Forest Companies Research Articles

Effectiveness of the Implementation of Occupational and Safety Health Management System (OSHMS) on Pine Resin Harvesting

Work in the forestry sector, especially pine resin harvesting, is classified as heavy work and a high risk of accidents and occupational health because the pine resin harvesting activities are carried out on varying topography, using various heavy tools and hazardous chemicals. Hence, the occupational and safety health management system (OSHMS) is an essential sector. Some studies about pine resin tapping focused on productivity, socio-economics, and resin quality; however, there needs to be more research about OSHMS in pine resin harvesting. Therefore, the effectiveness of implementing OSHMS is essential to analyze, finding out its impact on the rate of work accidents and employee health in forest product harvesting activities. The objectives of this study are a) to identify the sociodemographics of forest employees, b) to clarify the pine resin harvesting activities and identify the hazard risk, and c) to clarify the effectiveness of the implementation of OSHMS on pine resin harvesting activities. The research was conducted in the state forest company (SFC) in Central Java Province. Interview techniques, literature studies from OSH documents, and field observations carried out to collect sociodemographics of forest employees are dominated by old employees, low education levels, and a working system based on family; this situation impacts the implementation of OSHMS and pine resin harvesting. The SFC provides SOP and training about the technical application of pine resin harvesting, but some employees did not follow the procedure. The impact of disobeying employees, the hazard risk, and accidents also improve. The recommendations for the company are to increase the time spent training the workers and to implement the OSHMS standard. Personal protective equipments have to check routines, and the employees must know the mechanism if there is an accident and how to solve it.

A forest companies typology regarding their contribution to circular economy: a sustainability reporting-based analysis

Relatively recently, the residuals of forest industry have been considered very important and useful to be reused through bioeconomy and circular economy practices in order to reduce the use of non-renewable natural resources. The majority of current studies have been based on interview protocols and questionnaire-based surveys to examine how managers of forest industry contribute to sustainable development and circular economy. Despite the usefulness of these surveys, there is a degree of subjectivity in the respondents' responses and an orientation to what forest companies propose to do in the circular economy. To overcome the weaknesses of previous research, this paper aims at drawing appropriate information from sustainability reporting of a sample of forest companies to provide a more unambiguous understanding of the way that forest companies meet the circular economy principles. Thus, a circular economy measurement framework is developed which is based on scoring systems and GRI guidelines to draw reliable and harmonized information from corporate sustainability reporting. Furthermore, it results in a four-type company typology according to the number of the circular economy principles and the number of items they achieve for each principle such as pioneer circular company, lagging circular company, innovative circular company and infant circular company. The suggested framework is tested on a sample of 20 forest companies with higher revenue in 2022. The findings show that half of the sampled companies can be considered as infants at the CE practices, while a positive statistical relationship is revealed between forest companies’ circular economy practices and their revenues.

The assessment of essential oil potential from waste logging of different eucalyptus clones in PT Toba Pulp Lestari Tbk's industrial plantation forests, Indonesia

PT. Toba Pulp Lestari Tbk's Industrial Plantation Forest is the largest forest company in North Sumatra Province, with a total area of 188055 ha. Eucalyptus leaves in this company have not been optimally utilized and processed, commonly left as waste. This study aims to calculate the potential of leaves and the potential production of essential oils from eucalyptus leaves which are waste from logging. The method used to calculate the potential of eucalyptus leaves from logging waste is to measure the weight of the leaves from the sample tree. The yield of essential oils produced from eucalyptus leaves is obtained through distillation techniques in the laboratory. The annual production potential of essential oils is calculated using annual logging area data for each clone. The study produced average data on eucalyptus leaf potential from logging waste for each clone and the entire logging area per year. Distillation was performed on all clones to produce eucalyptus oil's average yield and density. Conversion of yield with leaf potential and area of felling results in the amount of oil produced from felled logging waste leaf per year. The potential for eucalyptus production is very significant and related to efforts to increase the economy of non-timber forest products.

