Forest Management Organizations Research Articles

Multi-Business Policy Model for The Economic Development: A Case of Communities around Forests in Indonesia

This research attempts to investigate, assess and test the key factor influencing the economic growth of communities around forests in Indonesia. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, integrating both qualitative and quantitative techniques. Qualitative data was gathered through in-depth interviews with managers of Indonesian forest management firms, complemented by observations and documentation. The subsequent phases of data analysis involved data reduction, visualization, and verification. Quantitative data were gathered via a survey questionnaire completed by 100 managers of Indonesian forest management organizations, which were then analyzed using partial least squares (PLS). The research identified several qualitative factors that are necessary for the communities surrounding forests in Indonesia, including a multi-business policy and sustainable forest management. The quantitative research results prove that Multi Business Policy positively affects Economic Development of Community around Forests, Multi Business Policy positively affects Sustainable Forest Management, Sustainable Forest Management positively affects Economic Development of Community around Forests, and Sustainable Forest Management mediates the relationship between Multi Business Policy to Economic Development of Community around Forests. Policies and regulations regarding market certainty and sales of the results of multi-community businesses are needed which are guaranteed by the government.

Evaluation of the Root Rupture Method for Controlling Belowground Spread of the Oak Wilt Pathogen (Bretziella fagacearum) in Northeast Wisconsin, USA

Abstract Oak wilt, caused by the pathogen Bretziella fagacearum, is a destructive disease on oak (Quercus) species in the United States. Established methods to control the belowground spread of oak wilt are not appropriate in all circumstances; thus, forest health managers have a strong need for alternative methods for disease control. We evaluated the effectiveness of operational stump excavation treatments (i.e., “root rupture” method) applied between 2004 and 2014 to control belowground spread of oak wilt on two forests in northeast Wisconsin, USA. The root rupture method achieved a high level of disease control (≥85% of evaluated disease infection centers) for 5 years by harvesting red oak trees within infection centers and uprooting the stumps and associated root mass. The likelihood of disease control success depended on the initial size of the infection center that was treated, with larger infection centers being less likely to be contained with a single treatment than small infection centers. This study highlights the importance of early detection and prompt management in oak wilt suppression programs. Study Implications: Forest management agencies and organizations in the North Central United States continue to face oak wilt epidemics. No single tool or treatment method ensures complete containment of oak wilt; thus, most managers carefully consider all the tools and techniques available to them and determine what best suits their budget and land use priorities. Stump excavation (i.e., “root rupture” method) is a cost-effective treatment for halting belowground spread of the oak wilt fungus, Bretziella fagacearum, that can achieve a high level of disease control. In northern red oak (Quercus rubra) stands with high economic value, this treatment can be applied as a group selection, with the value of the timber potentially offsetting the cost of treatment. The opportunity for complete disease control decreases as oak wilt infection centers increase in size; thus, monitoring and early control actions are critical.

Organizational Models in European Forestry: An Attempt of Conceptualization and Categorization

The changes and challenges that are tackling the forest sector in recent decades have prompted governments and foresters to work hard to find innovative solutions. Research in the forestry domain has focused on product and process innovation, and more recently on business systems and social innovation. In addition, organizational innovation is recognized and documented. However, while consistent conceptualization work has been conducted for business models and social innovation, the organizational domain in forestry seems less clear, characterized by multiple actors and often overlapping in literature, while a clear framework to describe it is missing. This work proposes a conceptualization of the “organizational model”, a concept embracing different approaches to build an analytical framework used to describe and characterize organizations in the forestry sector. The framework is drafted referring to existing theories, then tested (and further developed) through a semi-systematic literature review on organizations operating in forest management in Europe that are identified, categorized, and characterized. This exercise confirms that forest management organizations can be described with several diverse arrangements and can be complex entities: a holistic and comprehensive approach is more likely to be used by policy initiatives addressing improvement of forest management.

