European Forestry and Forest Products Commission
ECE Timber Committee
The international classification of forest bibliography
Forestry and Forest Products Commission for Asia and the Pacific
Yearbook of forest products statistics - 1950
The third session of the European Forestry and Forest Products mission was held at Geneva from 28 August to 1 September. Delegations from the following countries attended the session: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, and Yugoslavia. The International Labour Office and Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux were represented by observers. Mr. Marcel Leloup Director of the Division of Forestry and Forest Products, represented FAO.
The session was highly successful, due in no small part to the work of the Chairman, Mr. Owen J. Sanger, Director of Forestry, England (United Kingdom). Mr. Eino Saari, Professor of Forest Economies, University of Helsinki (Finland), acted as Vice Chairman, and Dr. Howard Grøn of Denmark was appointed Rapporteur.
Forest Policy
Particular satisfaction was expressed at this meeting with the valuable information contained in the progress reports on national forest policies submitted by member countries. In view of the feet that the primary objective of the Commission is the attainment of progress in forest policy through regional co-ordination, the Commission drew up a uniform outline for future reports so that they could be more easily analyzed. There would be no duplication of statistics already transmitted to FAO under the regular statistical program, and the annual Article XI reports required by the FAO Constitution would merely summarize the fuller information presented to the European Commission.
Forest Principles
An important feature of the session was the endorsement of the statement of forestry principles requested of FAO by the Third World Forestry Congress. The basic ideas expressed in the document drawn up by the secretariat were approved in their entirety, but the Commission suggested ways in which the arrangement and expression of these ideas could be improved.
Statistics
The Commission also endorsed the suggestions of a special expert working party on statistics which decided that it was still premature to hold a full European conference on forestry and forest products statistics, since there were many points needing further elucidation. The experts made recommendations with regard to the co-ordination of FAO and ECE statistics, and to the revision and amendment of the current FAO statistical questionnaires. Minimum statistical programs for European countries were also recommended.
Seed and Plant Certification
A major item on the agenda was the question of seed and plant certification, and the discussions raised several problems which needed further study. The Commission expressed concern over the possibility of confusion if species names were changed from time to time for purely systematic reasons. Its opinion that the scientific names of species of economic importance should not be further changed unless the name as a result of erroneous classification had already been referred to the International Botanical Congress at Stockholm. However, the Commission emphasized the need for differentiating, within a broad species, types having different ecological characteristics. The information collected by the secretariat on the organization of the production, control, and distribution of seeds in different countries was discussed. The term "elite stand" should be restricted to stands of which the actual progeny was known to be satisfactory. "Seed stands" should apply to stands classified because of external appearance or because they were known to produce good seed. The Commission considered that it was premature to begin registers of such stands, but countries should start locating their elite and seed stands. The "certificates of quality" and the "certificates of origin" proposed by the IUFRO were approved with minor alterations. It was recommended that countries adopt for internal use certificates of quality and origin closely resembling those adopted for international exchange. FAO was asked to secure the co operation of governments in the exchange of seeds for scientific purposes.
Pests and Diseases
On the subject of insect pests and diseases, the Commission stressed the necessity for immediate warning to FAO of any serious outbreak. Although there was no need to report routine conditions and control methods, it was felt that some form of annual report was required on such points as the history of an outbreak, the success of control methods, and the development of new techniques. Such reports, it was decided, should be submitted regularly with the progress reports on forest policy. The FAO secretariat was asked to collect and circulate information on national legislation relating to insect and fungal diseases in forests. The Commission felt that the general question of control should be left open until the situation was clarified with regard to the proposed International Plant Protection Convention and the establishment of an international center for the reporting of plant pests and diseases, and the exchange of information on national plant quarantine regulations.
Afforestation and Reforestation
The Commission noted with satisfaction the progress reports from member countries on afforestation and reforestation projects, and decided that such reports should be continued with special emphasis on descriptions of plans, statements of the aims and objects of programs, description of means adopted for financing, and information on special difficulties encountered. The attention of the IUFRO and research institutes was drawn to the special importance of studies on the synecology of forest communities, the influence of exotic species on natural forest communities, the action of nonclimax trees on forest soils, the effect on the soil of a cover of such species as were commonly used in artificial regeneration operations, and lastly, the mechanization of reforestation work. For the time being, studies for determining the proportional distribution of forest and cultivated areas in the Mediterranean region should be referred to the Mediterranean Subcommission.
Logging
In the matter of logging techniques and training of forest workers, the Commission wished the FAO secretariat to distribute to member governments information on all aspects of logging, including the results of research and of tests of logging machines and tools. It urged continuance of the work of the secretariat in cataloguing tractors and other equipment, and recommended the creation of a special Technical Committee to serve as a medium for the exchange of experience and information on new developments in logging practices. The importance of accident prevention was emphasized and the Commission recommended that this aspect should receive high priority in training programs for forest workers.
In the light of the reports of UNSCCUR and of the FAO meetings organized this year in Cyprus, at Algiers, and at Amsterdam, the Commission recommended that the study of problems of soil conservation, restoration, and improvement be entrusted to an ad hoe body linked with FAO and comprising representatives of all the interests concerned, while the technical aspects of torrent control and soil restoration in mountainous regions should be referred to a special working party.
Finally, the Commission considered the subject of films on forestry. Attention was called to the comprehensive film catalogue of the United Nations Film Board, but it was felt that films needed to be classified into three types, namely, scientific for research purposes, training for the instruction of workers, and propaganda for public enlightenment. Member countries were urged to inform FAO of any new forestry films available, especially those of a scientific nature.
PROGRESS REPORTS ON FOREST POLICY
As has already been mentioned, a considerable period of the third session of the European Forestry and Forest Products Commission was devoted to an examination and discussion of the progress reports submitted by member nations on their general forest policy
The reports varied so widely in scope and emphasis that it was difficult to draw clear conclusions as to the present-day trends in forestry in Europe. Since any attempt to co ordinate national forest policies on a regional scale must be founded on such official reports, the delegates at the Commission meeting decided that future reports should conform to a uniform pattern which they then proceeded to outline.
An examination of this year's reports, however, indicates that the main problems now exercising European foresters are as follows.
1. Annual Fellings and "Possibilité"
After a period of overcutting due to wartime and reconstruction requirements, all Western European countries appear to be trying to reduce annual fellings to a volume close to that of the net average annual growth. These efforts have not so far been altogether successful. In France during the past years insect attacks and forest fires have made it necessary to cut a considerably larger volume of timber than normal. Elsewhere too the cut in 1949 appears to have been much higher than was warranted. The United Kingdom, after having set a limit of 1,076,000 m³ for 1949, reduced this figure by 140,000 m³ for 1950. The volume of 250,000 m³ authorized in the Netherlands was exceeded. In Switzerland, the drain exceeded normal growth by 22 percent.
At the same time, however, it is interesting to note that a country like Finland, which has always been a major timber producer, has reduced its cut considerably. True, this decrease applies only to fuelwood, pitprops, and pulpwood but for the 1948/49 season it amounted to 16 percent as compared with the year before, the total volume cut being 29 million m³ For the season 1949/50 a further decrease of 4 million m³ below the previous year's total was anticipated. In Austria, on the contrary, the volume of fellings rose in 1949 to 9,230.000 m³ compared with 8,690,000 m³ in 1948.
2. Afforestation and Reforestation
From Ireland to the countries of the Near East, the afforestation of waste land and the reforestation of degraded or overmature forests are matters of major concern. Almost all countries have adopted relatively large scale and long-term reforestation plans. Austria has incorporated its proposed reforestation plan for 300,000 hectares into the general plan for the economic development of its forests and forest industries formulated in 1949, and expects assistance from FAO in this work. The Commission was interested to learn of Turkey's achievement in successfully enforcing a law dating from 1937 which obliges municipalities to establish their own forests. Fourteen large State forest nurseries have been created for this purpose, serving the eight reforestation regions into which the country has been divided.