By-products of the Sawmill Process in a Forest Company: Their Physical, Chemical and Energetic Evaluation for Pellets and Briquettes

Aim of study: The physical characteristics and the chemical and energetic properties of bark and sawdust from a sawmill were determined, in order to identify their potential to be used for bioenergy purposes.
 Area of study: The pine lignocellulosic residues were collected at the Forestal Viscaya company in Mexico. 
 Material and method: 50 kg of each biomass was collected as follows: bark samples were taken from the bark mill, and sawdust samples were taken from main saw, edger, trimmer, and the chipper machine. Moisture, granulometry, density, and chemical analyses were determined. The calorific value and tons of oil equivalent were also calculated.
 Main results: The results indicate that the bark could be used to make briquettes, while the sawdust to make pellets. Particularly, the average calorific value varied from 16.55 to 23.78 MJ/kg for bark, while for sawdust the results varied from 19.49 to 21.04 MJ/kg. Using the most conservative model to estimate the calorific value, and taking into account the amount of bark and sawdust generated per year, it was determined that 2.265 equivalent tons of oil could be substituted.
 Research highlights: The results show the potential of biomass for its possible energy use within the forestry company.

Occupational accidents in Slovak Military Forests and Estates: incidence, timing, and trends over 10 years.

Forestry provides a wide range of employment opportunities worldwide and is seen as one of the high-risk industries in terms of occupational accidents. The submitted study analyzed the injury rate in the Military Forests and Estates of the Slovak Republic (62.6 thousand ha) between 2013 and 2022. The data analyses included regression and correlation analyses, χ2 tests to analyze the relationships between studied variables, and incidence rates. During the observed period, employees suffered 26 occupational accidents, of which 19.2% were light, 57.7% were registered, 23.1% were severe, and 0% were fatal. For every 1 million m3 of harvested timber, 7.7 accidents occurred. The incidence rate during the observed period was 672.1/100,000 employees. The highest proportion of accidents was in the age group 51-60 years and in employees with the lowest length of work experience <5 years. Regarding time, the highest proportion of occupational accidents occurred between 8:01 and 10:00 AM (53.8%) and day-wise on Thursdays (46.2%). The highest proportion of accidents occurred among forest workers (65.3%) during pruning and silviculture activities (42.3%). The most common injury site was forest stands (65.3%). Superficial injuries (34.6%) were the most common, mainly affecting the lower limbs (50%). The most frequent material agents causing the accidents were work and transport areas as sources of worker fall (38.5%), and the most frequent reason for an accident to occur was the lack of personal requirements for proper work performance (92.4%), whereas only (3.8%) of accidents occurred due to the use of forbidden or hazardous working procedures. The presented study identified the most vulnerable worker groups and provided an overview of the overall injury rate at the state forest company in Slovakia. The documentation can be incorporated into the safety strategies of forest enterprises.

Ex situ genetic conservation of Gonystylus bancanus (Miq.) Kurz in PT. Arara Abadi, Riau, Sumatra

Ex situ genetic conservation refers to the conservation of species outside their natural habitats. In the case of Gonystylus bancanus (Miq.) Kurz, an endangered species listed on CITES Appendix II and the IUCN Red List as Critically Endangered, ex situ conservation effort has been undertaken by PT. Arara Abadi in Riau, Sumatra collaboration with the Centre for Forest Biotechnology and Tree Improvement Agency. This initiative aimed to preserve the genetic diversity of G. bancanus and ensure long-term survival by reducing the risk of extinction caused by habitat loss and other threats., Genetic material from G. bancanus populations in Sumatra and Central Kalimantan was collected during 2012 to 2016. The ex situ genetic conservation was established in PT. Arara Abadi, a private forest company. Each population was planted in two sites and each plot initially consisted of 456-546 plants covering an area of 1-1.3 hectares. After three years, the G. bancanus in ex situ conservation plot exhibited better growth in open areas than shaded ones, highlighting the species’ preference for exposed environments. The successful growth up to three-year-old plants demonstrates the effectiveness of ex situ conservation efforts of the G. bancanus and suggests the potential for future reintroduction or restoration programs.

