Factors Affecting Harvesting Intensity in Small-Scale Private Forests in Slovenia

Abstract

Among other factors, harvesting intensity in private forests depends on property, resource and forest owner characteristics. The research was conducted in Slovenia, a Central European country with very fragmented and small-scale forest property, a large number of owners and co-owners and a long tradition of sustainable forest management. In the nationwide study, data from the Land and Property Register and forest inventory database were used to build a logistic regression model to identify factors that influence harvesting intensity. The results of the model revealed that growing stock, share of conifers, share of forest area under regeneration, total size of forest property in owner- and co-ownership, parcel size and accessibility of the forest area to forest operations increase harvesting intensity. Slope, number and age of owners and co-owners, and skidding distance negatively influence harvesting intensity. The results can offer useful information for policy and decision makers for formulating policy as well as implementing the most suitable mix of policy instruments.