Portugal has decided to expand its 1938 reforestation program, originally intended to apply to the northern portion of the country only, to cover the southern portion and the Azores and Madeira Islands. Israel has already planted 980 hectares, improved 440 hectares of natural forests, enlarged existing tree nurseries, and created new ones with a view to growing eight million plants in 1950/51, as part of the reforestation program submitted to the government at the beginning of this year. Even in Belgium, where intensive competition for land use scarcely permits the establishment of new forests, an additional 500 hectares were planted to trees in 1949.
Successes are also reported in the implementation of existing reforestation plans. During the first four years of its reforestation plan, Great Britain planted 101,200 hectares to forest. In France, 45,000 hectares have been planted by 1949. The results achieved in Yugoslavia are particularly remarkable, for that country completed its five-year plan in three years and was in addition able to undertake a supplementary program.
Difficulties frequently arise in reforestation projects. The most serious seem to occur in Ireland and, to a lesser extent, in Great Britain, where the attempted purchase or acquisition of land by the State for reforestation purposes runs up against existing land tenure systems, the extreme subdivision of property holdings and above all the difficulty of determining, as regards marginal lands, what is the most advisable type of land use whether as grazing or as forests, under present and future economic conditions.
Any considerable extension of reforestation operations may raise serious problems, and concern was voiced on this point within the Commission, particularly by the Yugoslav delegate. What will happen to these artificial plantations in the future? What will be their effect on the soil? Are the species selected and the seeds used adapted to the localities chosen? Despite progress in research and efforts to avoid committing the errors of the past century when vast pure artificial stands were established in Central Europe, the problems are still largely unanswered.
3. Pests and Diseases
The opportunity created by new plantations for dangerous outbreaks of insect pests and plant diseases is another serious problem which must be considered.
Reports submitted to the European Commission indicate that the large-scale invasions of Bostrychidae, which ravaged softwood stands of Central Europe during recent years, are now over. However there is disturbing news that some diseases and certain insects may be spreading to areas which were previously either entirely free or only slightly affected. For instance, the Dutch elm disease has been observed for the first time in Sweden, and a fresh attack of Panolis flammea and Lymanbria monacha, although less serious than that in 1948, has affected 8,600 hectares of pine. In Denmark, a large-scale outbreak of a disease associated with a bostrychid, Hylesinus micans, which has hitherto been extremely rare, occurred recently. This bostrychid has also been found in the Netherlands, attacking plantations of Sitka spruce, together with Ips typographus. In Belgium, a Lophyrus (Lophyrus rufus) which had previously been rare, caused some serious although not fatal damage. Finally, the menace of Endothia parasitica still hangs over Southern Europe, having extended its range to Italy, the Italian Delegation announced that the blight is also attacking oak trees.
Despite the present comparative inactivity of insect pests, and despite advances in methods of combating them, notably by spraying insecticides, the danger of the spread of disease and of insect attack continue to be of serious concern to European silviculturists.
4. Modernizing Forest Operations, Extraction of Forest Products, and their Utilization
All countries are interested in modernizing their forest industries, particularly forest extraction operations. In addition to increasing output and improving the quality of the work, the rationalization of logging operations helps raise the standard of living of the forest workers. A survey conducted in Denmark has demonstrated the need for such action by bringing to light the dislike evidenced by young men for employment in logging and other types of forestry work.
The results which can be expected from rationalization have been demonstrated in Finland, where the industry was modernized long ago. A very marked increase in output has been noticeable, and this country is continuing its efforts to improve conditions. A group of industrial concerns recently opened a new school for professional training, while special courses in felling, hauling, and transport methods have been organized by forest owners. The mechanization of logging and transport operations is in progress, and the use of trucks and tractors for haulage is increasing.
A similar trend is to be observed everywhere. Norway is intensifying the mechanization of planting operations nursery work, and timber extraction. Switzerland, through a Fund established in 1950 with the participation of forest owners and the timber trade, is expanding professional instruction in forestry and expects to set up a professional forestry school in 1950. Sweden has applied on a small scale a comprehensive plan for professional training in this field. Technical training is also being widely developed in Western Germany and there is a definite trend toward the mechanization of all phases of forest work. Significant developments along the same lines are also reported by Denmark.
Many countries are much concerned with the problem of utilization of waste-and by-products and small size timber. Switzerland particularly is seeking new outlets for its fuelwood production and is now concentrating attention on the conversion of wood into sugars, yeasts and alcohol. Serious obstacles to such developments are the high initial cost of such products and the limited market outlets. In France, where this same problem is acute, a Joint Commission on Industry, Commerce and Agriculture was established in 1949 to study the profitable utilization of usable waste products and fuelwood.
5. Forest Law
Some countries, for instance the Netherlands and Austria, have undertaken a complete revision of their forest laws to encompass all existing legislation and bring it into accord with present-day conditions. Israel awaits official ratification of its first Forest Ordinance. Most innovations in forest law, however, merely reflect the problems already mentioned in preceding paragraphs. Many countries are attempting to encourage reforestation measures by special provisions for the benefit of landowners and communal or collective property-holders. In the United Kingdom this was done through the Dedication Scheme which has so far been only partially successful. It is hoped that it will become increasingly effective following the abolition of maximum timber prices and the introduction of certain new modifications in the working of the scheme. In Belgium a decree was issued in 1949 subsidizing communal logging operations to the extent of 30 percent, and the Netherlands have extended the benefits of the so called Law on Sites to most of its property owners. Finland has prepared a draft forest code with respect to private forest owners and a draft law on forest owners' associations.
In another direction the report of Finland also mentioned a regulation controlling the hours of work in forest employment, covering logging, extraction, and floating operations. In Western Germany the basic salary scale for forest workers has been revised, based on scientific observations on man day output.
The Belgian authorities have issued a decree re-emphasizing forest and tree protection. In Austria and the Netherlands all taxes on timber have been eliminated. In Denmark taxes on fuelwood have also been removed, but not on timber.
6. Research
The basic problems with which forest policy is confronted are reflected in research. The major trends may be summarized as follows.
With regard to reforestation, all the varied aspects of genetics research are receiving close study. In Belgium, a census of elite stands is now being conducted. In the United Kingdom and Portugal, active genetics research is being carried out. In Sweden, the supply of genetically sound seed is being thoroughly investigated.
In Austria, where two new research institutes have recently been established and where all work is now co ordinated by the Austrian Society for Wood Research, an ecological forest map has been prepared. With respect to land utilization in general, France undertook a survey of erosion losses which shows that wind erosion has ruined 500,000 hectares and water erosion 2,700 000 hectares. A study of comparative yields of marginal lands planted to forests and to crops is being conducted in the Netherlands.
Italy is continuing research on tree diseases and particularly Endothia parasitica. Several countries are experimenting with new spraying techniques and equipment.
A striking development is the intensification of research for improved labor efficiency in forest operations, particularly through the use of mechanical devices in all phases of work. We hear of research on the use of tree planting machines, mechanical saws, and haulage tractors.
This summary naturally gives only a very limited idea of the important and varied research being conducted in European countries. Many other developments deserve mention, such as research on chemical debarking in Finland, and on the systematic use of aerial photography in Sweden. However, the subjects mentioned are those which are receiving the; most widespread attention, according to the reports submitted to the European Forestry and Forest Products Commission.
In June the Economic commission for Europe held its fifth session at Geneva and included in its work a discussion on the activities of the Timber Committee. After hearing a report presented by the chairman of the committee, Mr. A. Ceschi (Austria), the Commission approved new terms of reference for the Timber Committee, which was described as one of the more successful United Nations bodies functioning in Europe.
The early meetings of the ECE Timber Committee, the secretariat for which is provided by FAO, were dominated by various aspects of the problem of shortages. A procedure was adopted whereby the importing countries observed agreed buying limits for sawn softwoods and the exporting countries made available agreed quantities of timber. This helped to bring about a fair distribution of supplies at prices which were lower than would otherwise have been the ease, and had a stabilizing effect on the market.