Ambiguity and forest-based bioeconomy: The case of forest fires in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania

The forest-based bioeconomy plays an important role in the transition towards a bio-based economy, also offering solutions for mitigating global climate change. Tanzania has seen a swift expansion of commercial tree growing, especially in the Southern Highlands, since the early 2000s. The increasing demand for timber has attracted both resident inhabitants and small and medium-scale investors from elsewhere to exploit this new investment opportunity. The spread of highly fire-sensitive eucalyptus and pine plantations has radically altered the fire regime in the landscape. The underlying driving forces of forest fires are related to ambiguous and conflicting social processes in land management. We conducted field data collection in the Iringa and Njombe regions to study these uncertainties, mapping a wide array of interpretations related to small and medium-scale plantation forestry in general and to forest fires specifically. Our research methods incorporated individual interviews, focus group discussions (FGDs) and direct observations. The smallholder farmers, urban-based investors, large forest companies and other actors share a common interest in mitigating the impacts of destructive forest fires, yet ambiguity exists in how to manage these fires. This results in a scenario in which both interest in and resources for firefighting are limited. We encourage the co-creation of well-defined, transparent village fire management committees and village fire funds to ensure localised and efficient fire management.

An optimization model for detailed scheduling of heterogeneous fleet of log trucks considering synchronization

ABSTRACT Log transportation accounts for a significant portion of the total delivered cost of logs due to the considerable number of truckloads between origins and destinations. Hence, an efficient transportation plan at the operational level can generate cost savings for forest companies. In this paper, a mixed integer linear programming model is developed for daily routing and scheduling of heterogeneous trucks considering synchronization constraints. Continuous time representation is used for modeling the problem to generate accurate schedules and to synchronize the trucks and loaders at cut blocks and sort yards. Compatibility requirements, overtime, and decisions related to the trucking contractors are incorporated in the model. The outputs of the model include the number of trucks utilized by each contractor, the arrival times and waiting times of trucks at each location, the detailed schedule of loaders, and the amount of overtime assigned to the drivers. To validate the model, it is applied to test problems from a case of a Canadian forest company, where transportation activities are contracted out. Results show it is more economical to pay overtime than dispatching additional trucks to carry logs. Additionally, variable costs and maximum driving time have the most impact on the total transportation cost.

A forest management system based on sustainable development

The article substantiates the necessity of changes in the forest management system on the basis of sustainable development. The implementation of an interdisciplinary approach in the study convincingly demonstrates the increasing importance of the forest in connection with its ecological, economic and social functions at the local, national and global levels. Based on the analysis of scientific sources and official international documents approaches to the definition of the essence of sustainable (sustainable, established) forest management, balanced development of forestry, namely as: 1) harmonious combination of ecological, economic and social functions of the forest ; 2) sustainable development of forest ecosystems and the landscape as a whole; 3) integrated application of measures for the use, reproduction, formation, conservation and protection of forests, taking into account the interests of all stakeholders; 4) rational use of forest resources (capacity). The concept of forest management as a modern model of development of the forest sector of the state economy on the initiative of entrepreneurial and public entities is concretized. Forest management is considered from the perspective of the ecosystem approach. Negative trends in forest management in Russia after the beginning of large-scale administrative reform in the country are analysed. The scheme of the main stages in the development of forest policy is proposed. The scheme of the main stages of forest policy development is proposed. The results of the study can be used by scientific organizations engaged in forecasting the development of sectoral economies, forest companies in the formation of economic relations in forestry. The research can be continued in the direction of assessing the ecosystem services of forests and their inclusion in the system of economic relations.

Wood volume is overestimated in the Brazilian Amazon: Why not use generic volume prediction methods in tropical forest management?

