Timber Storage Research Articles

On the search for digital traces using OSINT in the detection and investigation of crimes related to the acquisition, storage, sale and smuggling of timber.

On the search for digital traces using OSINT in the detection and investigation of crimes related to the acquisition, storage, sale and smuggling of timber.

Timber vernacular structures: ‘Serender’ Turkish storage buildings in Eastern Black Sea Region

ABSTRACT Cultural heritage structures reflect the lifestyles and creative aspects of our ancestors. Indeed, they contain the cultural roots of today’s societies and connect the past to the present. There is no doubt that architectural and structural evaluation plays important role in the conservation of these structures for the future. This paper focuses on an architectural evaluation and current usage of the specific timber vernacular structure, the Turkish Storage Building ‘Serender’, which has not yet been protected in the Eastern Black Sea region of Turkey. The architectural assessment includes morphological analysis, material, and construction techniques of the timber storage buildings. We believe that this assessment will contribute to the preservation of the authenticity and integrity of these structures, and also will contribute to sustaining the skills of craftworker and their traditional and cultural knowledge.

Технологический алгоритм производства продукции из порубочных остатков

Increasing the profit received from 1 hectare of the developed forest area is one of the priority tasks of the forest industry today. This parameter describes the efficiency of forest management and affects the availability of wood resources. One of the possible solutions of this issue is the development of effective technological chains of manufacturing commodity products from wood felling residues. Currently, there are ample opportunities to obtain various products from harvested wood, including wastes from its logging and processing. The product range is significantly differentiated by cost and selling price. In Russia one of the important factors is the demand for certain types of products from wood resources, which is significantly inferior in its volume to foreign markets. Costs related to the manufacturing process are the most significant in the structure of production costs. Meanwhile, expenses may vary dramatically depending on the chosen technology, logistics, and specific production conditions in terms of the formation sources and specific weight in the overall structure. The set of factors that influence the choice of the type of products to be produced and, ultimately, the reasonable portfolio of commodity products, is not easy to consider in the issues of optimization. The study aims at forming a technological chain of processing felling residues at the stage of logging operations with obtaining an effective portfolio of commodity products under dynamic natural and production conditions. We propose to apply a graph-analytical model, in which the peaks of the graph are the cutting area, production operations, and а consumer. The arcs of this model are characterized by the carrying capacity limited by the productivity or volume of raw materials available for the operation, as well as the labor and costs (variable and constant). It should be mentioned that fixed costs arise primarily in the wood storage. A distinctive feature of the proposed model is the accounting of irrecoverable losses resulting from certain production operations and from the longterm storage of timber used for manufacturing commodity products including the costs of their disposal. The proposed graph-analytical model and procedure for solving the problem will allow determining the optimal technological chains of processing of wood felling residues with obtaining a commercial yield portfolio.

Aboveground carbon and nutrient distributions are hardly associated with canopy position for trees in temperate forests on poor and acidified sandy soils

High demands on forest for carbon storage and provision of timber and biofuel require precise and reliable estimates of the biomass, carbon and nutrient stocks in different tree compartments. Whether the fraction of biomass distributed in aboveground tree compartments and the carbon and nutrient concentrations varies systematically across trees in different canopy positions remains unclear despite its importance for understanding forest ecology. Here, we compared the distribution of biomass, carbon and nutrients from underlying carbon and nutrient concentrations between different aboveground tree compartments for 15 mature trees of European beech (Fagus sylvatica), Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) with dominant, intermediate and suppressed canopy position.We show that carbon concentrations were relatively constant across tree compartments while nutrient concentrations increased from stem, bark, branches towards needles. Canopy position had only minor effects on carbon and nutrient concentrations and on the distribution of biomass, carbon and nutrients between aboveground tree components. Nutrient concentrations and stochiometric results confirm that the forests were affected by high N deposition and low availability of P and base cations.Our results imply that predictions from allometric scaling theory better apply to aboveground tree components than from functional equilibrium theory. Models aiming for estimating tree and forest biomass and carbon and nutrient stocks can apply equal biomass, carbon and nutrient stocks for trees independent of canopy position as a valid assumption but testing this assumption for a broader range of species and site conditions remains recommended.