At the same time the Committee recommended policies designed to increase European timber production. A program of timber loans was developed through which exporting countries would increase their capacity on the basis of two to three year purchase commitments from importing countries. The payment provisions of these contracts covered the service on loans used to pay for necessary imports of timber producing equipment. While the full scheme contemplated by the Timber Committee did not materialize, the International Bank did make equipment loans to two countries, based on timber purchase commitments from five countries. The co operative idea behind this approach still has great interest and value.
The timber shortage was approached in another way in collaboration with ECE's Housing Subcommittee through a study on rationalization in the use of wood. Two useful interim reports have been produced and the investigation is being continued under Mr. J. Campredon (France) with the help of experts designated by governments. A working party established at the sixth meeting of the Timber Committee met at Geneva 3-6 July with Mr. J. L. Bienfait (Netherlands) as chairman. This group reviewed further possibilities for technological improvements in forest operations, sawmilling, woodworking industries, waste utilization, construction, and packaging. It considered technical training, research and a European timber documentation center, and it discussed trends in the use of wood, observing that the present high costs of timber were not in the interest of its rational use and long-term prosperity. Various recommendations were put forward for consideration at the Timber Committee's next meeting.
All these activities of the Timber Committee have required the collection of statistical data and the preparation by the secretariat of market analyses, which appear in the joint ECE/FAO Quarterly Bulletin of Timber Statistics published at Geneva.
In 1949, the period of acute postwar timber shortage ended and gave way to a phase of rather precarious equilibrium between supply and demand. The Timber Committee found that the combined European import demand for sawn softwoods was below its earlier estimates and concluded that the device of "buying limits" was no longer necessary. The situation was due to several factors, including the disastrous forest fires in France in the summer of 1949, and temporary governmental controls on the import of timber and its consumption in housing and other uses.
It is true that technical improvements in the utilization of wood and in design and the employment of substitutes may keep the level of demand below prewar. The present price levels for timber also tend to discourage demand and a lowering of prices is unlikely in the near future. But demand is certain to rise. Housing requirements, stifled for years, must be met one day. Since foreign exchange considerations seem likely to continue to hamper free access to overseas markets, Europe's timber needs must largely be met from European sources. Failing large scale supplies from the U.S.S.R. or other areas, European production alone cannot be expected to match prospective demand, if and when restrictions on consumption are relaxed.
At its sixth meeting in April, the Timber Committee decided that in 1961 a balance between demand and supply, including imports from the dollar area, might be difficult to secure, and that there might be a recurrence of the shortage problems of the immediate postwar years.
In view of this, the ECE considered that the Timber Committee was a necessary meeting place for the international consideration of problems affecting the availability of a commodity which must always constitute an important factor in the European economy. Certainly there is clear need for collaboration between producers and consumers in the joint consideration of market forces. Accordingly, the ECE agreed that the Timber Committee should keep the market position under close review and make necessary recommendations to governments, and that the secretariat should therefore continue the collection of statistics and the publication of periodic market reports.
Meanwhile the Timber Committee has instructed the secretariat to study the possibility of formulating price indices for timber in each country, as a guide to changes in demand and supply, to be correlated with general price movements. The secretariat is also undertaking a study of probable future consumption trends in European countries.
The seventh meeting of the ECE Timber Committee took place at Geneva 30 October - 2 November. The session examined the sawn softwood import needs of European countries for 1951 and the possible export availabilities, and foresaw a deficit in meeting 1951 requirements. In 1950 import needs appeared to be approximately in balance with availabilities and raised no serious supply difficulties. For 1951, however, supplies might be some 13 percent below import requirements of about 3 ¼ million standards, even taking into account increased imports from dollar areas. It was felt that, despite high prices, European export supplies could not be raised further to keep pace with increasing import demand. The absence of delegates from East European exporting countries made it difficult to carry out a detailed assessment of the situation.
The Committee forecast a deficit of 650,000 m³ in pitprop supplies for 1951, but at this stage the figure did not appear unduly high. The advisability of early buying was evident in view of the strong competing demand for pulpwood.
The secretariat was instructed to secure information regarding the teaching staffs and curricula of technical woodworking schools in Europe and to submit a report to the next meeting of the Committee. Delegates also discussed the desirability of recording the movement of timber prices in each country against the background of general price movements. The secretariat will consult with governments on the statistics available in their countries on relevant prices and price indices.
Proposals for improving timber statistics were considered, and recommendations of a working party of experts on the more rational utilization of wood were approved with minor changes. It was agreed that in principle improvements in the rational use of wood should be sought through persuasion and education.
AT its final meeting at the Hague in June 1950, the Joint FAO/IUFRO Committee on Forest Bibliography approved the final draft of the new classification system and named it the Oxford System of Decimal Classification for Forestry. It has now been submitted to the International Union of Forest Research Organizations and to FAO for adoption.
The International Association of Forest Research Institutes first placed the question of forest bibliographies on its program in 1903. In 1929 the name of the organization was altered to International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO), but this in no way affected the work which had been undertaken with the object of creating a universal system of bibliographical classification This work was commenced by the Bibliographical Committee, which has functioned since 1903 as a permanent working organ of the earlier Association and of the IUFRO.
The most important name in the history of forest bibliography is that of Dr. Philip Flury. This Swiss forester was a member of the Bibliographical Committee from its beginnings and it was he who did the greater part of the creative work.
After long and difficult preparations the Bibliographical Committee presented to IUFRO in 1933 a complete system for the classification of forest literature which, in its printed form bore the title Forest Bibliography. This new system was assigned the index number 634.9 F in the International Decimal Classification which was based on the system of Melvil Dewey.
The IUFRO decided to name the new classification the Flury System. Since 1933 it has been used to classify the International Bibliography of Forestry organized by the IUFRO and published annually with separate treatment for each country participating in the work. In its final form this system was integrated into the Universal Decimal Classification as 634.9.
Former chairmen of the Bibliographical Committee, who guided its proceedings up to the time when the Flury system of classification was completed, were Prof. A. Bühler (Tübingen), Prof. A. Oppermann (Copenhagen), and Prof. R. S. Troup (Oxford).
As has been seen, the preparation of the Flury System of classification covered a long period of time, during which there were great developments in forest Research work, particularly in the fields of wood technology and forest economies. New developments continued at an increasing rate after the system had been published and, even in the 1930's, the need for revision of the classification system was under discussion by the Bibliographical committee of IUFRO. These discussions were interrupted by the Second World War.
The first postwar meeting of the Bibliographical Committee was held in Zurich in 1948 under the chairmanship of Prof. H. Burger. At this meeting, Mr. F. C. Ford Robertson, Director of the Commonwealth Forestry Bureau at Oxford, presented a completely revised system of classification for forest literature, which had been prepared by his Bureau in collaboration with the Forestry Commission of Great Britain, and the Forest Products Research Laboratory at Princes Risborough. Revisions were based upon ten years of experience gained by the Bureau in the course of its bibliographical services. The major part of the new and creative work was credited to Mr. P. G. Beak, Deputy Director of the Bureau.
No immediate action was instituted by the Bibliographical Committee because the IUFRO was at that time engaged in negotiations regarding a working agreement with FAO. As soon as possible however, the International Council of IUFRO proposed to FAO the appointment of a joint bibliographical committee to study the new classification and to make appropriate recommendations to its parent bodies. On this joint committee IUFRO was to be represented by Messrs. A. Oudin, Director of the Ecole Nationale des Eaux et Forêts et Nancy, F. C. Ford Robertson, Director of the Commonwealth Forestry Bureau at Oxford, and Eino Saari, Professor at the University of Helsinki. FAO welcomed the initiative taken by IUFRO and appointed Messrs J. D. B. Harrison and Rene G. Fontaine as its representatives.
