By the BRITISH COLONIAL OFFICE
THE British colonial territories in the tropical zone are important sources of hardwood supplies. They also contain small quantities of softwoods, but these are relatively unimportant. The areas with a clear exportable surplus of hardwoods are British Guiana, British Honduras, the Gold Coast, Nigeria, the Malayan Union, North Borneo, Sarawak, and the British Solomon Islands Protectorate.
In the tropical forests the species are generally mixed and do not occur in pure stands as in the case of the coniferous forests of the temperate zone. In consequence, logging in the territories mentioned above has in the past been conducted on a selective basis. A few species of high export value have been extracted, with the result that in large areas of the forests there are now only secondary timbers which can furnish an economically exploitable volume of timber.
Logging operations conducted on a selective basis are uneconomic owing to the high extraction costs and are also wasteful of the forest resources by reducing the capital value of the forests. Efforts are therefore being made to introduce a system under which all marketable species of timber will be extracted at one operation, so that the cut-over areas can be handed over to the local forest department for regeneration. It is hoped that this system will reduce the cost of timber to such an extent as to bring it within the purchasing power of local consumers, thus creating a market for the secondary species. In order to ensure the most economical use of the timber resources, operators are also being encouraged to set up local sawmills and veneer and plywood factories. One such factory is now in process of construction in Nigeria, and it is hoped that another will be established at an early date in the Gold Coast. It will in future be the policy to encourage the partial processing of timber before export as being the best means of ensuring the most intensive utilization of timber resources.
In some British Colonial territories there is a large area of tropical rain forest, but this area is being gradually reduced by shifting cultivation under which the inhabitants clear the forest for farming purposes and, after exhausting the soil by continuous cultivation, proceed to clear a further area of forest. If these cleared areas were allowed to lie fallow for a reasonable period a useful secondary growth of timber might be obtained; but unfortunately they are usually subjected to further farming operations before this can take place. It is difficult to control this shifting cultivation, which has been practiced from time immemorial and is accentuated by the pressure of population. The only effective remedy at present is to increase the area of reserved forest. This is a slow process, as the people are jealous of their rights, and they have to be educated in the advantages of preserving the forest estate. Nevertheless, the local governments are persevering with their efforts and the areas under reservation for forestry purposes are being gradually increased. The general object of British colonial forest policy is to reserve an adequate area of forest to secure the conservation of the soil and thereafter to provide a sustained yield of timber for local needs and for export.
Owing to the gradual improvement of the standard of living in the British colonial territories there will be an increasing demand for timber for local purposes. This should not materially affect exports for some considerable time. Any marked increase in exports, will, nevertheless, depend upon the readiness of overseas markets to accept hitherto unused timbers. Several of these have been accepted during the recent war and have been found to be suitable substitutes for the established timbers such as mahogany. Any rapid increase in exports also depends upon the availability of logging and transport equipment, the supply of which at present is very difficult.
The area of British Guiana is approximately 83,000 square miles (21.5 million ha.), and the population about 357,000.
The forests represent one of the colony's most important natural resources. They extend over approximately 70,000 square miles (18 million ha.), representing 84.7 percent of the total land area of the colony. These forests can be considered as falling within two zones, a near interior or accessible zone of approximately 14,000 square miles (3.6 million ha.) and a far interior or inaccessible zone of approximately 56,000 square miles (14.5 million ha.). It is believed that the forests of the near interior can provide for all possible expansion of the timber industry within, say, the next 25 years, and that in the circumstances there is at present no justification for expenditure on the development of the far interior forests.
The forests are of the typical evergreen rain forest type, but are unusual in that they show a high proportion of gregariousness, that is, over large areas of forest one species is sufficiently plentiful to give its name to the forest type. Thus, there are the Wallaba, Eperua spp., forests, Mora, Mora spp., forests, Greenheart Ocotea spp., forests, Morabukea, Mora gonggrijpii, forests. etc. Apart from this relative richness of one species in certain areas, the most noticeable feature is the enormous number of species of which the forests are composed: over 500 different species of trees growing to timber size have been recorded from the near interior forests alone.
Soft hardwoods have to date played a minor role in forest utilization, largely because of cheap imports of coniferous softwoods. The possible advent of a plywood factory would bring the local soft hardwoods into their own.
PRODUCTION FROM CROWN LANDS - (Thousand cubic feet)1
|
|
Average for |
||
|
1936-40 |
1941-45 |
1945 |
|
|
Greenheart |
954 |
1,219 |
1,156 |
|
Other timber |
320 |
1,036 |
1,151 |
The peak year was 1942, with a production of 1,696,000 cubic feet.