Applications of DEA and SFA in benchmarking studies in forestry: state-of-the-art and future directions

ABSTRACT The forestry sector is constantly looking for ways for making data-driven decisions and improving efficiency. The application of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) allow the users to go beyond looking at simple key performance indicators. Benchmarking is one of the most common tools in business for improving efficiency and competitiveness. This study searched for benchmarking studies in Web of Science until December 2020. It reviewed 56 benchmarking studies in forestry and discusses the potential advantages of using benchmarking in forestry. More than 80% of the studies apply DEA. This review found that almost half of the benchmarking studies in forestry have attempted to estimate the efficiency of forest management organizations at regional scale, mostly being public or state-owned forest districts. A bit more than one-third of the studies have focused on benchmarking forest industries and one-fifth, benchmarking of forest operations. Forest management organizations mainly applied benchmarking for internal comparison and forest industries entirely focused on competitive benchmarking. Surprisingly, in most cases the studies do not necessarily overlap geographically with forest rich countries (e.g., Russian Federation or Brazil). A number of studies address multiple criteria. The future potential for applying automatic data transfer from harvest machines to interactive benchmarking systems are discussed. Finally, the paper discusses the advantages and weaknesses of benchmarking and future research on improving usefulness and usability of benchmarking in forest businesses.

Partitioning Commons and Devolving Them from Communal to Sub-Communal Groups: Evidence from China’s Community Forest Management Organizations

Existing research has extensively explored various approaches to enhancing the governance of community-managed commons; however, limited studies have discussed whether it is effective to partition commons and devolve them from communal to smaller, sub-communal groups. We examine this question based on the evidence from two common-property timber production communities that devolved their forests from the administrative village to villagers’ groups in Fujian, China. Using the comparative case study method, we explore the mechanisms by which this organizational restructuring affected democratic governance, revenue allocation and economic efficiency of timber production. We find that by decreasing the size of forest management units, the restructuring increases the participation of ordinary villagers in community forestry and enhances the equity of revenue allocation. However, physically partitioning forests may undermine scale economies, and the small, sub-communal forest management groups tend to have weak financial and managerial capacities. Thus, partitioning forests into villagers’ groups threatens the long-run efficiency of commercial timber production. This research not only presents an innovative toolkit of enhancing community forest management but also sheds light on the optimal organizational structure of community forest management under different organizational goals and contexts.

Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment for Forest Management: The Case of the U.S. Forest Service

Forest managers need access to targeted scientific information about the impacts of climate change in order to adapt to climate change. Vulnerability assessments address this need and are common across a range of disciplines and geographies; however, the practice of vulnerability assessment has revealed challenges that warrant further examination in a specific context. The U.S. Forest Service, a national forest-management agency in charge of 78 million hectares, has developed a collection of climate change vulnerability assessments to support adaptation by forest managers. We conducted a qualitative document analysis, informed by a series of research interviews with scientists, of 44 vulnerability assessments developed for the U.S. Forest Service. We found that partnerships between research scientists and land managers were central to the development of vulnerability assessments in the U.S. Forest Service. Assessment processes vary across settings. As the practice has developed, vulnerability assessments increasingly cover larger spatial extents and a broader range of resources associated with forest management. We identified ways in which vulnerability assessments can support decision-making, including approaches already in use and opportunities to improve practice. In particular, we discuss how vulnerability assessments are well-positioned to support the development of land-management plans, which set strategic management direction for periods of at least a decade. This paper provides baseline knowledge on a fundamental aspect of a large national forestry agency’s climate change adaptation strategy, with many findings transferable to the study of other forest-management organizations.

Adapting forest management to climate change: The state of science and applications in Canada and the United States

Over the last decade, considerable progress has been made in developing vulnerability assessment tools and in applying these methodologies to identify and implement climate change adaptation approaches for forest ecosystems and forest management organizations in Canada and the United States. However, given that adaptation processes are in early stages, evaluation of approaches across agency, organizational, and geographic boundaries is critical. Thus, we conducted a qualitative comparison of three conceptual frameworks for climate change vulnerability assessment and adaptation efforts in the Canadian and United States forestry agency contexts. We focus our comparison on components of the conceptual frameworks, development process, intended users, similarities and differences in institutional contexts (geographic and organizational), and implementation. Finally, we present case studies to illustrate how the frameworks have been implemented on the ground and in different contexts. Despite different trajectories of development, the Canadian and US forest agencies have developed similar conceptual frameworks for vulnerability assessment and adaptation. We found that key components of the conceptual frameworks included: establishing a science-management partnership; evaluating current forest conditions and management objectives; conducting detailed science-based vulnerability assessments; developing adaptation approaches and on-the-ground tactics; implementing adaptation tactics; and monitoring outcomes and adjusting as needed. However, the contexts in which these frameworks are implemented vary considerably within and between countries, mostly because of differences in land ownership, management norms, and organizational cultures. On-the-ground applications, although slow to develop, are beginning to proliferate, providing examples that can be emulated by others. A strategy for accelerating implementation of adaptation in Canada and the United States is suggested, building on successes by federal agencies and extending to public, private, and crown lands.