The Joint FAO/IUFRO Committee on Forest Bibliography held its first meeting at Helsinki in 1949, during which Mr. Harrison acted as Chairman. Subsequently, Professor Saari was elected permanent Chairman because it was not possible for Mr. Harrison to attend. Mr. Fontaine acted as Secretary for all meetings.
The proposed new classification system submitted by the Commonwealth Forestry Bureau was carefully examined in all its details and, at different stages of revision, was circulated to members of IUFRO and other research organizations in order that the Committee might benefit by replies from as many experts as possible. All criticisms and proposals for amendments were carefully considered and a large number of them were adopted. In the course of the revisions the sections dealing with forest economies (classes 6, 7, and 9) were completely reorganized in accordance with proposals submitted by Professor Saari.
The Committee also discussed with representatives of the International Federation of Documentation (FID) the possibility of integrating the proposed new system into the Universal Decimal Classification. It became evident that certain additional modifications were necessary in order to bring the new forestry Classification into harmony with the general arrangements of the UDC, and these were successfully accomplished with the aid of Ir. F. Donker Duyvis (the Hague) and Dr. W. W. Varossieau (Delft).
During the whole course of the several revisions the skill and experience of Mr. Beak and the assistance he willingly gave the Committee, both during meetings and in the intervals between them, have been a most important factor in the success achieved.
OXFORD SYSTEM OF DECIMAL CLASSIFICATION FOB FORESTRY SUBJECT CLASSIFICATION CONSPECTUS OF PRIMARY HEADS
0 Forests, forestry, and the utilization of forest products. (General)(General regional accounts of forests and forestry are included under the primary subhead 904.)1 Factors of the environment. Biology.
2 Silviculture.
3 Harvesting of wood, logging and transport. Rationalization of work; work studies. Forest engineering.
4 Forest injuries and protection.
5 Forest mensuration. Increment; development and structure of stands. Surveying and mapping.
6 Forest management. Business economics of forestry. Administration and organization of forest enterprises.
7 Marketing of forest products. Economies of forest transport and the wood industries.
8 Forest products and their utilization.
9 Forests and forestry from the national point of view. Social economies of forestry
Auxiliary numbers of subject - 01 to - 09 are used to classify general notions (e.g., research, harvesting, protection, national and international aspects, etc.) which do not have significance until related to particular heads of the scheme.
Auxiliary numbers of form (0) refer merely to the form in which information on a given subject is presented (e.g., an encyclopedia, textbook, report, etc.).
Auxiliary numbers of place (1 to 9) are borrowed directly from the UDC and are mostly identical with the geographical numbers of the Flury System.
Bangkok, Thailand, was the location for the first session, 9-17 October 1950, of FAO's Forestry and Forest Products Commission for Asia and the Pacific, the establishment of which had been approved by the Fifth Session of the FAO Conference. The meeting was particularly well attended, with delegates present from Australia, Burma, Ceylon China, French Union, India, Indonesia Philippines, Portugal, Thailand, United Kingdom, and the United States, and observers from the Supreme Command Allied Powers (Japan), the Holy See, UN Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East, International Union of Forest Research Organizations, the Pacific Science Congress, and the International Meteorological Organization. Mr. W. El. Cummings, Regional Representative of the Director-General, and Mr. Egon Glesinger, Deputy Director of the Forestry and Forest Products Division, attended from the FAO secretariat.
The inaugural session of the Commission, the third such regional body to be established by the member nations of FAO, was addressed in the Royal Palace by His Excellency Field Marshal P. Pibulsonggram, Prime Minister of Thailand, after being formally opened by His Excellency Phra Chuang Kaset, Minister of Agriculture, Thailand, who was elected Honorary Chairman.
Executive Committee
At the first business meeting, Mom Chao Suebsukswasti Sukswasti, Dean College of Forestry, Kasetsat University, Thailand, and Director-General of the Thai Forest Industries Organization, was elected Chairman. Dr. C. H. Holmes Senior Assistant Conservator of Forests, Ceylon, and Shri M. D. Chaturvedi, Inspector-General of Forests, India, were elected as Vice-Chairmen, and Mr. J. P. Edwards, Acting Director of Forestry, Federation of Malaya, appointed Rapporteur. In adopting rules of procedure the Commission decided to establish an Executive Committee, comprising the Chairman and two Vice-Chairmen, with the Chief of FAO's Far Eastern Forestry Working Group as Secretary, to act for the Commission between sessions which, on a motion of the delegate of India, it was decided should be held biennially, in alternate years to the FAO Conference.
Korea
The representative of the Director-General advised the Commission that the Economic and Social Council had called on the specialized agencies to give their utmost support to providing such assistance for the relief and support of the civilian population of Korea as might be requested by the Unified Command through the Secretary-General of the United Nations. The observer for SCAP (Japan) stressed the urgent need for sawn timber, fuelwood, and charcoal for the rehabilitation of Korea. The Commission, noting that some countries of the region had stocks of sawn timber available for immediate delivery if shipping could be arranged, expressed a desire to assist in any way possible and instructed the Executive Committee to keep the situation under review.
Forestry Principles
One of the items before the Commission was the statement of forestry principles prepared by FAO following a recommendation of the Third World Forestry Congress. This statement, which is also being submitted to the European and Latin-American Commissions, was accepted as a presentation of minimum requirements on a world-wide basis, but the Commission went further and adopted a separate statement defining these principles in greater detail with regard to the Asia and Pacific region. This separate statement called on each government to declare its forest policy, and urged governments to consider the problem of land utilization as a whole, not piecemeal, since forestry must constitute an integral part of balanced and complementary land use.
Dalat Meeting
Consideration was next given by the Commission to the report of the technical meeting on Standardization held at Dalat, Viet Nam, in April 1950 (see UNASYLVA, Vol. IV, No. 3, p. 136). While agreeing that the recommendations of the Geneva conferences on Wood Technology should be decisive with regard to timber testing methods, the Commission accepted the Dalat report as providing guiding principles in the evolution of common standards for the region, as far as these are practicable, and decided to establish a permanent working party under the chairmanship of Mr. M. Boucaud, delegate of the French Union, which could continue to work on questions of timber nomenclature, grading, dimensions, and testing methods, largely by correspondence, until the next session. The Commission recommended that countries having an export trade in timber should study the following rules, and consider adapting their own established grading practices to conform to them as far as practicable:
TeakBurma (Seman-Limaye) Grading RulesHardwood logs
North Borneo Grading RulesSawn hardwoods
Malaya Grading Rules.
Mysore Recommendations
The Commission devoted its early meetings to hearing reports from delegates on the action taken by governments upon the recommendations of the Mysore Forestry Conference of 1949, which are considered as a charter for forestry activities in the region There was evidence of considerable progress in most countries, despite many difficulties, and the Commission recommended that governments continue to use every effort to make further progress in implementing the Mysore resolutions, reporting to FAO annually on what had been achieved under a-standard list of headings which the Commission adopted. The secretarial was instructed to circulate such reports to member countries in advance of the next session of the Commission which the delegate of the United Kingdom, on behalf of his Government, invited to meet in Singapore and the Federation of Malaya.
Program of Work
During the discussions on FAO's expanded program of technical assistance of which member governments were urged to take full advantage, delegates emphasized the need for co-ordination with the bilateral programs of the United States and with the Commonwealth Technical Cooperation Scheme, and a resolution to this affect was adopted.
Before completing its session, the commission also outlined a program of work for the secretariat. This included the analysis of annual progress reports from member countries dealing with the place of forestry in the national economy taking up with the appropriate authorities the question of reducing shipping rates for the transport of forest products; setting up machinery for the exchange of forest seeds between member countries, securing co-ordination of research on the pulping of tropical woods, providing information on the procurement of logging and sawmill machinery and other technical equipment in response to specific requests; studying the possibility of coordinating forest research and using existing research and educational facilities on a regional basis; and, finally, investigating the problems of shifting cultivation in the different countries of the region and disseminating information regarding its control. In connection with this last point, the Commission requested the Director-General to consider the possibility of calling a regional conference on Soil Conservation, with the preparation and organization of which forestry authorities should be associated, to take the place of the Land Utilization Conference which was to have been held in Ceylon in August 1950.