EXPORTS - (Thousand cubic feet)
|
|
Average for |
||
|
1936-40 |
1941-45 |
1945 |
|
|
Greenheart |
379 |
241 |
302 |
|
Other timber |
44 |
44 |
22 |
11,000 cubic feet = 28.32 m³.
It is hoped to increase the volume of production of hardwoods for export from the present level of 350,000 cubic feet (9,900 m³) to 1.5 million cubic feet (42,500 m³) by the end of 1949, and to maintain it at 2 million cubic feet (57,000 m³) thereafter. If there is some degree of security in export markets it should be possible to increase production still further.
At present the extraction of timber is mainly by water transport. Logging has not progressed, generally speaking, more than approximately a few miles from the river banks, and if there is to be any large increase in production it will be necessary to increase the use of mechanical extraction equipment.
The area of British Honduras is 8,870 square miles (2,300,000 ha.) and the population 60,000.
The total area of forest is 8,150 square miles (2,110,000 ha.), which is about 92 percent of the total land area. Nearly 50 percent of the area of the colony has been alienated, but alienation is now being restricted.
The forest reserves amount to 220 square miles (57,000 ha.), or about 2.5 percent of the total land area. The area of exploitable hardwoods is 5,950 square miles (1,540,000 ha.) and that of exploitable softwoods 105 square miles (27,000 ha.). The hardwood forests consist chiefly of mahogany, Swietenia spp., and the softwood forests of pitch pine, Pinus caribaea Morelet. The forests have been subjected to extensive damage from periodical hurricanes, and the pine forests from fire also.
OUTPUT OF HOME-GROWN WOOD - (Thousand cubic feet)
|
|
1934-1938 (Avg.) |
1939 |
1945 |
|
Softwoods |
178 |
49 |
310 |
|
Hardwoods |
1,508 |
1,518 |
1,307 |
EXPORTS - (Thousand cubic feet)
|
|
1934-1938 (Avg.) |
1939 |
1945 |
|
Soft timber |
36 |
4 |
30 |
|
Hard timber1 |
4,765 |
2,298 |
4,054 |
1 These figures include re-exports from Guatemala.
Until very recently there was no control of exploitation of forest produce on privately-owned land. There has consequently been continuous dissipation of the stocks of mahogany without adequate replacement to safeguard the future production of the forests. The increasing use of machinery in mahogany extraction has made possible the exploitation of remoter areas of forest. Depreciation of the forest capital by exploitation and by hurricane damage has been considerable. Records show that hurricanes have crossed the colony on an average once every 15 years, although more recently the incidence has increased. Storms in 1941, 1942, and 1943 damaged to a greater or lesser extent over 4,000 square miles (1 million ha.) of forest or agricultural land, and if the damage inflicted by the 1931 hurricane is added to this figure, the total land area affected during the past 16 years amounts to 5,600 square miles (1.5 million ha.), or 63 percent of the total area of the colony.
Annual firing of the coastal and mountain pine ridges has hastened the debilitation of the mature and over-mature stocks of pine, and has precluded natural regeneration. Unless exploitation of pine is accompanied by fire protection, the pine forests will become virtually nonexistent. In 1945 legislation was passed, under which all persons burning vegetation for cultivation were required to make a fire trace around the area to be burned.
Future policy will be concentrated on the regeneration of mahogany and the finding of markets for useful secondary timbers. The government will also require more systematic working of existing concessions.
The area of the Gold Coast is 79,000 square miles (20.5 million ha.), and the population 4 million.
The total area under forests is 60,000 square miles (16 million ha.), or 76 percent of the total land area. This is made up of 21,000 square miles (5.4 million ha.) of exploitable forest, 12,000 square miles (3.1 million ha.) of potentially exploitable forest and 27,000 square miles (7 million ha.) of other land classed as forest.
The forests of the Gold Coast are owned by the community. An area of 6,000 square miles (1.6 million ha.) has been constituted as forest reserves; this reservation does not alter the ownership. Of this area, about 2,000 square miles (0.5 million ha.) are suitable for intensive exploitation, the remaining 4,000 square miles (1 million ha.) being essentially protective forests. The rest of the forests are outside the control of the Government Forests Department and are being gradually depleted by shifting cultivation. "Salvage" felling is undertaken in these areas before the land is used for farming, and the bulk of the exports of timber from the Gold Coast have hitherto been derived from such fellings; very little timber has been exported from the forest reserves.
