Forestry (0)

Forestry
Importance :

• Environmental-protective importance
  

Oxygen
Cleans the air/soils/ ground water
Protects the soil from erosion

• Timber
  

Firewood
Woodwork
Building materials
Timber – cellulose – paper

• Mushrooms/ berries /juices
  
• Habitat of different species
  

Measuring the amount of forest :

• Fixing the area under the forests (ha/%) -> In Estonia – 47.4%, 2.143 mil/ha
  

It doesn’t take into account the amount of timber

• To measure the amount of timber (m3) -> 352.7 mil/m3
  

It doesn’t take into account the annual increase

• To fix different species of trees (%) -> Pine 40%, Birch 30%, Spruce 20%
  
• To measure the annual increase of timber (m3, ha, year ) -> 9 mil. m3/ha/year
  

Main principle of the economy of forests: Annual cutting should be equal to annual increase.
Trees are divided into:

• Precious trees ( ebony , mahagony, sandalwood)
  
• Hard-broadleaf (decidious) trees (oak, beech – pöök)
  
• Coniferous trees -> consumption timber -> soft timber (spruce, pine, juniper)
  
• Trees of little value (willow, bird -cherry – toomingas )
  
• Trees of special usage ( fruits , cork)
  

Forestry:

• Planting, taking care of the trees
  
• Protection of forests againts fire and pests
  
• Soil improvement
  
• Special forest plantations
  
• Fertilisation
  
• Plant breeding
  

Forest Industry:

• Felling of the trees
  
• Processing of timber
  
• 
  

Trees grow : 80-100 years in the wild , 60-70 years with the help of people
The usage of forests:
1. Gathering

• To live , get food and shelter from the woods
  
• Don’t change or harm the forests
  

2. EarlyAgrarian m.m.

• Slash and burn -> woods replaced by brush (võsa)
  
• Typical to Mediterranean region and East - Asia
  

4. Late Agrarian m.m

• Very bad situation – primeval fields
  
• Population growing – necessity much bigger
  
• Forests preserved on slopes of mountains and where infertile soils were.
  
• West – Europe , North America
  

4. Early Industrial m.m

• Development of forestry -> timber industry
  
• Wood from boarderlands and colonies
  
• Subequatorial and equatorial regions – valuable woods
  
• Temperate zone – coniferous woods – soft timber
  
• Transport – floating of logs, road transport
  

5. Late Industrial m.m

• Ruinous economy
  

Forestry in different regions of the world:
1. Europe
1) West – Europe

• A lot of forests were destructed during Late Agrarian times .
  
• During the industrialisation – only timber industry
  
• Situation has improved – timber, paper and cellulose industries in France and Germany
  

2) Finland , Sweden , Norway

• Climate was not suitable for fields – forests were preserved.
  
• Smaller population – necessity was smaller
  
• Situation is good – raw timber is exported to West-Europe, export half- finished products
  

3) Russia

• Backward country
  
• Started with forestry in 1950
  
• After establishing complexes in 1960, development was fast
  
• Wood was transported by rivers
  
• All kinds of industries – quite developed
  
• Problems with over-felling
  

2. North-America
1) USA

• Development similar to Russia, but a bit faster
  
• Situation has improved
  
• Forest complexes are not important
  
• Good in producing timber
  
• Import raw timber from Canada
  

2) Canada

• Nr.1 in the world in exporting raw timber
  
• Similar to North-America, development slower
  

3. The Far South
1) Australia and New- Zealand

• Very different types of forests
  
• Some forests are devostated, some untouched
  
• Too far from main consumers
  

4. Latin America – Brazil , Venezuela , Colombia, Peru

• Destructed and impenetrable forests
  
• Valuable timber – selection felling
  
• Slash and burn method
  

5. Black Africa – The Kongo , DR of Kongo, Nigeria, The Republic of Central Africa

• Nothing happened in the early agrarian times
  
• 80-s – deforestation and felling
  
• Increase of agriculture (because of population)
  
• Valuable timber
  

6. South and South-East Asia

• Has given valuable timber to the world market for about 100 years
  
• Region now in the crisis (too much felling)
  
• Firewood
  
• Agriculture – fields
  

7. East Asia – Japan , China

• Agrarian society destructed the forests
  
• Nowadays – modern forest economy
  
• Biggest importer of timber (due to Japanese forest industries)
  
• China – good climatic conditions – good future
  

The world trade trends of timber:

• Taking valuable timber from South and South-East Asia to Europe, USA and Japan - decreasing
  
• Timber exported from Canada, Russia and North- Europe to West-Europe, USA and Japan - increasing
  

Forest complexes:

• Protection of preserved forests, prohibition of overfelling
  
• Separation of forests with environmental-protective importance
  
• Planting and taking care of forests
  
• West – Europe, North – Europe, North – America, Russia, Japan
  

Biggest producers of timber:

• All – Usa, Russia, India, Brazil, Indonesia , Canada, Nigeria, Sweden
  
• Firewood – China, Brazil, Ethiopia, Indonesia, USA, DR of Congo, Nigeria
  
• Paper Timber – USA, Brazil, Russia, Finland, Canada, Australia, Chile , Poland
  

Type of forest
States where such a type is the majority
Main species of trees
Characteristics and increase per/ha
Equatorial rainforests
Brazil, The Kongo, Gabon , Camerun, Indonesia, Oceania, The Republic of Central Africa
Palms, red wood, camphor tree
Trees of little value – selection felling
Highest annual increase of timber – 50 m3/ha in a year. Forest is replaced with slash and burn method. Shelter for the gatherers
Subequatorial open stands (hõrendikud)
Australia, Brazil, Venezuela, The DR of Kongo, India
Palms, Eucalyptuses
5 m3/ha in a year.
Majority of timber is for firewood (scrubby trees)
Dry climate
Forests of damp subtropics
USA, Brazil, Australia, China
Coniferous trees, decidious trees
15-20 m3/ha in a year. Very damaged because of excessive felling
Forests of dry subtropics
Mediterranean region, Greece , Italy, Chile, Australia, Parts of USA
Valuable, special usage, coniferous and decidious trees
1-2 m3/ha in a year. Destructed, damaged and exhausted – offer interest to firms
Broadleaf forests of temperate zone
China, the USA, Chile, West-European countries
Oak, Maple , Beech
5-10 m3/ha in a year. In a bad situation. W-European are trying to improve.
Coniferous forests of temperate zone
Russia, Canada, Sweden, Finland
Spruce, Pine, Silver fir, hemlock spruce
1-2 m3/ha in a year. In N-W part of North – America – 20 m3/ha in a year. Good conditions – soft timber
Subequatorial forests
Asia – China, Vietnam , Thailand, Malaysia. States of Central America
Palms, Sandal wood, acacia
20 m3/ha in a year. Lands are fertile so people cut down woods for fields so the territory is increasing
All of the forests have environmental – protective importance.
Excessive felling causes decline of degeneration of the environment, erosion, changes in water regime , to become desert , brushwood, destruction of different species.