The Commission closed its session by expressing gratitude to the Government of Thailand for its generous hospitality and for the many pleasant excursions which were made around Bangkok. Not the least of the advantages of the meeting, the delegates felt, was the opportunity to make or renew professional acquaintances, to exchange ideas and experiences, and to pool scientific knowledge.
The following notes on items of the agenda were submitted by the delegate of Australia and are reproduced here because they undoubtedly contain much of interest to all member countries of FAO
Integrated Utilization of Tropical Woods
Developments in forest products activities in the region might best be made in conjunction with programs for establishment of further wood-using industries through integrated utilization. However for any plan to be successful, adequate consideration must be given to factors such as forest resources of raw materials potential markets, transport facilities labor, water supply, and economic feasibility.
Already certain information is available concerning many species and forests in the region, but there is need for much greater knowledge of the specific constitution of tropical forests in many areas. The main requirements are:
1. General information on the gross volume available in all species irrespective of their current use.2. A detailed knowledge concerning the individual species as regards:
(a) true species identification of all trees in the forest (this will require co-operation between the forester and the forest botanist);(b) full information concerning each species and its availability in quantity and quality;
(c) a determination of the properties of each wood.
Australian work in co-operation with foresters in New Guinea and North Borneo has shown the very great value of this line of approach. Unfortunately it is difficult to correlate such knowledge with trading practices, where far too much reliance is placed on local or trade names. Considerable confusion results from uncertainty of identification in the forest and from the use of the same name for different species in different areas and, conversely, the use of different names for the same species. 1
1 A secretariat document on Proposed Standardized Timber Trade Names for Asia and the Pacific was referred to the permanent Working Party mentioned earlier.
Obtaining all the information mentioned above will be a long term project and will require considerable organization and time for completion, but there should be no delay in initiating this work. If development were postponed till this project were completed valuable time would be lost. From the short-term point of view it would therefore be of advantage to each country to have a summary of existing knowledge relating to the constitution of the best or most accessible forest areas. Such information would provide a valuable guide to determining to what extent additional wood using industries might be set up.
Up till now the major utilization of forest products from this region has been for fuel, constructional timber (troth squared and round) and veneers, only a limited number of species having been accepted for sawn timber and veneer for home or export markets. The value of logs and flitches for veneer manufacture is generally much in excess of their value for other uses, but high quality material is required and consequently logging, even in conjunction with sawmilling operations, is costly. Further veneer supplies may be obtained by immunizing sapwood veneer against the Lyctus borer.
The extent to which benefits, both in closer utilization of forest resources and economy in harvesting, might result from accepting additional species for sawn timber and veneer manufacture and establishing, in conjunction with sawmilling operations, fiber building board manufacture or paper pulp manufacture' is well worthy of investigation. The feet that fiber building boards may be produced from practically any species means that instead of selective logging being practiced as now, it should be possible in suitable areas to log on a face. Logs for veneer, sawn timber, fiberboard, or paper pulp could then be allocated according to species and quality. As timber waste is readily converted into fiber building boards, an expansion of species acceptable for sawing might arise from diverting unwanted sapwood from sawmills to fiberboard plants with benefit in production costs to both industries. Other species unsuited to sawmilling might be directed to fiberboard or pulp mills.
The possibilities of tropical species for paper pulp should not be overlooked. Some recent French work reported to FAO's Committee on Wood Chemistry describes how 24 different species taken from the Ivory Coast of Africa, in proportions corresponding to the natural composition of the forest, were successfully pulped and made into 150 tons of all kinds of excellent quality papers. If it could be shown that similar results might be achieved with mixed species from forests of this region, the integration of pulping with sawmilling, plywood, and fiberboard manufacture might well become an economic proposition if the location for the plant be soundly chosen.
Meeting Future Requirements for Specialty Timber
Utilization of the wide range of species commonly occurring in tropical areas gives rise to many problems, the chief of which are as follow:
(1) Limited availability of many species.
(2) High extraction costs.
(3) Wide variation in properties.
(4) Marketing problems.
In the northern temperate zones where the number of species currently used for commercial purposes is restricted to several genera of coniferous woods and perhaps twenty genera of broadleaved species, harvesting and utilization problems are simple and, in consequence of the large available volume of each of the groups, it is possible by selection to obtain material suited not only for general purposes but for specialty purposes. In tropical areas, although it may be possible to choose woods which have properties comparable with those of timbers now in wide commercial use, the problem of obtaining adequate supplies of requisite quality is very difficult. It is believed, therefore, that countries within the region should consider seriously advantages which might be derived from establishment of plantations of native and exotic timbers specially selected with a view to reducing utilization problems. To do this, close co operation between foresters, botanists, ecologists and forest products workers is essential to ensure that adequate consideration be given to selection of site and species so that plantations would have a reasonable prospect of success. Silvicultural treatment should be such as to ensure that the same properties are obtained in timber derived from plantations as occur under natural conditions. Approximately 75 percent of the world consumption of sawn timber is in coniferous woods compared with 60 percent in this region where the estimated resources of coniferous woods comprise only 25 percent of the total forest area. Plantations might, therefore, be considered under two heads:
(1) Conifers for general utility.
(2) Broadleaved woods for speciality uses.
To cite of the first, in Australia the extreme shortage of softwood has necessitated using comparatively hard, heavy woods for general purposes. However, as a result of a progressive policy of establishing plantations of conifers, approximately ¼ million acres of pine plantations have been established and are now yielding at a rate approaching 100 million super feet 2 per annum and it is anticipated that in ten years time the yield might well be quadrupled.
2 1,000 super feet roundwood = 4.53 m³®
1,000 super feet sawn wood = 2.36 m³(s)
In reference to the second, plantation of selected broadleaved trees has commenced in various parts of the region, e.g., teak, balsa, Honduras mahogany. This development might be encouraged so that broadleaved species with definite properties will be readily available in the future.
The above are only examples, but the authorities concerned in the various countries will be able to add species desired to this list. It may well be that some countries will require specialist assistance in pursuing this project.
Measures to Prevent Loss Due to Insect and Fungal Attack
A problem common to the timber industry in practically all countries of the world is attack by that group of insects known as the powder post borers (Lyctidae and Bostrychidae). These borers cause extensive damage in the starch-containing sapwood of many hardwood timbers, and their attack, apart from causing direct monetary loss, has prevented the effective utilization of many susceptible but otherwise excellent timbers. In timber species such as the eucalypts, which have a relatively narrow sapwood (seldom exceeding 1 ½ inches) the damage is usually not sufficiently serious to warrant special treatment, but a large number of non-eucalypt tropical rain forest species occurring throughout the region have a wide band of sapwood, often up to 6 inches in depth and sometimes even wider, for which preservative treatment is essential if these timbers are to be used for any but minor purposes.
In Australia the common powder post borer is Lyctus brunneus Stephens, which has become a widespread pest of many of our subtropical timbers. Research work over the past 18 years has led to the adoption as standard practice of a number of treatments which give complete and permanent immunity to Lyctus susceptible timber. These treatments involve immersing the green veneer or timber in a solution of boric acid or borax. For green veneer a momentary dip in the cold solution is all that is required, followed by a short block stacking period to permit diffusion of the chemical. For solid timber, which may be either green or partly dry, a modified hot and cold bath treatment has proved highly successful. This involves heating the timber in the solution to a temperature of approximately 200° F. for a period of two to four hours, depending on the thickness and species of timber, and then allowing the charge to cool to about 160° F. in the solution.
Control of this treatment can be made most conveniently by altering the magnitude of the temperature drop. The required commercial minimum for immunization is 0.2 percent (calculated on the oven dry weight of the wood), and by this treatment, or modifications of it, boards up to 2 inches in thickness may be satisfactorily treated.