The Amazon has a range of species with high potential for sustainable timber harvesting, but for them to be utilized globally, the merchantable wood volume must be accurately quantified. However, since the 1950s, inadequate methods for estimating merchantable timber volumes have been employed in the Amazon, and Brazilian Government agencies still require some of them. The natural variability of the Amazon Forest provides an abundance of species of different sizes and shapes, conferring several peculiarities, which makes it necessary to use up-to-date and precise methods for timber quantification in Amazon Forest management. Given the employment of insufficient estimation methods for wood volume, this study scrutinizes the disparities between the actual harvested merchantable wood volume and the volume estimated by the forest inventory during the harvesting phase across five distinct public forest areas operating under sustainable forest management concessions. We used mixed-effect models to evaluate the relationships between inventory and harvested volume for genera and forest regions. We performed an equivalence test to assess the similarity between the volumes obtained during the pre-and post-harvest phases. We calculated root mean square error and percentage bias for merchantable volume as accuracy metrics. There was a strong tendency for the 100% forest inventory to overestimate merchantable wood volume, regardless of genus and managed area. There was a significant discrepancy between the volumes inventoried and harvested in different regions intended for sustainable forest management, in which only 22% of the groups evaluated were equivalent. The methods currently practiced by forest companies for determining pre-harvest merchantable volume are inaccurate enough to support sustainable forest management in the Amazon. They may even facilitate the region's illegal timber extraction and organized crime.

Rooting screening in Eucalyptus dunnii clones: inverting the order in a clonal selection process

One of the main goals of a tree breeding program is to increase forest productivity, adaptation and profitability of forest plantations. Eucalyptus dunnii is a main species used for pulp production in Uruguay. Montes del Plata (MdP) is one of the largest forest companies in Uruguay and has been focused on the development, testing and deployment of E. dunnii clones to establish commercial plantations in Uruguay. MdP clonal strategy starts with the generation, testing and selection of families (Open-pollination and|or Control-pollination) with a breeding population with a wide genetic diversity in order to have a sustainable clonal program. Seeds from the best families are used for clonal development in a two-phase strategy that takes place in the company research nursery. On the first phase, all potential clones are screened for rooting and only the ones that root more than 60% go to the next phase. An average of 4,000 E. dunnii clones is evaluated every year, and 200 clones overpass 60% rooting threshold. This represents 5% of screened clones. The second phase is to produce plants in the nursey for the establishment of clonal trials in field, and, based on the performance, to select the candidate clones for deployment and breeding. Although the strategy and the breeding program are relatively young, promising results are seen. In the last 6 years, 1,225 E. dunnii clones developed by this rooting strategy were successfully established in clonal field trials. For species of Eucalyptus that have an undesirable trait of difficulty-to-root (recalcitrance), the screening of genotypes by rooting allows to establish in field testing clones with efficient clonal propagation. This way, the measurement and wood sampling in field trials is funnelled to clones that, if selected, could be scaled to clonal plantations.

Indicators of efficiency in operational crosses of Eucalyptus dunnii and hybrids in Montes del Plata: Current progress and challenges

One of the main goals of a tree breeding program is to increase forest productivity, adaptation and profitability of forest plantations. Eucalyptus dunnii is a main species used for pulp production in Uruguay. Montes del Plata (MdP) is one of the largest forest companies in Uruguay and has been focused on the development, testing and deployment of E. dunnii clones to establish commercial plantations in Uruguay. This poster refers to the generation of control-pollinated families, as the starting point of MdP clonal strategy. Control pollination (CP) is a tool in genetic breeding programs that enables to recombine selected genotypes with desired traits to maximize gain in the medium to long term. The selection trait for pulpwood objective is tons of cellulose per tree (ADt); consequently, growth, frost tolerance, health, and wood properties are relevant for parent selection. Ongoing work shows a fruitfully performance of E. dunnii. In the south-east region of Uruguay the species have one flowering period per year, with an average flowering time occurring between the last fortnight of February and the first half of May. Developed protocols for pollen harvesting and methods for crossing are used. The survival of pollinated flowers resulting in fruits has shown to vary with parental species. Average survival rates are 20 to 35%. The main loss of crop happens during the first 4 months after pollinating, weighting —in average— a loss of 40% of the pollinated flowers. The species fruit crop occurs one year after CP. The number of seed per fruit varies with the parental species. E. dunnii × E. dunnii crosses yield in average 6.4 seeds per fruit. However, we have seen a reduction in seeds per fruit in hybrid crosses, where E. dunnii is pollinated with another species, mostly E. globulus, E. grandis and E. dorrigoensis. Seed crops are sawn in the nursery and start an individual clonal selection based on rooting protocols. Clones that fulfill the rooting constraints go to field trials. This is presented in another poster proposal. Main challenges for the future are to maintain a wide genetic diversity in the breeding population, early flowering, and continuous improvement on CP techniques.

