the economics of forest management national and international forest policy
Post on 21-Dec-2015
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Hypothetical Group Project
Spotted owl habitat is on lands that are highly productive for timber. Can rules be developed to change timbering practices to protect owl with minimal impact on timber harvest?
Why manage forests?
Manage deforestation Global forest down 40% since pre-ag times. Tropical deforestation:
• Benefits--Biodiversity, carbon sequestration• Often commons issue – incomplete property rights• Losses: 130,000 km2 per year (200x200 miles)
Temperate deforestation• Biodiversity loss• Habitat for endangered species (NW Spotted Owl)
Timber supply Often publicly owned, privately harvested –
mismatch of incentives
Forest management policies — account for external benefits of forests
Common policiesSubsidies, taxes, technology standards,
silvicultural practice regulations.
Relatively new policies Forest certification, carbon offsets, property
rights
Subsidies
Free seedlings, management assistance, financial aid – common in developing world
Tradeoff often between forest and agriculture Success depends on relative prices of forest vs.
agricultural products Developing world:
Collection of wood for fuel a major problem. Some success with subsidies for woodlots.
Taxes
Used on private forestland to Capture scarcity rent for govt and/orCorrect for externalities
Monitoring & information problems pose challenges, especially in developing worldStatistics on harvested timber underestimates
High-grading can resultHigh-grading = taking only the highest quality,
leaving the rest (not optimal)
Regulations
Government may dictate silvicultural methodSeed-tree, shade-tree, even aged, clear-cut
Regulations mitigate environmental harmBuffer strips, wood in streams, structured
canopy, reforestation requirements, road stipulations
Forest concessions
Government-owned forests (e.g. Nat’l Forest in US) grant concessions to private forestry companies. Typically auction off right to harvest a certain tract
of forest, may be corrupt. Fees usually not market value (unless auction)
Property rights problem – no incentive to care for land since don’t own it. May require environmental bond.
Forest certification
A form of “green labeling”Provides information to consumersConsumers will be paying for a public good
Internationally-recognized certifiers Forest Stewardship Council
Certified 30 million hectares in 56 countries Acts like distinct (substitute) market
Carbon offsets
Financial incentives to increase storage of carbon by keeping trees in ground, reforesting, or planting high C-sequestering species.
Problem: usually ignores biodiversity considerations (e.g. native vs. exotic fast growth)
Several global carbon payment funds to which countries can apply.
Hard to verify what country would have done Called the “counterfactual”
Enhanced property rights
Most countries: state is largest forest landowner Problems: monitoring, ignorant of local needs, poor
revenue collection, poaching (open access), limited info Problems when gov’t takes over from community
management – ignores local customs and laws Property rights can be shared with locals
“Panchayat forestry” (Nepal), “joint forest management” (India), “community-based” forestry (Philippines, others), “communal tenure” (advocated by World Bank).
Combination with other instruments (e.g. taxes)
Public forest management (US)
USFS: 156 Nat’l Forests, 194 million acres Concessions: terms of contract affect
Rotation interval, nature of harvest, non-timber values, depletion of forest
Pricing of concessions Often p < market value, sometimes p < mc Infrastructure often provided free (1) few buyers, (2) external costs ignored
Tenure length < rotation interval (implication??)
A biological model
Managing tract of trees of certain age (all the same age).
Choose rotation interval (how long before cutting) to maximize total volume per unit time (max sustainable yield)?
Q(t) = quantity of wood at age t. Harvest at time T and start process again What should be T?
Management: What should our objective be?
1. Physical: Average growth of the forest stand
2. Economic: Net present value of the forest stand
3. Full economic: managing for a sustainable and infinitely-lived forest
Naive model: pick rotation to maximize average annual forest growth
Problem: maxT Q(T)/T
Solution: (TQ’ – Q)/T2 = 0Q(T)/T = Q’(T)
Average growth rate = marginal growth Not quite right since we have neglected discounting:
payoff 50 years from now not the same as today.
Graphically
Vol.Q(t)
Time, tT1
Q(t)
Average growth at time T1
is slope of line from originto Q(T1)
Marginal growth at time T1
is slope of Q(t) at time T1
Q(T*)/T* = Q’(T*)
T*
Add economics:A bio-economic model
Incorporate: price, harvest cost, discounting.
p = price per MBF, c = cost per MBF, r=discount rate (p-c) = rent
maxT (p-c)Q(T)/(1+r)t
Or, since trees grow continuously, we could discount continuously: 1/(1+r)t e-rt
maxT (p-c)Q(T)e-rT
Harvest when rent peaks
Result of bio-economic model
Take derivative, set = 0. T* is place where % growth rate equal
discount rate (continuous discounting):Q’(T*)/Q(T*) = r
“Return” on trees (Q’(T)) equals interest on trees [rQ(t)]
“Harvest when tree growth rate equals rate of growth of next best alternative”.
Think of trees as money in the bank: when bank payoff drops below interest rate, withdraw your money.
Extensions of this model
Can includeMultiple rotationsReplanting costsNon-timber values of forest (water,
recreation, biodiversity, etc.) Extended models will allow us to
analyze different economic policies (e.g. tax, site fees, license fees, etc.)