Foil Storage of Storm-Felled Timber—Long-Term Monitoring of Norway Spruce Piles in Germany

Windthrow and other calamities pose major challenges for forestry companies. In addition to difficult processing, solutions for the medium- and long-term storage of logs without the loss of quality are required in order to counteract the oversupply and falling prices of raw wood. The application of foil piles is a comparatively young and only regionally established procedure, which is of particular interest when wet storage is not possible. As part of a case study, a total of 32 piles of Norway spruce (Picea abies) wood were monitored under foil in the forest district of Dassel (Lower Saxony State Forests, Germany), and the conditions for wood-destroying fungi and the resulting wood quality were evaluated. A considerable depreciation in the stored wood was directly related to the atmosphere inside the pile and could be attributed to various types of damage to the foil. It became evident that quality losses can only be avoided by working quickly, being careful when sealing the piles and providing intensive support in the form of monitoring and rapid repairs.

Two Manifestations of Market Premium in the Capitalization of Carbon Forest Estates

In this study, the effect of capitalization premium in forest estate markets on forest management and climate change mitigation economics is investigated. It is shown that proportional goodwill in capitalization induces linear scaling of the financial return, without any contribution to sound management practices. However, there is a financial discontinuity, as harvesting deteriorates goodwill. Such deterioration might be partially avoided by entering the real estate market. Conversely, a capitalization premium set on bare land as a tangible asset would increase timber storage and carbon sequestration. Observations indicate that the proportional goodwill is closer to reality within the Nordic Region, resulting in continuity problems.

Impact of fine-grained sediment on mountain stream macroinvertebrate communities: Forestry activities and beaver-induced sediment management

Fine-grained sediments are a natural component of river systems. Human activities generate additional sources of fine sediment. In mountainous areas, the anthropogenic inputs of fine sediments are associated with forestry. The aim of this study was to analyse the differences in the macroinvertebrate communities between the reference and caused by forest harvesting activities increased influx of fine-sediment to mountain streams. The tested hypothesis was that the macroinvertebrate communities will differ depending on the intensity of forest harvesting practices in the stream catchment that causes excessive influx of fine sediment into the stream. The reintroduction of beavers in the study area, and the formation of in-stream beaver dams, contribute the accumulation of sediments in stream sections with slower water. Thus, it was also assumed that by capturing and storing fine sediments, may contribute to the restoration of the natural structure of the benthic communities downstream of the ponds. The study was carried out in a mountain stream catchment area (Carpathians, Poland), in which inflow of fine sediments in the stream sections varied in intensity. The study was conducted over three years (2018–2020). The extensive use of forest roads, timber skidding trails, and timber storage areas produced fine sediments that clogged the interstitial spaces between the stones in the riffles, limiting the presence of rheophilic taxa associated with coarse-grained substrates. The reduction of the number of scrapers and shredders (i.e. primary consumers) associated with the influx of fine sediments may significantly affect the entire food-web structure in stream ecosystems. The capture and deposition of fine sediments in beaver ponds may accelerate the revitalisation of the flowing sections of the stream. Beaver-induced sediment management is strongly recommended as a beneficial practice that could contribute to ecological preservation and the potential of streams, particularly in mountain areas.