Eucalyptus dunnii clonal strategy implementation in Montes del Plata

One of the main goals of a tree breeding program is to increase forest productivity, adaptation and profitability of forest plantations. Eucalyptus dunnii is a main species used for pulp production in Uruguay. Montes del Plata (MdP) is one of the largest forest companies in Uruguay and has been focused on the development, testing and deployment of E. dunnii clones to establish company plantations in Uruguay. On this presentation, the MdP ongoing clonal strategy for E. dunnii is presented. MdP clonal strategy starts with the generation, testing and selection of families in progeny tests (Open-pollination and Control-pollination) with a breeding population with a wide genetic diversity in order to have a sustainable clonal program. Seeds from the best families are used for clonal development in a two-phase strategy. In the first phase all potential clones are screened for rooting, in the company research nursery, and only the ones that root more than 60% go to the next phase, which is to produce plants for the establishment of clonal trials in field and, based on the performance, to select the candidate clones for deployment. On average, 4,000 clones|year are evaluated in the first phase, from which 200 go to clonal field trials every year. The strategy also includes a protocol for other traits assessment, like tree form, health and wood properties; the selection trait being tons of cellulose per tree (ADt). Wood properties are evaluated at early age using a company near infrared model (NIR). Then, values of predicted wood properties are projected to rotation age. This presentation will be complemented with extra information related to the different strategy phases in several posters. The MdP clonal strategy is a rolling front strategy, where clones from the best families are tested and selected for deployment and breeding to have continuous gain over time for E. dunnii.

Forest Fires, Stakeholders’ Activities, and Economic Impact on State-Level Sustainable Forest Management

In Europe, forest fires are a serious and constant threat. They destroy forests and forest land, causing damage, financial loss, and long-lasting impacts on forest ecosystem services. There are several ways to decrease the number of forest fires, including continuous investment in fire prevention measures and the intensive implementation of adaptive sustainable forest management measures, which need additional financial resources. In many cases, forest management activities in karst forests are not implemented in a timely manner and in coordination with other stakeholders. A comprehensive study about the impact of forest fires on different economic activities (tourism and protected areas) is not currently available. In this study, the legislative framework in Croatia was analysed in relation to the fire protection activities and jurisdictions of different institutions. From data collected in the period 2013–2020, the first-age class afforestation costs and growing stock assortment value were calculated, and the non-wood forest functions were estimated. The aforementioned data were further compared to the Fire Weather Index (FWI) and Seasonal Severity Rating (SSR) of fire seasons. The total estimated damage is EUR 326,810,724.72. The research emphasises the need for the implementation of cross-sectoral forest policy measures. The state forest company should allocate more financial resources for biological forest restoration in the future. Forest management practices should implement climate-adaptable silviculture measures to preserve forest and forest land.

