Multifunctional Forestry and Interaction with Site Quality

Ing-Marie Gren,Franklin Amuakwa-Mensah

doi:10.3390/f11010029

Ing-Marie Gren, Franklin Amuakwa-Mensah

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/f11010029

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Abstract

Several studies have shown the economic value of various ecosystem services provided by the forest. However, the economic value of how site-specific ecological conditions interact with other functions provided by the forest, such as timber value and carbon sequestration, has been less studied. As a result, this paper constructs a numerical discrete dynamic optimization model to estimate the economic value of site quality, taking into account its interaction with timber value and carbon sequestration, in Swedish forests. Analytical results show that the inclusion of the interaction of site quality with forest growth affects the optimal volume of harvest per year, compared to the case without consideration of site quality. The empirical results show that net present value, when considering timber values plus carbon sequestration and site quality interaction, is higher than the case where only timber and carbon sequestration were considered. However, the calculated net present value is sensitive to, in particular, the price of carbon sequestration and discount rate.

Highlights

Multifunctional forestry can be regarded as the ability of the forest to provide multiple and interconnected outputs or services, which can be either positive or negative, intended or unintended, complementary or substitute, and marketable or non-marketable [1]
Based on the parameter values from the biological and economic models shown in Table 1, Based on the parameter values from the biological and economic models shown in Table 1, the the optimal time path for harvesting, carbon benefit, profit, and the economic value of site quality optimal time path for harvesting, carbon benefit, profit, and the economic value of site quality is is generated through simulation for a period of 100 years
A stepwise method was followed in this analysis, in order ascertain the economic value of various ecosystem services from the forest

Summary

Introduction

Multifunctional forestry can be regarded as the ability of the forest to provide multiple and interconnected outputs or services, which can be either positive or negative, intended or unintended, complementary or substitute, and marketable or non-marketable [1]. The productivity of the forest and the ability of the forest to provide essential ecosystem services are mostly driven by management practices and prevailing ecological quality at the site (site quality for short), which, in most cases are determined by environmental, biophysical, and climate conditions [7]. The purpose of this study is to examine the economic effects of site quality in forest management when including both timber values and non-market services, in terms of carbon sequestration. This objective is achieved by constructing a discrete dynamic optimization problem, where the forest manager maximizes his/her net present

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Conclusion