ПРИМЕНЕНИЕ ТАХОГЕНЕРАТОРА И РЕГУЛИРУЕМОГО ЭЛЕКТРОПРИВОДА ДЛЯ ЗАМЕНЫ МЕХАНИЧЕСКОГО УПРАВЛЯЮЩЕГО КАНАЛА ДЛЯ СИНХРОННО-СЛЕДЯЩИХ СОРТИРОВОЧНЫХ УСТРОЙСТВ КРУГЛОГО ЛЕСА

Relevance Automated sorting of timber is one of the main types of work in modern timber warehouses, timber processing and woodworking enterprises. The choice of a sorting device is determined by the cargo turnover of the warehouse, the assortment composition, the sorting fraction and the conditions for the shipment of timber to consumers, as a rule, when sorting round timber, chain timber transporters (log haulers) are mainly used. The main elements of longitudinal sorting timber transporters are: drive, traction and tension devices, overpass with timber storage. With automated sorting, longitudinal conveyors are equipped with log ejectors and command devices (sorting devices) that provide automatic control of their work. Command devices are divided into two groups: local and synchronous-tracking sorting devices. The group of synchronously-tracking sorting devices contains an analog or discrete carrier, the information on which must move synchronously with the movement of the chain conveyor of the log haul. However, to fix the movement of the conveyor, one element of the kinematic scheme of the conveyor is available – this is the shaft of the driven or driving hexagonal wheel of the chain conveyor. For a group of synchronously tracking sorting devices, the synchronization of the sorting device with the movement of logs to storage bins and dumpers is of great importance. The average rotational speed of the driving and driven wheels of the chain conveyor and, consequently, the linear speed of movement of round wood on the chain conveyor is constant. Thus, the following positions can be attributed to the positive properties of synchronous- tracking sorting devices: automatic maintenance of all forest storages by one sorting device without additional elements that correct the process of turning on log throwers. The negative points include a significant inaccuracy in the control of log throwers, which predetermined the small introduction of a mechanical ball drum of orders. Therefore, further research into the technology of transporting logs on timber conveyors, taking into account the synchronization of the operation of the log sorting device, is an urgent scientific and technical task. Aim of research To identify new solutions and trends in their development in the field of development and research of ways to control the sorting device on sorting timber conveyors. Research methods Bibliographic analysis, statistical processing methods, simulation modeling. Results To control discrete and continuous synchronously-tracking sorting devices, a method for implementing a control channel based on a tachogenerator and an adjustable electric drive is proposed, the possibility of controlling the speed of the control channel and controlling continuous sorting devices without the use of additional means is considered and proved. In the study, a simulation method was used in MatLab 2021a, which makes it possible to verify the operability of the developed implementation of the control channel, and to evaluate the errors in the performance of the control channel. The simulation results confirmed the possibility of practical application of the proposed method for implementing the control channel. Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that this method of implementing the control channel can be used to control discrete sorting devices. The study used the simulation method in MatLab 2021a, which allows you to verify the operability of the developed implementation of the control channel, and evaluate the errors in the performance of the control channel.

Architectural Environmental, And Process Flow in Constructing Modern Factories for Manufacturing Eco-Friendly Furniture