In addition to this hot and cold bath process, low pressure impregnation of Lyctus susceptible species with suitable water soluble salts is, of course, equally effective in preventing attack. Since boric acid is not effective against decay at the loadings used for Lyctus immunization, the use of other toxic water soluble preservatives may prove more effective, especially if the timber is likely to be exposed to decay and termite attack. The possibility of using superficial applications of light oil solvent preservatives such as pentachlorphenol DDT, and copper naphthenate, etc., may also be worthy of attention where only relatively short term protection is required. The disadvantage of superficial treatment, however, is that subsequent sawing may expose untreated timber to Lyctus attack. Complete penetration to the eve by the hot and cold bath treatment completely avoids this possibility, and for timbers with wide susceptible sapwood, only full penetration with a permanent preservative is advisable.
The cost of treatment by the boric acid process has been estimated at approximately 8 shillings (88 cents) per 100 super feet of timber, although cost will, of course, vary with the size of the treating plant, the volume of timber treated, and labor costs.
Pinhole Borers. The incidence of pinhole borer attack is of considerable importance to the exporter of attacked timber, since it almost inevitably results in a lower return and quite often involves the expense of fumigation or other treatment demanded by quarantine officers at the port of entry. Since pinhole borer attack occurs in the forest in dead and dying trees and may often continue in green logs or even in green sawn timber which is not quickly dried, control is mainly the concern of the logger and sawmiller. In Australia much reliance has been placed on creosote oil for the spraying of freshly felled trees; more recently, the use of benzene hexachloride has been shown to be more effective for this purpose, and it can be generally stated that logs sprayed on all surfaces as soon as possible after felling with a light fuel oil containing 3 ½ percent of benzene hexachloride (12 percent gamma isomer content) will be protected from pinhole borer attack for a period of up to three months. Probably equally effective is the rapid removal of logs from the forest in order to hasten surface drying, and the conversion of the log to sawn timber as soon as possible.
Sap Stain. Discoloration due to sap stain fungi may be responsible for considerable economic losses in many exportable timbers, although the infected wood is usually not seriously weakened (except perhaps in impact resistance). In practice the development of sap stain in timber can be controlled in two ways: (a) by rapidly drying the timber to a moisture content too low for development of the stain fungi, or (b) by treating the freshly cut timber with a preservative. (A third method, the total submersion of the timber in water is also sometimes used.)
The methods of handling and seasoning timber are most important factors in the prevention of sap stain, and where logs can be removed quickly from the forest and then rapidly converted to boards and seasoned, sap stain is not a serious problem. However, in the tropics where the rate of drying of freshly sawn timber or of green logs is often slow enough to permit the development of staining fungi, even where the timber has been quickly converted and properly stacked, the use of chemical dips is of great value.
The best procedure is to dip the timber green off the saw in the anti-stain chemical and then to stack in the usual way. The commonly used chemicals include sodium tri- and pentachlorphenate, various organic mercurials, and borax. Dip treatments of softwood timbers such as pine in solutions ranging in concentration from ½ to 3 percent, depending on the chemical and the timber species, have given very effective sap stain control for periods of several months under very severe conditions.
Timber Seasoning
Quite apart from the feet that, for many purposes, timber must be properly dried before it is put into use if it is to give satisfaction, there are some timbers for which it is essential that drying should be carried out as soon as the timber is sawn if degrade due to staining is to be avoided. This is the ease with many of the timbers of the region and a striking example of the value of such treatment is to be found in Ramin (Gonystylus spp.). In North Borneo this timber was, until recently, regarded as a "wood" tree because of the rapid staining of the timber after sawing. Now it is being exploited satisfactorily, primarily due to recognition of the need for seasoning the timber immediately after sawing.
It is suggested that the potential value of many such species throughout the region is such that, for this reason alone, this conference should stress the need for the improvement and development of seasoning practice in those countries where this aspect of utilization has been neglected.
There can be no doubt that as an industrial process the practice of timber seasoning is to be strongly recommended. The tremendous advances in the development of Australian timbers over the past twenty years could not have taken place without the accompaniment of an increase from a mere handful of timber seasoning kilns to the present total of approximately one thousand, the adoption of better kiln design, and the training of kiln operators.
Not only will the development of facilities for rapidly drying sawn timber enable the marketing of many species not now marketable to be undertaken, but the establishment of good seasoning practice will result in a major improvement in the quality of such manufactured products in timber as joinery, household furniture, fittings, implement parts, many types of eases and boxes, plywood, etc.
No major change in any of the traditional methods used in seasoning timber, (a) air-drying, (b) kiln-drying, or (c) a combination of air-drying and kiln drying, is likely to occur in the near future. There should be wide scope and need in the region for each of the methods listed.
For species not prone to stain rapidly particularly in the thicker sections, air drying is convenient and requires little capital expenditure in plant or equipment. Timbers of this type are usually the more impervious slower drying ones, with little sapwood present.
For species which tend to stain rapidly, kiln-drying as soon as possible after sawing is warranted and can be carried out economically in modern forced circulation kilns the process is independent of weather conditions.
Combined air and kiln seasoning is an advantage where impervious timbers, or collapse-susceptible species, are being handled. It combines the advantages of both air and kiln drying.
Of some importance in the exploitation of species from tropic, subtropic, or warm temperate zones may be the recognition that collapse may occur in the timber of some of these species during drying. This phenomenon, caused by the collapse of the lumen of wood cells, may cause distortion, corrugation or excessive shrinkage during drying.
It has been established in Australia that this excessive shrinkage may amount to as much as 25 percent of the green dimension of the sawn section.
It has been demonstrated, however, that collapse can be permanently removed by a simple steaming treatment of a few hours' duration. This treatment is now a standard commercial practice in Australia where the collapse-susceptible timbers are milled. The practice has lifted the utilization quality of the collapse-susceptible "ash" eucalypts of Southeast Australia from a low grade standard to one of high value.
In any survey made of the characteristics or properties of timbers of the region, a study of the collapse susceptibility of the species should undoubtedly be included. Forest products research organizations can provide major assistance to the timber industry by investigating seasoning properties of their native timbers, making results available to industry on the technique of timber seasoning. The Division of Forest Products of the C.S.I.R.O. (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Organizations) has played a large part in development of timber seasoning in Australia and would be glad to pass on to other countries of the region the benefit of the experience so gained.
The fourth Yearbook of Forest Products Statistics to be prepared by the Division of Forestry and Forest Products contains new information for the year 1949 and revised data for 1948 provided by more than 100 countries and territories.
The 1950 Yearbook estimates the world output of roundwood for 1949 at around 1,400 million m³ ®. This is about the same as for 1937 but slightly less than the latest estimate for 1948.
By weight, the world roundwood output is greater than that of any other raw material except coal. The value of the 1949 roundwood output in the rough state may be set at about US$ 9,000 million; further manufacture into lumber, plywood, pulp and paper, and many other products increased this value by US$ 8,500 million.
Estimated regional shares of world roundwood output in 1949 are as follows:
|
Region |
Roundwood output |
Percentage of world total |
|
|
Million m³® |
Percent |
|
U.S. and Canada |
361 |
26 |
|
Asia |
300 |
22 |
|
U.S.S.R. |
269 |
19 |
|
Europe |
265 |
19 |
|
Latin America |
132 |
9 |
|
Africa |
51 |
4 |
|
Oceania |
19 |
1 |
|
|
1,397 |
100 |
The above figures are tentative. Experience with international forest Products statistics during the past four years has revealed the need for the improvement of national statistics and for wider agreement upon reasonably comparable definitions. Gradual progress is being made in this direction.