Management Goals and Performance: Clustering State Forest Management Organizations in Europe with Multivariate Statistics

State Forest Management Organizations (SFMOs) play a crucial role in the European forest sector, managing almost half of the forests in the region. SFMOs are often only managed for timber production, whereas, being publicly owned, they should play an important role in providing a vast range of public goods (e.g., soil protection, biodiversity conservation). Their management goals depend on the history and current conditions of the forest sector at a national level, as well as different challenges and the potential for development. Although there is a lack of knowledge about the current performance of SFMOs, there have been recent changes to their management goals and practices in response to the new demands expressed by society (e.g., transparency, social inclusion). The main purpose of this study was to analyze the current situation of SFMOs by grouping them with the help of a Cluster Analysis according to indicators that reflect the three pillars of the common understanding of the sustainable forest management (SFM) concept. Additionally, in light of the differences in the forest practices and management priorities in each country, we used Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to group countries according to common characteristics of the forest sector at the national level. The results showed three main clusters of SFMOs in Europe. The first cluster had a rather small but commercially-oriented forestry unit together with other business activities and a strong focus on public services. The second focused on public interest, rather than commercially-oriented organizations. The third is mainly profit-seeking. The existence of diverse SFMO clusters shows the possibility of different approaches for SFM with a focus on different goals (e.g., profit gaining, public service delivery).

Vulnerability of Community-Based Forest Management to Climate Variability and Extremes: Emerging Insights on the Contribution of REDD+

Climate change spurs havoc on social-ecological system. People and places vulnerable to climate change have been the focus of many discussions. However, in the forestry sector, limited studies have been conducted that link human vulnerability to recent initiatives, such as reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation or REDD+, especially in highly vulnerable countries. Using case studies from the Philippines, this paper focuses on the vulnerability of two community-based forest management (CBFM) organizations, with and without REDD+ readiness intervention, to show the impacts of climate variability and extremes. Two balance-weighted approaches, the livelihood vulnerability index and the IPCC-framework, were used in the vulnerability assessments. Results revealed high vulnerability of both CBFM organizations, although Malitbog Upland Developers for Sustainable Association (MUDSA) livelihood vulnerability is largely aggravated by its exposure to disaster, climate variability and extremes, accessibility to health facilities and water supply. The long history of CBFM implementation in both organizations have minimal contribution in enhancing the adaptive capacity of members to cope with and adapt to climate change impacts. REDD+ (readiness), does not insure reduced vulnerability to climate change, unless sustainable livelihood is achieved. As the State controls forest resources, the rights of CBFM-organizations to commercially benefit from these resources are limited, a disincentive to the development of new and viable development programs in CBFM areas, such as REDD+. This also constrains the achievement of climate resiliency.

Enhancing Quality of Life: Restorative Experience in Recreational Forests in Selangor, Malaysia

Two recreational forests were selected as case studies: The Ampang and Kanching Recreational Forests. The recreational forests are facing pressure by surrounding developments such as highway and housing. Urban development has implications for the benefits offered by recreational forests, endangered biodiversity, water quality and wildlife to result a place that is no longer enjoyable to visit. It is important to conserve the recreational forests that can contribute to the urbanites quality of life. Based on the results from the site observations, self-administered questionnaires and in-depth interviews, this paper describes recreational forest users' experience in the recreational forests and what makes they perceived restored while being in the forest. This study helps the recreational forest management and related organizations in conserving, planning and managing recreational forests in providing a positive experience for users that can enhance Malaysian quality of life.