Today, a dominant trend in factory construction is to account for the eco-economic aspects of their further operations. It requires sustainable technological solutions, with regard for structural specificities or for production technology used. At the same time, the buildings shall be architecturally attractive and distinct. In the paper, the author considered architectural, technological, structural, ecological, and economic factors for construction of wood-processing and furniture-making facilities. The author analyzed the actual Project Design to build the type of facility in Krekhiv village, Zhovkva district, Lviv region (western Ukraine) as commissioned by a well-known French company (the author have been engaged in the design). The study focused on a wood-processing Woodman company designed for the midtech production of edge glued panels and furniture. According to the design documentation by types of products planned, the Project Design provided for the following production units: unit for wood-sawing and drying; unit for mechanical processing of wood, production of edge glued panels and furniture; unit for mechanical repairs; and an administrative and services unit. The anticipated annual production capacity is: for edge glued panels – 600 m3 a year, furniture production– up to 4,000 pc a year. “Wood-sawing unit”, according to the Project Design, is organized according to the following principles of production technology based on the stages and operations: stockholding and storage of round timber (sawtimber); cutting the sawtimber into the shaped timber and logs; stocking the sawn timber (untrimmed boards) into stockpiles and on separators for further atmospheric and chamber drying. Sawn timber drying is taking place in the “Drying Unit”. It is the process of moisture removal from timber to a certain degree of humidity. The Project Design provided for the atmospheric drying of logs and boards in the furnished stockpiles under the roof, and artificial seasoning in a steam-curing and drying chambers. The artificial seasoning technology for sawn timber and logs is organized with the help of drying chambers and a boiler room with a sawdust bunker. The “Unit for Mechanical Wood Processing, Production of Edged Glued Panels and Furniture” is used for production of the edged glued panels from the sawn timber coming from hardwood (beech, oak). The production process of the edged glued panels includes the following stages: 1) cross-cutting of dry boards; 2) line cutting of board edges for the rough-sawn stock; 3) primary mechanical processing; 4) sorting by quality, color; 5) end-jointing gluing line; 6) log finishing; 7) press-molding of logs into panels; 8) panel surface preparation; 9) size cutting; 10) preservative treatment; 11) quality control; 12) storage and sales. "Administrative and Service Block", according to the Project Design, is an inbuilt part of the Main Building (Unit). It is a two-story insert separated with the fire safety barriers from the manufacturing facilities. It has isolated outside entrances and a technological corridor linking the manufacturing facilities. With account for production process requirements, fire safety, and sanitary standards, the Unit is divided into several personal services rooms for the staff and administrative rooms.

Peculiarities of classification of purchasing, storage, transportation and processing of timber known to be illegally harvested, for the purpose of illegal sale (article 191.1 of the Criminal Code of Russia)

The research object is social relations in the field of legal regulation of the composition of a crime carrying responsibility for purchasing, storage, transportation, processing for the purpose of illegal sale, and illegal sale of timber known to be illegally harvested, according to the article 191.1 of the Criminal Code of Russia. The research subject is Russia’s legislation imposing responsibility for the sales of illegally harvested timber, the materials of judicial practice, and theoretical views of scholars. The research methodology is based on the general dialectical method. The author also uses such research methods as logical, formal-legal, and teleological ones. The research is based on both general scientific and specific methods of scientific cognition. The purpose of the research is to formulate the proposals about the improvement of the practice of application of the article 191.1 of the Criminal Code of Russia. The scientific novelty of the research is determined by the fact that it contains theoretical provisions about the improvement and application of the article 191.1 of the Criminal Code. Particularly, the author describes the contents of particular constituent elements of this offence, including the evaluative and blanket ones, and formulates the proposals about the classification of crimes described in the article 191.1 of the Criminal Code. The author arrives at the conclusion that a crime, described in the article 191.1, is a new form of involvement in a crime, and the predicate deed is illegal harvesting of timber (article 260 of the Criminal Code, part 1 and 2 of article 8.28 of the Administrative Offences Code).   

The use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for Tracking Stock Movements in Forest Enterprise Depots

In forestry applications in Turkey, forest enterprise depots (FEDs) are permanent main places where forest products such as logs and round timbers are stored and presented for sale to the market. The principal functions of FEDs are receiving, classifying, protecting, preparing the forest products for the sales and tracking the stock movements. According to Communiqué No 288 on the Production of Fundamental Forest Products published by General Directorate of Forestry in Turkey, it is obligatory to conduct stocktaking twice a year in FEDs for tracking and controlling the stock movements. The capabilities of using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in tracking stock movements in FEDs have not been extensively studied yet in the current literature. This study aimed to test UAVs in determining volume of round timber storages inside a FED named "Göl", located in Gölyaka District (Düzce, Turkey). A UAV flight was conducted and volume of round timber storage was calculated from point cloud, and compared to stock records for validation of UAV-based measurements. It was found that UAV-based volume measurements of the stock were quite compatible with available stock records. This study concluded that UAVs could be used in tracking stock movements in FEDs in an effective way.