The countries reporting to FAO in 1949 produced some 56 percent of the estimated world output of roundwood. About 43 percent of the reported roundwood output was utilized as fuelwood some 37 percent as sawlogs and veneer logs, 13 percent as pulpwood, and the remaining 7 percent for miscellaneous products. Taking into account non reporting countries also, the estimated world output of roundwood may be broken down by end uses into fuelwood 57 percent, lumber 23 percent, wood pulp 8 percent, and miscellaneous products 12 percent
World roundwood output is about equally divided between hardwood (broadleaved) species and softwood (coniferous) species. The greater proportion (74 percent) of the reported hardwood output for 1949 was utilized as fuelwood whereas 81 percent of the softwood output was processed into lumber, pulp, and other industrial products.
WORLD TRADE
International trade statistics are more readily available and more reliable than statistics of output and utilization. Export figures for 1949 reported to FAO represent in equivalent volumes of roundwood about 87.5 million m³® or about 11 percent of the total roundwood output of the reporting countries.
The principal exporting areas of the world are North America and Northern Europe, followed by Central Europe South America, Asia, and Africa. In 1949 Sweden exported the equivalent of 46 percent of its total roundwood output, Canada 38 percent, Finland 37 percent, and Norway 31 percent. The exports of the United States, which in the aggregate are considerable, still represented only 2 percent of total output.
The main importing areas of the world are North America and Western Europe, including Germany. The 1949 imports of the United States, the major importing country, were equivalent to around 32 million m³® or 36 percent of the roundwood equivalent of reported world imports, and those of the United Kingdom to about 21 million m³® or 24 percent.
From the data reported to FAO, it appears that North America was the only net surplus region in 1949. The balance of trade by regions expressed in roundwood equivalents is as follows:
|
|
Net balance* |
|
Million m³® |
|
|
Europe |
-0.6 |
|
North America (excl. Mexico) |
+6.2 |
|
Latin America |
-0.8 |
|
Africa |
-1.3 |
|
Asia |
-1.7 |
|
Oceania |
-1.7 |
* Exports +, imports - .
The areas of origin of all reported 1949 exports of lumber and wood pulp the two major primary forest products entering international trade, are as follows:
|
Origin |
Lumber |
Wood pulp |
|
|
(Percent) | |
|
Europe |
52 |
52 |
|
U. S. and Canada |
34 |
31 |
|
Latin America |
7 |
- |
|
U.S.S.R |
4 |
- |
|
Africa |
1 |
- |
|
Asia |
1 |
- |
|
Oceania |
1 |
|
|
|
100 |
100 |
For 1949, the total value of all exports of forest products reported to FAO was US$ 2,500 million. Reported exports for 1948 totaled US$ 2,800 million. Exports of pitprops, softwood lumber, plywood, wood pulp and newsprint in 1949 exceeded 1948 levels. On the other hand there was a decline in reported exports of sawlogs, hardwood lumber, and pulpwood.
Average export values of various commodities shipped in 1949, calculated from reported data, are:
|
Commodity |
Unit |
Export value |
|
|
|
US$ |
|
Softwood lumber |
Standard |
158 |
|
Hardwood lumber |
Cubic meter |
62 |
|
Plywood |
Cubic meter |
173 |
|
Wood pulp |
Ton |
110 |
|
Fiberboards |
Ton |
131 |
WOOD CONSUMPTION
The figures given in Table 42 of the Yearbook serve to indicate the relative rates of wood and wood products consumption in various countries. The following table (p. 179) shows the average annual consumption per person of wood and its products expressed in terms of roundwood during the years 1947-49, in five countries which are widely separated geographically, have limited forest resources, and are of average prosperity when judged by the standards of neighboring countries.
Average annual consumption wood and wood products
|
|
Total roundwood |
Fuelwood |
Industrial wood |
|
|
(m³® per caput) |
||||
|
New Zealand |
1.90 |
0.46 |
1.44 |
|
|
Switzerland |
1.10 |
0.38 |
0.72 |
|
|
Denmark |
0.81 |
0.18 |
0.63 |
|
|
Uruguay |
0.95 |
0.63 |
0.36 |
|
|
Malaya |
0.27 |
0.11 |
0.11 |
|
|
|
WEIGHTED AVERAGE |
0.87 |
0.30 |
0.57 |
It would appear, then, that a reasonable average rate of consumption to use for calculating requirements on a world scale might he 0.9 cubic meters of roundwood per person, about one-third in the form of fuelwood and two-thirds converted into lumber, plywood fiberboard, paper and other wood products.
On the basis of this average figure the attainment of higher standards of living in many countries and continents obviously calls for a substantial rise in the supply of wood in all its forms. This need is greatest in the Far East and the Near East, but it exists also in such regions as Latin America and parts of Eastern Europe.
LUMBER
Production
World production of lumber in 1949 is estimated at about 197 million m³(s) an increase of about 2 ½ percent above the 1948 estimate of 192 million m³(s) A decrease of 11 percent in output in North America, where about 45 percent of the world's lumber production is centered, was more than offset by an 11 percent increase in European production and smaller increases in the U.S.S.R. and other areas.
Regional levels of production in 1949 compared with prewar are as follows:
|
|
Index: 1937=100 |
|
U. S. and Canada |
126 |
|
Europe |
88 |
|
Asia |
88 |
|
Latin America |
110 |
|
Australia and New Zealand |
169 |
The lumber production for 1949 of countries reporting to FAO amounted to 154 million m³(s) about 4 percent less than in the previous year. Softwood (coniferous) lumber accounted for 78 percent of this total, about 25.6 million standards.
World trade in lumber
The total of reported lumber exports for 1949 was 5 percent above the comparable figure for 1948, despite a 14 percent decrease in exports from Canada and the United States.
The volume of lumber reported as moving in international trade in 1949 represents about 14 percent of the reported softwood (coniferous) lumber production and some 6 percent of the reported hardwood (broadleaved) lumber production. Lumber represented 25 percent of the value of all reported exports of forest products.
About 61 percent of the international trade in lumber reported for 1949 took place within the two principal lumber-consuming regions, Europe and North America. Eight percent of international lumber trade was made up of shipments from Canada and the United States to Europe, and 6 percent of exports from the same sources to other regions of the world.
Imports reported as originating in the U.S.S.R. in 1949 totaled 650,000 m³(s) or 140,000 standards, compared with 450,000 m³(s) or 95,000 standards in 1948.
Exports. The volume of exports reported for 1949 is 18.1 million m³(s) of which 16.4 million m³(s) or 3.5 million standards were softwood (coniferous) lumber. The latter figures compare with softwood exports of 3.3 million standards reported for 1948.
About 90 percent of all softwood (coniferous) lumber exports reported for 1949 originated in Canada, the United States, Austria, Finland, Sweden, Yugoslavia, and Brazil. These lumber exports were distributed as follows:
|
Destination |
Percent |
|
Europe (excl. U.K.) |
30 |
|
United Kingdom |
27 |
|
U. S. and Canada |
22 |
|
Latin America |
7 |
|
Africa |
6 |
|
Oceania |
4 |
|
Asia |
2 |
|
U.S.S.R. |
2 |
|
|
100 |
Imports. Shipments of lumber for 1949 into some principal importing countries are compared with prewar totals in the following table:
|
|
1949 |
1937 |
|
(Thousand m³(s)) |
||
|
United Kingdom |
5,793 |
12,270 |
|
Netherlands |
1,581 |
2,840 |
|
Germany |
332* |
2,340 |
|
United States |
3,728 |
1,630 |
|
Japan |
19 |
1,240 |
|
Belgium |
494 |
1,160 |
|
France |
465 |
1,060 |
* Bizone only.
Lumber stocks
Lumber stocks in countries which were able to give figures had increased by 1.6 million m³(s) at the end of 1949. Stock levels decreased in Sweden, United States, and Japan, but increased in Austria, France, Germany (Bizone), Netherlands, Switzerland, and Canada.
