Water

Other

Supply

Labour

Capital

Materials

3. Other external factors



Legal restrictions

Public policy

4. Analysis and synthesis

Silvicultural analysis

Regulation analysis

Cutting budget

Multiple use analysis and plan

5. Protection

Fire

Disease

Insect

7.1.3 Forest management unit There are different view regarding the unit of forest management; whether the unit

should be a single forest or a group of forests which can be worked together.

In Europe a single forest is a working unit.

In India, groups of forest under one working circle form the unit of forest

management.

In Nepal, a group of forests under one district form the management unit.

7.2 Preparation of forest management plan 7.2.1 Data Collection

Both biophysical and socio-economic data should be collected.

Biophysical data includes

i. Growing stock

ii. Area statistics

iii. Forest types and composition

iv. Compartment information

v. Site class distribution

vi. Regeneration status

vii. Climate

viii. Wildlife

ix. Non-timber forest products

Socio-economic data includes

i. Demographic and socio-economic situation

ii. Demand of forest products

iii. Participation and involvement of local people

iv. Possible socio-economic impacts

7.2.2 Maps and sketches

1. Management maps: 1:50000 scale. Show new working circles, feling series, P.B. and

other details of management

2. Stock maps: 1:15000 scale. Show distribution of forest types, main forest species,

non-forest areas, blanks

3. Regeneration survey maps: 1:4000-5000 scale. Used for regeneration

4. Working plan map: 1:50000 scale (1:6000-30000). Show physiographic features,

territorial boundaries, blocks, compartments, roads



5. Enumeration map: 1:50000scale. Show location of plots, strips, topographic units and

compartments

7.2.3 General format

1. Background

2. Objectives

3. Methodology 4. General description

4.1 Location and Boundaries

4.2 Land use

4.3 Topography

4.4 Geology and soil

4.5 Drainage

4.6 Climate

4.7 Historical background of forest management

4.8 Illegal felling

4.9 Forest encroachment

4.10 Non-timber forest products

4.11 Wildlife

4.12 Soil and wildlife conservation

4.13 Institutional framework and infrastructure

5. Socio-economic concerns

5.1 Demographic and socio-economic situation

5.2 Demand of forest products

5.3 Participation and involvement of local people

5.4 Possible socio-economic impacts

5.5 Mitigation measures

6. Present status of the forests

6.1 Area statistics

6.2 Forest types and composition

6.3 Compartment information

6.4 Site class distribution

6.5 Development class distribution

6.6 Regeneration status

6.7 Growing stock by development classes

6.8 Working circles

6.8.1 Production forest

6.8.2 Potential community/leasehold forest

6.8.3 Protection forest

7. Management strategy

8. Management proposals

8.1 Background

8.1.1 Growth of sal

8.1.2 Rotation age

8.1.3 Conversion period

8.1.4 Existing regeneration

8.2 Treatment prescriptions/Harvesting operations

8.2.1 Production forest, stand-wise management

8.2.2 Production forest, tree-wise management



8.2.3 Allowable cut assessment

8.3 Treatment prescriptions: Silvicultural operations

8.4 Preliminary prescriptions

8.4.1 Potential community/leasehold forests

8.4.2 Protection forests

8.4.3 Minor forest products

8.4.4 Soil and water conservation

8.4.5 Wildlife conservation

9. Marketing and supply aspects

10. Investment and physical support

11. Implementation, updating and monitoring

12. Environmental impact assessment

References

7.2.4 Contents

7.2.5 Write up of management plan For the purpose of managing government managed forest, the Department of forest

must prepare a forest operational plan for one or more districts according to

topography and natural boundaries mentioning;

a. All areas covered by forest shrubs, bushes, and grass as well as uncultivated areas

b. Location of forest boundary

c. A forest map prepared in such a way as to clearly show the details of land use and

species of the trees.

d. Population and diversity of population and particular rotating to the use of forest

products

e. Particular relating to forest products

f. Programs and techniques of developing and protecting forest

g. Annual particulars relating to all collection, use and sale of forest products.

h. Forest products needed by local people.

i. Estimates of annual revenues form forest products during the entire period of the

operational plan.

j. Particular of manpower and expenses needed to implement the plan.

k. Programs relating to soil conservation, tourism development, conservation of

environment and historical heritage.

l. Other particulars deemed appropriate for the mgt. forest.

m. All such operation plan has been approved before the commencement of these rules

shall deemed to have been prepared under these rules.

n. The director must monitor, and evaluate the implementation of the operational plan of

the government-managed forest within these areas and submit a report to the ministry.

He must also send off the report to the department for the information.

Preparation of Management Plan (An example from Jhapa district) 1. Preliminary land allocation: To identify forests suitable for Govt. production

forests, potential community/leasehold forests and protection forests. District level

forest inventory data, forest maps, aerial photographs and topographic maps used as a

supportive material

2. Photo-interpretation: Aerial photo of scale 1:25000 used for photo

interpretation.Interpretation works for the provisional delineation for forest

compartments on aerial photographs were carried out based on criteria such as natural



boundaries (agricultural land rivers, aspect, slope, ridges, roads and accessibility),

working circle, development class, production status, species composition, stand

density, canopy cover, soil type, management objectives and harvesting viewpoints.

3. Forest resources inventory: Forest inventory done based on compartment wise

systematic sampling. In each compartment, plots distributed systematically to cover

entire compartment

4. Socio-economic survey: Available secondary data gathered from central as well

field offices and all primary data collected from field. RRA/PRA tools used

5. Preparation of forest management maps: Based on latest topographic map

(19860, a digitized forest map (scale 1:120000) of the district prepared. Forest ares,

grasslands, shrublands were directly digitized from the aerial photographs (1:25000)

and all existing community forests, community plantation areas roughly digitized

from the district map(1:125000). An operational forest management map (1:25000) of

the district showing areas (forest compartments, sub-compartments) also prepared

7.2.6 Methods of updating The management plan has to be revised once the purposed time expires.

During the revision, the basic information regarding the area may not have to be

updated since there won‟t be much changes in that.

The socio economic data has to be updated.

The future management activities should also be updated with the changing context of

the forest.

For updating the plan, a technical team is formed, open discussion made with all the

stakeholders and changes are made according to the line with existing forest policy of

the country.

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