ПРОБЛЕМЫ ПРАВОВОГО РЕГУЛИРОВАНИЯ ОХРАНЫ ЛЕСОВ И ЛЕСОПОЛЬЗОВАНИЯ В РОССИЙСКОЙ ФЕДЕРАЦИИ

Forest violations are a special type of offenses that infringe on the order of rational use of natural resources and environmental protection. The purpose of this study is to analyze the phenomenon of forest violations, their classification and qualifications, determine the subject composition of forest violations, and the peculiarities of the mechanism of bringing to legal responsibility for forest violations. The relevance of the work lies in the fact that the problem of legal protection of forests exists not only in Russia, but also abroad, therefore, the solution to this problem should be developed and implemented at the global level, by the combined efforts of states in the field of forestry. The paper describes the regulatory and legal framework in the field of forest management, lists the problems of the legal mechanism of forest protection, identifies its subjects, discloses the problems associated with evidence and proof in cases of forest violations (for example, storage of timber seized as material evidence) and other problems , in the field of implementation of control and supervision activities by forest users.

Exploring controls of timber stock residence times in storage after severe storm events

The storage of significant amounts of timber from thrown or dead trees after natural disturbances is an established practice for forest enterprises. Timber storage mitigates economic losses caused by supply-driven timber price falls after natural disturbances. We use a forest accounting database to explore the controls of residence times of coniferous timber stocks in storage following severe storm events. We characterize forest enterprises’ timber stock outflow distributions from storage over several years by mean residence times and their variances. We conduct regression analyses on the expected residence times and their variances. We assess the significance of several explanatory variables representing economic, institutional and tree species-related factors on these metrics using multiple linear regression analyses. Illustrating the effect of these variables on timber storage residence time distributions we reanalyze the database by grouping the FADN data sets with regard to the identified control variables and determine their mean timber storage outflow distributions after the storm events as well as associated expected residence times and their variances. Applying the resulting parameters with the continuous gamma distribution to simulate TSO residence time distributions clearly illuminates the effect of the control variables on storage management. We show that besides market price dynamics, species groups, ownership categories and forest worker capacities are statistically significant controls for mean residence times of timber stock in storage and their variances. We find that stronger timber price falls correlate with shorter mean residence times of timber stocks in storage. We relate this to liquidity maintenance of forest enterprises. We model duration times parameterizing the Gamma distribution. The application of the Gamma distribution to characterize storage management behavior offers the potential to describe differences in timber stock quantities even on shorter timescales than the mean storage residence times. According to our results, we propose to assess timber stocks in storage over a multi-year period in order to improve related national and international accounting schemes.

Simulation Analysis of Seaport Rijeka Operations with Established Dry Port

Seaport Rijeka is the largest seaport in Croatia. It specializes in transport of cargo, with the primary activities of loading, unloading, storage and transport of general cargo, timber, bulk cargo, livestock, containers, and other cargo at five specialized terminals. It is focused on increasing the quality of services and the competitiveness of the transport routes in Croatia. Due to its favourable position on the TEN-T network, Seaport Rijeka provides the shortest maritime connection between the countries of Central and Eastern Europe as well as the overseas countries. In the past 20 years Seaport Rijeka keeps record of continuous growth in container traffic. Due to increasing demand in container traffic, it seeks for the solutions to expand. One of the possible solutions that would satisfy the increasing demand in container traffic is establishing a dry port. Dry port is an inland intermodal terminal which has direct connection to the seaport by road or rail and its main purpose is to provide logistic activities and transport to inland destinations. Dry ports have many advantages, faster transport of cargo from seaports, use of more efficient modes of transport, providing facilities for the storage and consolidation of goods, the maintenance of road or rail freight carriers, customs services, etc. In the case of container transport, dry ports can be used to outsource the logistic activities of transport process, away from congested area of seaports. Due to the fact that Seaport Rijeka is reaching the limits of its capacity, one of possible solutions of its expansion is establishing a dry port. The focus of this paper is to prove that establishing a dry port would speed up the transport process of containers between Seaport Rijeka and its destinations. Due to this hypothesis, four simulations were made. First simulation shows the transport process in the existing set-up of the Seaport Rijeka. Second, third and fourth simulation shows the transport process in the future possible set-up of the Seaport Rijeka with established dry port in Miklavlje, Zagreb or Vinkovci.