Actor-Network-Theory perspective on a forestry decision support system design

Use of decision support systems (DSS) has thus far been framed as a social process of adoption or technical process of usability. We analyze the development of a DSS as a process of institutionalization of new as well as drift of existing practices. We write an Actor-Network-Theory (ANT) account, i.e. an interpretive study, that follows the traces left by both human and non-human actors (e.g. technology, methodologies, etc.) to understand how a DSS development project institutionalizes DSS technology in several forest management organizations in the German state of Rheinland Pfalz. The research has an innovative value since it uses ANT in the design of a DSS, hence affecting it, while commonly ANT has been used to understand why networks work or do not. Moreover, we use a new technology (PREZITM, www.prezi.com) for the visualization of the whole actor network coherent to the ANT methodology, i.e. “keeping the social flat.” As a result, the development of the ANT account proposed in the present paper, even if still partial, supports the design of new technologies being introduced in current practice and generates an important learning effect thanks to the underpinning interpretative approach.

Development and evaluation of local communities incentive programs for improving the traditional forest management: A case study of Northern Zagros forests, Iran

We examined the local community incentive programs to improve traditional forest management in three forested villages in Baneh city, Kurdistan province in the northern Zagros forests of western Iran. Zagros forests cover 6.07 million ha and support rich plant and animal diversity. Changes in local community social and economic systems and the inefficiency of traditional forest management led to a critical situation in the stability of forest regeneration in recent decades. Due to a shortage of productive and arable lands and resulting unemployment and poverty, people overexploited the Zagros forests. Outside intervention in traditional forest management creates conflicts between local peoples and forest management organizations. To achieve sustainable forest management, including forest resources conservation and improvement of natural resource based livelihoods of communities, it is desirable to implement Forestry Incentive Programs (FIP) based on the important functions of forests. Detailed information on the socio-economics of communities, the effect of forests on local livelihoods, and lists of products extracted from the forest were obtained from a survey of local communities though questionnaire, interview and observation. We studied 276 households in three villages and completed 76 questionnaires by householders in the quantitative analysis. Sampling was performed by simple random sampling (SRS). The needs of rural communities, such as livestock husbandry, mainly arise from the characteristics and environmental features of villages. We identified the driving forces, pressures, status, impacts and responses (DPSIR) to design incentive programs, by DPSIR analysis and interaction analysis. Evaluation of local community benefits from forests showed that in order to improve forest management, 319 dollars per year would be needed by each family as an incentive in 2010 to prevent lopping and firewood collecting, the main causes of forest degradation.

Rational versus adaptive forest management planning: exploratory research on the strategic planning practices of Dutch forest management organizations

The long-running debate between the rational and the adaptive school of strategic forest management planning has received considerable attention. There is, however, little empirical evidence of whether and how forest management organizations actually plan strategically. The goal of this paper is to fill this empirical gap by describing the strategic planning practices of 22 Dutch forest management organizations faced with uncertain and unpredictable environments. Two characteristics on which the two planning approaches fundamentally differ form the basis of the description of the planning practices. The first characteristic relates to the way the external world is perceived; certainty is essential in the rational model, whereas uncertainty is central in the adaptive model. The second characteristic relates to the way the internal decision process is organized. Rational planning is much more static and stable, whereas adaptive planning processes are much more continuous, dynamic and natural. Interviews with the organizations studied point to a whole range of planning practices. Rational and adaptive planning are merely two ends of a continuum, and planning practices vary along this continuum. The rational–adaptive planning debate can therefore be considered oversimplified as it focuses only on the two extremes and does not incorporate the whole range of possible practices in between these extremes.

Social Learning as a Basis for Cooperative Small-Scale Forest Management

This paper analyses the governance characteristics of an innovative policy instrument for sustainable forest management in Flanders, namely a mechanism based on social learning and collaborative planning within joint forest management organizations. These organizations have been successful in involving non-industrial private forest owners in managing the transition towards sustainable management in small-scale forestry. Why was this innovative scheme successful? And what are its shortcomings and possible limitations? The hypothesis developed in this paper is that the success of the forest groups has been made possible by the explicit organization of a process of social learning, leading to change in the beliefs and the social norms of forest owners and users. Based on the analysis of this case of cooperative forestry, and on theoretical insights from governance theory, the contribution to fostering social learning from three distinct mechanisms is established, these being (1) the recourse to sustainability criteria and indicators as an open-ended learning device, (2) the experimentation with disruptive action strategies to put new beliefs into practice, and (3) the building of new forms of social cooperation around these new beliefs and practices.