Consumption
Apparent lumber consumption of reporting countries for 1949 was 151 million m³(s) about 2 percent below the 1948 figure. Consumption in North America apparently dropped 7.25 million m³(s) from 1948, but consumption in reporting countries of Europe increased 2.5 million m³(s) and in each of the other regions by about 0.4 million m³(s)
Table 42 gives average figures over the years 1947-49 for lumber consumption per person in reporting countries. Such figures are useful for comparative purposes. Examples of consumption rates for various countries are given below:
|
|
Per caput consumption m³ (s) |
|
Canada |
0.76 |
|
New Zealand |
0.59 |
|
U. S |
0.55 |
|
Sweden |
0.40 |
|
Australia |
0.37 |
|
Finland |
0.33 |
|
United Kingdom |
0.14 |
|
France |
0.12 |
|
Japan |
0.11 |
|
Chile |
0.09 |
|
Venezuela |
0.08 |
|
Portugal |
0.07 |
|
Brazil |
0.07 |
|
Philippines |
0.04 |
|
Southern Rhodesia |
0.04 |
PLYWOOD
The production of plywood for 1949 in countries reporting to FAO totaled 3.4 million m³, an increase of 9 percent over the total for 1548. Expansion of this industry has been marked during the last ten years. Five countries, the United States, Canada, Finland, Germany, and Japan accounted for 81 percent of the output reported for 1949.
Exports reported for 1949 were about the same as for 1948, and were distributed as follows:
|
Destination |
Percent |
|
Europe (excl. United Kingdom) |
25 |
|
United Kingdom |
43 |
|
Canada and U.S. |
3 |
|
Latin America |
5 |
|
Asia |
11 |
|
Africa |
6 |
|
Oceania |
3 |
|
Other areas |
4 |
|
|
100 |
SLEEPERS
Sleepers are not given separate treatment in the production and trade statistics of many countries. Production of sawn sleepers in France increased in 1949 by 160,000 m³(s) over 1948, and in both Germany (Bizone) and Brazil by 40,000 m³(s) It declined by 94,000 m³(s) in Italy, by 120.000 m³(s) in Japan, and by 436,000 m³® in Canada.
Imports into the United Kingdom were 276.000 m³(s) in 1948 and 319 000 m³(s) in 1949, compared with an annual average for the years 1936-38 of 540,000 m³ (s). Other large importers in 1549 were Belgium with 84,000 m³(s) and the Netherlands with 53,000 m³(s) Export data for some important exporting countries are as follows:
|
|
1949 |
1948 |
1936-38 Average |
|
(1,000 m³(s)) |
|||
|
France |
96 |
33 |
93 |
|
Yugoslavia |
71 |
78 |
90 |
|
Canada |
128 |
233 |
92 |
|
U.S. |
216 |
234 |
173 |
PITPROPS
Available data on production for 1949 indicate that output was about 8 percent less than in 1948. Reported imports totaled 4.2 million m³® or about 2 percent less than for 1948. Although there is limited international trade in other regions, the main importing area is Western Europe. The principal sources of export supplies in 1949 were Finland Canada, Sweden, Portugal, Yugoslavia, France and Norway, in that order.
VENEERS
The value of reported exports in 1949 was US$ 18.2 million, slightly less than 1 percent of the value of all reported trade in forest products. France was the largest exporter, followed by Canada, Yugoslavia, United States, and Italy. The United Kingdom, United States, Netherlands, and Belgium were the principal importers.
STAVES AND BARRELS
Reported exports for 1949 totaled US$ 11.7 million in value. The principal exporters were: the United States US$ 5 million, Iran 1.6 million, Finland 1.1 million, Italy 0.9 million, Canada and Brazil 0.7 million each, and Sweden 0.5 million. Imports of the United Kingdom were valued at US$ 2.7 million, Canada 0.9 million, Ireland 0.7 million, and the United States 0.5 million. Reported 1948 imports of the British West Indies were US$ 1.8 million and of Venezuela 0.9 million.
WOOD PULP
Production of wood pulp
World production of wood pulp in 1949 is estimated at 28.4 million metric tons, about 2 percent less than the figure of 28.9 million tons computed for 1948.
Figures of production for 1949 reported to FAO totaled 25.8 million tons, covering the major manufacturing countries. The breakdown of this total by grades is:
|
|
Percent |
|
Mechanical |
34 |
|
Sulphite |
29 |
|
Sulphate |
30 |
|
Other grades |
7 |
Percentage shares in total world production of wood pulp in 1949 and 1937 are as follows:
|
|
1949 |
1937 |
|
(Percent) |
||
|
United States |
39 |
24 |
|
Canada (incl. Newfoundland) |
25 |
20 |
|
Sweden |
10 |
14 |
|
Finland |
6 |
9 |
|
Norway |
3 |
4 |
|
Germany |
3* |
10 |
|
Other countries |
14 |
19 |
|
|
100 |
100 |
* Bizone only.
World trade in wood pulp
There was a 5 percent increase in the volume of wood pulp exports reported for 1949 compared with 1948. Canada's exports decreased from 1.6 million tons in 1948 to 1.4 million tons in 1949, 84 percent of the latter going to the United States. On the other hand, European exports increased by 430,000 tons in 1949 from the previous year, those to other European countries increasing by 366,000 tons, to South America by 86,000 tons, and to Asia by 40,000 tons. Exports to North America decreased by 200,000 tons, and to Oceania by 20,000 tons.
The value of wood pulp exports reported for 1949 amounted to US$ 538 million, accounting for 22 percent of the value of all reported forest products exports. The United States with 1.6 million tons in 1949 remained the largest single importer, followed by the United Kingdom with 1.34 million tons. The general pattern of trade in wood pulp is shown by the following table:
|
Destination |
Origin |
|
|
Canada and U.S. |
Northern Europe |
|
|
|
(Percent) |
|
|
U S. |
78 |
15 |
|
Latin America |
1 |
7 |
|
Europe (excl. U.K.) |
6 |
40 |
|
United Kingdom |
11 |
34 |
|
Asia |
1 |
2 |
|
Africa |
* |
* |
|
Oceania |
* |
1 |
|
Other areas |
3 |
1 |
|
|
100 |
100 |
* Less than one-half percent.
Consumption of wood pulp
Most of the world's wood pulp is consumed in Europe and North America Relative levels of consumption of pulp products over the years 1947-49, in terms of kilograms of wood pulp per person are shown by the following figures:
|
|
kg. per caput |
|
U. S. and Canada |
112 |
|
Sweden, Finland, Norway |
72 |
|
Australia and New Zealand |
43 |
|
Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland, U.K. |
30 |
|
Austria, France, Ireland, Netherlands |
19 |
|
Chile, Uruguay, Venezuela |
9 |
|
Ceylon, Japan, Philippines |
5 |
|
Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia |
1.8 |
One of the more promising economic developments which, it is hoped, will be encouraged under FAO's Expanded Technical Assistance Program is the conversion of nearly all kinds of wood, including tropical hardwoods, into pulp for the manufacture of pulp products. The present plainly inadequate supply of wood pulp in many parts of the world might then be changed.
NEWSPRINT
Production of newsprint in countries reporting to FAO increased 7 percent in 1949 over 1948 to 7.4 million tons. This compares with an estimated world production of 7.8 million tons in 1937.
Export of newsprint in 1949 totaled 5.2 million tons, a rise of 13 percent over the volume for 1948. All the principal exporting countries reported rising exports, but the greater portion of the increase resulted from larger Canadian exports to the United States. Newsprint exports represented 22 percent of the total value of all reported international trade in forest products in 1949.
FIBERBOARDS (Building boards)
The reported world production of fiberboards, both hardboard and insulating board, in 1949 was 1.5 million tons, a decrease of 300,000 tons from 1948.
Reported fiberboard exports for 1949 totaled 210,000 tons, which represents 14 percent of reported production. The major exporters in 1949 were Sweden (98,000 tons), Canada (32,000 tons), United States (21,000 tons), and Finland (31,000 tons). The largest importers were Canada (43,000 tons) and the United Kingdom (37,000 tons).