Scheduling of log logistics using a metaheuristic approach

An efficient log logistics plan results in log procurement cost savings. In practice, log logistics presents complexities such as synchronization of different machines, sorting of logs, and compatibility requirements. To address these complexities, this research proposes a decomposition approach for optimization of log logistics considering synchronization of log loaders and heterogeneous trucks at both cut blocks and sort yards. In the first phase, the daily number of truckloads between cut blocks and sort yards for each trucking contractor is determined, while allocation of the truckloads to compatible trucks and detailed routing and scheduling decisions are addressed in the second phase. Furthermore, a simulated annealing algorithm is developed for the second phase to obtain the schedules for large-sized problems. Additionally, the parameters of the algorithm are tuned using the Taguchi method. The algorithm is then applied to a case of a large Canadian forest company in British Columbia, Canada with a 1-month planning horizon. The results show that the proposed solution approach can successfully satisfy synchronization requirements and generate detailed schedules in a reasonable time. Also, cost savings for contractors are possible by assigning overtime rather than utilizing more trucks to fulfill their transportation tasks.

“Land-sparing benefits biodiversity while land-sharing benefits ecosystem services”: Stakeholders’ perspectives on biodiversity conservation strategies in boreal forests

Biodiversity conservation and economic profit from forests can be combined by various land-sparing and land-sharing approaches. Using a semi-structured survey, we evaluated support for scenarios representing contrasting conservation strategies in a managed boreal forest landscape. Land-sparing approaches were supported by the conservation organisation, regional administrations and the forest company, mainly motivated by the benefit for biodiversity based on ecological theory. Land-sharing approaches were supported by one recreational organisation, some municipalities and the forest owners’ association, mainly motivated by the delivery of ecosystem services. Stakeholder groups using certain ecosystem services had motivations that we related to an anthropocentric mindset, while others focused more on species conservation, which can be related both to an anthropocentric or an ecocentric mindsets. Forest conservation planning should consider stakeholders’ preferences to handle land-use conflicts. Since reaching consensus among multiple stakeholders seems unfeasible, a combination of land-sparing and land-sharing approaches is probably the best compromise.

Indole acetic-producing bacteria promote the root development of Acacia mearnsii cuttings

ABSTRACT Black wattle (Acacia mearnsii) is one of the most important commercial tree species in southern Brazil, where it is planted for multiple uses, such as cellulose pulp production and tannin extraction. Recently, forest companies have been directing their efforts towards vegetative propagation to improve the productivity of black-wattle plantations. However, rooting rates of this species are low, even when treated with the synthetic auxin indole-3-butyric acid (IBA). Thus, rooting black-wattle cuttings is still considered a bottleneck for industry development. On the other hand, it is known that inoculating cuttings with indole acetic acid (IAA)-producing bacteria can be an efficient method for increasing vegetative propagation. This study investigated the potential of two bacterial strains to promote root development in black wattle. The strains SEMIA 436 and 439 (Agrobacterium radiobacter), previously isolated from the common bean and detected as high-IAA producers, were also evaluated in relation to their colonisation capacity in seedling roots. Results showed that inoculation with both strains increased rooting rates by 20−30% compared with non-treated and IBA-treated cuttings. Moreover, inoculation increased root dry mass, length and volume. Strain SEMIA 436 demonstrated higher colonisation capacity.

“Profitability is sustainability:” framing of forest management practices by the Swedish forest industry

ABSTRACT This article investigates how the Swedish forest industry, as represented by the three largest Swedish private forest companies (Svenska Cellulosa AB, Stora Enso, and Holmen), through their main public relations (PR) channels frame the current dominant Swedish forestry model and alternative models that are promoted by the European Union (EU). The content analysis of the three companies’ trade magazines published between 2019 and 2022 explores the patterns in the PR framing of the forest management models with respect to economic, environmental, and social aspects. The time interval is centered by the July 2021 announcement of the EU's new Forest Strategy for 2030. The magazines’ target audience is private forest owners, from whom Svenska Cellulosa AB, Stora Enso, and Holmen buy 40–50% of the timber used in production. The main finding of the study is that these corporations did not present alternative methods as viable options to replace the Swedish forestry model. The magazines, with some individual variations, respond to the alternative methods promoted by the EU and environmental associations by an increased emphasis on the benefits, mainly environmental, of the Swedish forestry model – framing the model as not only the most profitable but also the most ecologically sustainable.