A national portrait of community forestry on public land in Canada

Despite the interest community forestry generates, there is little published literature on the array of initiatives currently taking place across Canada. This paper presents the results of nationwide survey of community forestry initiatives on public land. The survey focused on basic characteristics such as objectives, organizational structures, and tenure types. The research revealed that there are over one hundred community forest initiatives currently taking place on public land, mainly in Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia. Most of them are run through local government organizations. Approximately 60% operate on Crown land while the remaining 40% operate on land owned fee simple by local governments. The median land base is 4200 ha. The average age of community forests is 10 years. Key words: community forestry, community-based management, public participation, local governance, forest management organizations, Canada

Certification: The View from FSC-Certified Land Managers

Abstract Forest Stewardship Council certification emerged nearly a decade ago, and its growth has been both applauded and criticized. To learn more about the impacts of certification, in 2002 we conducted a survey of FSC-certified forest management organizations in North America, focusing on forest managers' goals for seeking certification, the land management impacts of certification, and the overall benefits and costs of certification. Results indicate FSC certification seems to be representing the interests of those who call for greater forest management accountability, but it addresses the interests of the forest managers themselves less well.

An Overview of Non-Timber Forest Products in the United States Today

Summary As people become more interested in personal health and family activities, demand for wild forest products has increased. This increased demand coupled with an increased concern for sustainable m anagement practices has focused attention on the variety of issues and products involved in the non-timber forest products industry. Forest management organizations have gradually increased funding for research and management of non-timber forest products over the past two decades. The broad categories of U.S. non-timber forest products include floral greens, Christmas greens, ornamentals and craft materials, wild edibles, medicinals, ceremonials/culturals, and native transplants. The increase in resource pressure has had many policy reactions, including restricted access, harvesting fees, and harvest limits. Opportunities for public input to policy decisions on federal, state and private land are often unclear or nonexistent. Researchers, managers, and policy makers are working to understand the multitude of issues surrounding non-timber forest products, including biology, management, public policy and equity issues.

Distributing GIS Capabilities to Forestry Field Offices: Benefits and Challenges

Abstract Distributing the analytical and map production capabilities of a geographic information system (GIS) to field offices benefits staff in many ways, including facilitating more informed and timely management decisions. Forest management organizations may encounter problems in shifting GIS functions from a central office to field offices, however. Success depends on the readiness of field office staff, the extent of database availability, access to the necessary technology (hardware and software), and degree of organizational commitment to the distributed-GIS approach.

Forest Policy Reform and the Restructuring of the Forest Industry in Russia

The Russian forest is the last big wood basket of the international timber market and the conservation of the Russian forest is critical to protect global environment. There is a strong need to analyze present situation of forest policy and forest industry in Russia. The basic direction of forest policy reform of Russia is decentralization and introduction of market principles. However, the lack of specialists in forest policy in the regions and the conflict between central and regional governments has accelerated the confusion of forest policy. Forest management organizations cannot spare enough money for forest management because of the financial crisis of Russian government. Forest industry has also deteriorated. Although privatization of the forest industry was completed, it did not improve the management of enterprises and they could not survive the economic crisis. Output of the forest industry has decreased and most enterprises came close to bankruptcy. Under these circumstances, the former regional amalgamation of forest industry, which has accumulated hard currency earned by timber export, re-took control of the industry and tried to increase timber exports even more. However, logging enterprises, facing economic crises, cannot observe forest regulations and forest management organization cannot control these violations. A recovery of forest industry may accelerate the degradation of forest resources in Russia.

Conserving the boreal forest by shifting the emphasis of management action from vegetation to the atmosphere

Historically, the management of forest vegetation and the atmosphere have occurred in isolation. Modelling, however, suggests that boreal forests will be highly sensitive to changes in atmospheric composition, so much so that the persistence of closed forests within present boreal areas such as central Saskatchewan will depend more upon management of air than upon management of trees. This should inspire organizations responsible for the management of Canadian forests to be both advocates for, and models of, CO2 emission reductions. But data on electricity use and fossil fuel consumption are used to show CO2 emissions from a subset of private and public forest management institutions are not declining along a trajectory toward the international target of a 20% emission reduction relative to 1988 levels by the year 2005. Estimated emissions from the pulp and paper industry between 1989 and 1993 exceeded the linear reduction trajectory by 11.5% to 15.5%. Estimated emissions from Parks Canada for 1989 to 1991 exceeded this same trajectory by 4.4% to 17.7%. Despite commitments to ecosystem management approaches, there is little evidence that atmospheric considerations have been fully incorporated into the activities of forest management organizations.