The present total annual cut of standing timber amounts to approximately 9 million cubic feet (255,000 m³), and, if projects now under consideration materialize, this figure will rise to about 20 million (566,000 m³) in the round. This increased cut exceeds the estimated annual increment of the accessible areas (2,000 square miles or 0.5 million ha.) of the forest reserves, which comprise the permanent forest estate in the closed forest zone. In practice, however, it will be found also in the unreserved forest areas, estimated at 12,000 square miles (3.1 million ha.), - areas which under their present status are destined to progressive alienation to farming. It is estimated that approximately 300 square miles (78,000 ha.) are being cleared annually, which will give a life of approximately 40 years to these forest areas. The timber available on these 300 square miles is more than sufficient to supply the ultimate over-all cut mentioned above, and may be regarded as salvage felling prior to the final destruction of the forest. Thereafter supplies will be restricted to the forest reserves and the yield will inevitably drop, at any rate, until silvicultural operations designed to improve the growing stock have come to fruition.
OUTPUT OF HOME-GROWN WOOD - (Thousand cubic feet)
|
|
1934-38 (Avg.) |
1939 |
1945 |
|
Hardwoods |
5,690 |
6,685 |
13,090 |
EXPORTS - (Thousand cubic feet)
|
|
1934-38 (Avg.) |
1939 |
1945 |
|
Hardwoods |
1,275 |
685 |
3,529 |
The Gold Coast railway is now carrying to port about 75,000 tons of timber a year, and with the opening up of new concessions recently negotiated it will be called upon to move timber at the rate of 150,000 tons a year at an early date. The ultimate annual amount of timber to be railed to port will be in the neighborhood of 250,000 tons per annum. This will require an expansion of harbor facilities at Takoradi, and this matter is now under consideration.
The area of Nigeria is 333,000 square miles (86.2 million ha.) and the population about 22 millions.
It is necessary to correct the commonly held impression that Nigeria is a country of heavy evergreen rain forest. It is not. Nigeria is in the main a country of savannah woodland of tall grass beneath small trees of orchard habit. Although this woodland is veined along its water courses by narrow fringing forests, often containing good timber, the predominantly evergreen and continuous high rain forest is confined to a coastal belt which is used for farming.
It is difficult to give an accurate estimate of the areas of land under different uses in a country which has such a mosaic of undemarcated and ill-differentiated farm, forest, or woodland as Nigeria. To give a reasonably reliable estimate it is necessary to confine the definition of forests to its early meaning of a demarcated area set aside for forestry purposes, whether it is covered by rain forest or sparse scrub, and to classify all undemarcated lands not specifically set aside for forestry even though they are covered by woodland or forests as waste land. At the end of 1938 there were 21,000 square miles (5.4 million ha.) of demarcated forest, of which 6,350 square miles (1,650,000 ha.) were under the direct control of the central government and 14,650 square miles (3.8 million ha.) under the control of native administrations, equivalent to local authorities, supervised by the Forest Department of the central government. The whole area can therefore, for practical purposes, be classed forests. Of this area it is doubtful if more than 5,000 square miles (1 million ha.) are under closed high forest, the remainder being savannah woodland. Probably not more than 3,000 square miles (780,000 ha.) of the high forest were exploited in 1938. If the land classed as "waste land" is temporarily included in the designation " forest, " the area of forest would be 162,800 square miles (42.2 million ha.). The situation with regard to the volume of timber is obscure. Timber exploitation in Nigeria has relied almost entirely upon what may be described as "salvage" felling, which is timber felled on potential farmlands before it is burned by the farmers. Yield cannot be correlated with area except in the forest reserves, which have furnished only a small part of the outturn.
Recent investigations by actual recorded fellings give a yield of 283,000 cubic feet (8,015 m³) (Hoppus quarter-girth measure) of logs of species merchantable at the present time, on a sample square mile of good average high forest in the reserved area. This yield amounts to about 10 tons to the acre (25 tons per 11a.) Comparing this with the general experience of timber firms in Nigeria, a volume of 400 cubic feet (11.3 m³) Hoppus, or 10 tons of logs to the acre (25 tons per ha.) is tentatively accepted for good average high rain forest as a working estimate. It must be remembered, however, that much of this good average high forest has been selectively logged in the past, and this figure may not truly represent the yield of untouched mature forest.
The savannah woodlands have been worked chiefly for firewood.