Application of Marketing Mix in Rental Company (Case Study of Pt. Asialog)

Since the change into new century, United nations has promoting several urgent matters for improving humanity as whole. One of the point is the severance of climate change, in which affecting all daily activities including business. The matter has force government to enforce more strict regulation for reducing the cause of climate change, one of the main cause is the reducing of planet earth’s green area. Therefore, it affecting all business operation of forest company. In addition, the matter becoming much worst due to massive illegal logging and other acts of reducing forest without responsibilities to mend the damage. The affected companies including PT. ASIALOG are experiencing in lower revenue, this circumstance push the company to finding alternative business opportunity. It author goal to formulating marketing strategy with finding strong alternative product for the company. nevertheless, there are several critical points to address, the company declare specific request for the alternative business limited to current company’s area of operation. Second, the alternative business should based on company’s tugboat and barge assets. In this research, the method author used is qualitative research through structured interviews with various stakeholders in the industry and framework used is marketing mix 7Ps with preliminary framework of STP (Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning). The main point is compare target market of current PT. ASIALOG with alternative business of tugboat and barge using Porter’s five forces template. Following the study, author find alternative business of tugboat and barge for PT ASIALOG is competitive sound and profitable in long term. Based on Porter’s five forces analysis, aspects with high threat level of current business is 21 compare to alternative business of tugboat and barge with 5 aspects. Following the target market analysis, author purposing brand positioning using brand concept image management. The brand image divide into two aspects of functional and symbolic to formulating marketing strategy using marketing mix 7Ps. Overall, author conclude that the alternative business for PT. ASIALOG is competitive and profitable in long term.

Benefits of hierarchical predictions for digital soil mapping—An approach to map bimodal soil pH

Maps of soil pH are an important tool for making decisions in sustainable forest management. Accurate pH mapping, therefore, is crucial to support decisions by authorities or forest companies. Soil pH values typically exhibit a distinct distribution characterized by two frequently encountered pH ranges, wherein aluminium oxides (Al2O3) and carbonates (CaCO3) act as the primary buffer agents. Soil samples with moderately acid pH values (pH CaCl2 of 4.5-6) are less commonly observed due to their weaker buffering capacity. The different strength of buffer agents results in a distinct bimodal distribution of soil pH values with peaks at pH of around 4 and 7.5. Commonly used approaches for spatial mapping neglect this often observed characteristic of soil pH and predict unimodal distributions with too many moderately acid pH values. For ecological map applications this might result in misleading interpretations.This article presents a novel approach to produce pH maps that are able to reproduce pedogenic processes. The procedure is suitable for bimodal responses where the response distribution is naturally inherent and needs to be reproduced for the predictions. It is model-agnostic, namely independent from the used statistical prediction method. Calibration data is optimally split into two parts corresponding each to a data culmination, i.e. for soil pH values belonging to the ranges of the two principal buffer agents (Al2O3 and CaCO3). For each subset a separate model is then built. In addition, a binary model is fitted to assign every new prediction location a probability to belong either to Al2O3 or CaCO3 buffer range. Predictions are combined by weighted mean. Weights are derived from probabilities predicted by the binary model. Degree of smoothness is chosen by sigmoid transform which allows for optimal continuous transition of the pH values between Al2O3 and CaCO3 buffer ranges. For each location uncertainty distributions may be combined by using the same weights.We illustrated application of the new approach to a medium and strong bimodal distributed response (1) pH in 0–5 cm and (2) pH in 60–100 cm of forest soils in Switzerland (2530 calibration sites). While model performance measured at 354 validation sites slightly dropped compared to a common modelling approach (drop of R2 of 0.02–0.03) distributional properties of the predictions are much more meaningful from a pedogenic point of view. We were able to demonstrate the benefits of considering specific distributional properties of responses within the prediction process and expanded model assessment by comparing observed and predicted distributions.