L’habitat Néolithique final de Beau Phare à Aiguebelette-le-Lac (Savoie) : nouvelles approches méthodologiques de la planimétrie d’un village littoral de l’arc alpin

L’habitat Néolithique final de Beau Phare à Aiguebelette-le-Lac (Savoie) : nouvelles approches méthodologiques de la planimétrie d’un village littoral de l’arc alpin

Analysis and modeling of timber storage accumulation after severe storm events in Germany

In this study, we explore the determinants of forest enterprises’ timber storage accumulation after severe storm events. The explanatory power of variables reflecting economic, institutional and tree species-related factors is tested via econometric analyses. Timber storage accumulation is assessed conducting a weighted multiple linear regression analysis. In addition, the moderating effect of timber price alterations on timber storage accumulation is tested employing timber price alterations as a moderator variable in a hierarchical regression analysis. The results show a linear positive relation between forest enterprises’ damaged and stored timber quantities. It was found that coniferous timber was stored to a greater extent than non-coniferous timber which can be explained by higher storm damage as well as better suitability for multiyear storage. State forestry stored the highest shares of damaged timber, followed by municipal and private forest enterprises, which can be explained as a countervailing measure. A further central finding of our study is that the timber price drops after storm events act as a moderator variable on the relation between damaged and stored timber quantities. Hence, empirical timber price reactions help to improve estimation accuracy regarding the shares of damaged timber which are stored. Derived from our results, we find timber storage accumulation to be a common practice by forest companies to mitigate revenue losses caused by extreme storm events. As coefficients vary strongly among the analyzed variables’ categories, we consider case-specific storage accumulation estimations to be crucial for improving the accuracy of national wood and timber accounting, but also for a full view on storm-related economic damage in the forest sector. In addition, it is likely that capturing the proportions of timber storage in forests will gain relevance in the future, since forest damage from natural disturbances is expected to increase as a consequence of climate change.

Quantifying dispersal of a non-aggressive saprophytic bark beetle.

Long distance dispersal to locate suitable breeding sites is recognized as a key trait influencing the population dynamics and distribution of bark beetles and other saprophytic insects. While dispersal behavior has been studied for a range of aggressive ‘tree killing’ bark beetles, few have considered the dispersal behaviour of non-aggressive saprophytic bark beetles that utilize kairomones (host volatiles). We present the results of a mark-recapture experiment that examined adult dispersal patterns of the saprophytic bark beetle Hylurgus ligniperda. Releases took place in summer and autumn 2014, in a clearcut pine forest in the central North Island, New Zealand. Both flight-experienced and flight-naïve adults were marked and released in the center of a circular trap grid that extended to 960 m with 170 or 200 panel traps baited with a kairomone blend of alpha-pinene and ethanol. Of the 18,464 released H. ligniperda, 9,209 (49.9%) of the beetles flew, and 96 (1.04%) of the beetles that flew were recaptured. Individuals were recaptured at all distances. The recapture of flight-experienced beetles declined with dispersal distance, and a diffusion model showed heterogeneous dispersal tendencies within the population. Our best model estimated that 46% of flight-experienced beetles disperse > 1 km, and 1.6% > 5 km. Conversely, no declining pattern was shown in the recapture of flight-naïve beetles, suggesting that emerging H. ligniperda may require a period of flight to initiate chemotropic orientation behavior and subsequent attraction to traps. We discuss the implications of these findings for the management of phytosanitary risks. For instance, combining landscape knowledge of source populations with dispersal processes facilitates estimation of pest pressure at economically sensitive areas such as harvest and timber storage sites. Quantitative dispersal estimates also inform pest risk assessments by predicting spread rates for H. ligniperda that has proven establishment capabilities in other countries.