Up to the beginning of the recent war the Nigerian high forests were exploited mainly by selective felling for large logs of a few species for export. It has since been realized, however, that the high forests are far from inexhaustible, and a new forest policy has recently been introduced under which concessionnaires will be required to extract all marketable species within a given period, and to hand over the cleared areas to the Forest Department for regeneration. The local demand for timber in Nigeria is increasing rapidly and the government has embarked upon a 10 years' development program which will absorb large quantities of timber. It is not anticipated, therefore, that there will be any large increase in the quantities available for export. The increased demand for timber will, however, lead to the working of hitherto inaccessible forests and forests of poor quality for small dimension timber, and also to the marketing of low-grade timber and the use of new timbers. The installment of a plywood mill, which is now proceeding, will encourage these developments.
OUTPUT OF HOME-GROWN WOOD
|
|
1934-38 (Avg.) |
1939 |
1945 |
|
Hardwoods |
146,800 trees |
33,414 trees |
73,903 trees |
1 Approximately 14 million cubic feet or 0.4 million m³.
These statistics only concern trees felled under permit. Large numbers of trees are taken free under native rights.
EXPORTS - (Thousand cubic feet)
|
|
1934-38 (Avg.) |
1939 |
1945 |
|
Hardwoods |
2,873 |
2,262 |
4,184 |
The Governor has reported that it is probable that the requirements of the rehabilitation and development programs will absorb the timber resources of the Malayan Union during the next few years and that there will be no appreciable exportable surplus during that period.
Before the recent war, Malaya regularly exported timber to Hong Kong, China, Mauritius, Arabia, and South Africa. The position of these markets vis-à-vis European requirements will require consideration, when sufficient data is available, before a long-term policy can be framed.
The present production of timber in North Borneo is on a comparatively small scale owing to the destruction during the recent war of sawmilling equipment. The estimated output for 1947 is 1,950,000 cubic feet (55.200 m³) of logs and 550,000 cubic feet (15,600 m³) of lumber, compared with an average annual production for the years 1937 to 1941 of 6,918,750 cubic feet (195,900 m³). A large proportion of the estimated output will be required within the colony for reconstruction purposes. For the short term, little export to European markets can be expected.
The area of Sarawak is 50,000 square-miles (13 million ha.), and the population about 475,000. The forest area amounts to 41,000 square miles (10.6 million ha.), of which 15,000 square miles (3.9 million ha.) contain merchantable timber, the remaining 26,000 (6.7 million ha.) being inaccessible or unprofitable to work. The volume of merchantable standing timber is estimated at 1.3 million cubic feet per square mile (142 m³ per ha.) or a total of 19,220 million cubic feet (540 million m³) for the total area of merchantable forest. These volumes represent the amount of timber of all classes which have at present a known commercial value, but take no account of the numerous soft-wooded species which are now valued only as firewood but which might in future be found of use where durability is not an essential feature.
The amount of alienated land which still remains under forest is negligible. It may therefore be said that all the forest land is the property of the State, but only such areas as have been constituted reserve or protected forests are under the direct control of the Forest Department.
The area of the British Solomon Islands is about 11,000 square miles (2.8 million ha.) and the population in the neighborhood of 94,000.
Forests or tree growth cover most of the land surface not under cultivation. The natives engage in shifting cultivation, utilizing tree cover for fallow. Local demand for timber is small owing to the sparseness of the population. Exports have hitherto been confined to Kauri, Agathis spp., and a few other timbers from trees found near the Kauri trees. Exports have been chiefly to Australia and New Zealand, which form natural markets owing to their proximity. Transport costs would be heavy on timber exported to more distant destinations. Proximity to the sea of many stands of timber in the British Solomon Islands might enable local timber to compete with sources of supply nearer to the market but less accessible. The natural markets for the Solomon Islands timbers are to be looked for in the Pacific countries rather than in Europe.
No accurate statistics of forest resources are available. Secondary growth following shifting cultivation probably covers half the forest area. Of the remaining forest area of, say 5,000 square miles (1.3 million ha.) only a small proportion can be regarded as accessible to sea-borne extraction in the general absence of roads. This accessible area might amount to 10,000 acres (4,000 ha.) and is subject to survey. Accessible forest examined so far has been found to consist of gregarious species, an unusual feature of tropical rain forests.
EXPORTS 1937 TO 1941
|
|
Cubic feet (or) |
Cubic meters |
|
1937 |
119,329 |
3,379 |
|
1938 |
247,901 |
7,020 |
|
1939 |
142,806 |
4,044 |
|
1940 |
168,729 |
4,778 |
|
1941 |
97,875 |
2,772 |
Large quantities of local timber were used by the military forces during the war.