Identification of sprinkling storage facilities for windblown timber using a GIS-based modeling approach

Description of the subject. After catastrophic storm events, the storage of windblown timber is an effective measure for mitigating economic losses in the forest sector by preventing wood decay, protecting stands from secondary damage, and regulating the timber supply in the middle and long term. Objectives. In this study, we first propose a GIS-based methodology for identifying suitable sprinkling storage terminals in Wallonia (Belgium). In addition, we suggest an approach for building a coherent regional network as well as methods for selecting and activating terminals within this network after a storm, depending on the severity and distribution of the damage. Method. The GIS-based approach was used to crosscheck technical requirements related to sprinkling storage according to operational and environmental constraints in the Ardenne, which is the most forested sub-region of Wallonia. A three-step process was employed to identify suitable areas. Nine procurement areas were also delineated according to the regional forest inventory plots as a reference for choosing the terminals that should be included in the regional network and activated after the storm. Results. We generated and evaluated 96 scenarios. In the second step, a network of 30 terminals was suggested, which corresponded to a storage capacity of 4 million m³. This network could facilitate the flexibility in the strategic management of storage after huge storms. The procurement area approach also helps addressing routing and transportation issues in a simple way. Conclusions. The GIS approach facilitates the selection of sprinkling storage terminals, but field validation and enhanced collaboration between public and private landowners and forest owners would still be needed.

Toxic effects of high copper content on physiological processes in Pinus sylvestris L.

The aim of this study was to determine the impact of increased copper contents on selected physiological processes in oneyear-old Pinus sylvestris L. needles from a former German timber storage area in Warcino Forest District, a subject to an environmental quality survey. Samples were collected from the area with the high copper content in the soil. The control area was a nearby pine tree stand showing unimpeded growth. The significant growth inhibition was found in dwarf shoots and whole needles, increased water content, and reduced dry mass were also observed. The chlorophyll content was lowered, while 20% higher electrolyte leakage was found. Chlorophyll a fluorescence indicated only higher values of the nonphotochemical quenching in P. sylvestris from the Cu-site. Significant differences were shown in the rate of gas exchange measured by changes in carbon dioxide or oxygen concentration. The intensity of photosynthesis in needles of P. sylvestris from the Cu-site measured by CO2 uptake was considerably higher than that of oxygen production. The rate of respiration in the needles from the Cu-site measured by the amount of released CO2 was higher only by 15%, while according to O2 consumed, the rate increased by 30% in relation to the control. Our results suggest that the copper accumulation in P. sylvestris needles affected the morphology and physiology of the studied organs.

A comparative analysis of pine and beech wood classification according to Polish and EU norms

Investigations were carried out at timber storage sites (depots) on large-sized pine (110 pieces) and beech (130 pieces) wood from three forest districts within the territory of the Regional Directorates of the State Forests (RDSF) of Łodź, Lublin and Krakow. As a result of a comparison of both classification systems, it was proved that in the case of pine wood classified according to EU norms, the shares of the number of pieces and volume in classes B and C decreased, whereas they increased in class D when compared with Polish classification. Analogically, in the case of beech wood, a decrease in the share of the number of pieces and volume in classes A, B and D, and an increase in class C were recorded. Among the most common defects that influence the classification of both sorts of wood, open and burl knots as well as curvatures are recognised, while in the case of beech wood, shakes and galls (disease T stains) are encountered. The results of the classification determined differences in the wood value. According to the pricelists for wood standing in forest districts where the raw wood under investigation originated, it was established that the value of the pine wood classified according to the EU norm decreased by ca. 7.6% when compared with the value estimated using the Polish norm. The value of the beech wood was nearly identical in both cases, which was mainly due to the higher share of wood of class C and lower share of class D upon applying the EU standards, in comparison with the Polish classification system.