Latin American forestry commission
International poplar commission
Technical assistance notes
David Lubin memorial library
At the generous invitation of the Government of Argentina, the fourth session of the FAO Latin American Forestry Commission was held at Buenos Aires, 16-23 June, 1952. This was a most successful meeting, bringing together many important personalities in the region. At its conclusion the heads of delegations were graciously received in audience by President Peron.
Previous sessions of this Commission have been held in Brazil, Peru and Chile, and on the present occasion the Commission was invited by the delegate of Venezuela to convene for its fifth session at Merida, the proposed seat of a Latin American Forest Research and Training Institute.
The session was under the chairmanship of Mr. Bianchi Gundian, Inspector-General of Forests, Chile, and countries represented were Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, France (French Guiana), Honduras, Mexico, Netherlands, Paraguay, United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Other representatives were present on behalf of the Holy See, Organization of American States (OAS), Caribbean Commission, Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLA), and International Labour Office. In addition chiefs of FAO technical assistance missions for forestry in Brazil, Chile, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, and Paraguay, joined in the Commission deliberations; this proved to be a most useful innovation.
Expanded Technical Assistance Program
The Commission was pleased to note from the statements of representatives of various countries that technical assistance programs were developing in a satisfactory and promising manner, not only because of the professional competence of the technicians sent by FAO but also because of their devotion to the work and their spirit of ready comprehension.
A paper tabled by the Argentine delegation on "Technical Assistance in. American forestry and forest products planning" and included in the Commission's report, stated that Latin American countries on the whole have forests of immense value which when their tremendous potentialities have been surveyed, can contribute very substantially to the solution of the wood supply problem. For the most part, these forests are markedly heterogeneous, with a wealth of tree species, a factor which presents the main problem in their systematic utilization.
Latin American countries have been very slow to appreciate the potential role of their immense forest resources in the economy of the American Continent and of the world as a whole, and only the critical situation following World War II made it clear that present indifference to, or neglect of, this important heritage was prejudicing alike agricultural, industrial and forestry economics. There has now developed a healthy trend towards forest protection, improvement and expansion, with the establishment of the first technical services, completely independent of other public bodies, within the respective ministries of each country. There is still evidence, however, of the great need for accelerating forest rehabilitation which will ultimately benefit the whole of Latin America, and in which all countries without exception are anxious to collaborate.
Latin America is very different from Europe and the rest of the American Continent from the economic, social, political and linguistic standpoint. The psychology of its peoples differs even more widely with regard to silviculture and forest policies. All planning and preliminary surveys envisaged must therefore be conceived, organized and implemented with particular regard to the very special local conditions, and with an adequate representation of Latin American technicians. Such participation would also serve as a stimulus and a recognition for local technicians, enabling them to take part in highly important work relating to their own countries and to others with which they are historically and culturally associated. It is within the framework of the FAO Forestry Division and its technical commissions and committees that this cooperation can be made effective, and adequate Latin American representation both in numbers and in technical skill on such bodies should be brought about as soon as possible.
At this time of real testing for FAO, such a guarantee of collaboration is of the highest importance for combating propaganda aimed at weakening the faith of the American peoples in the constructive possibilities of the Organization. These reasons, the report concluded, also amply justify a similar need with regard to the composition of technical study missions in the various Latin American countries in which the participation of Latin American technicians is indispensable.
As a result of its discussions, the Commission recommended that governments of countries with FAO missions should always assign the necessary national technicians in order to obtain the best results from such missions.
It also recommended that young technicians be assigned to such missions to obtain training in the methods and procedures used.
The Commission also examined other forms of technical assistance which can be rendered by FAO: fellowships, national and regional education and training centers, study tours and general studies of an international character. It considered that these should be continued and intensified alongside the normal form of technical assistance.
The Commission considered that a periodic review of programs was desirable in order to bring them up to date as and when local conditions and/or the wishes of governments rendered this necessary. Emphasis was placed on the advisability of keeping the local action of the missions within the scope of the general or local policy laid down by the FAO Conference, and on the advantage of periodic visits to government officials and missions by FAO Headquarters and Regional Office staff.
Latin American Forest Research and Training Institute
The Commission was of the opinion that the establishment of the Latin American Forest Research and Training Institute was a matter of vital importance and emphasized the importance of research in the field and on experimental sites.
The Commission considered that the proposal of the Government of Venezuela offering as the Institute's headquarters the National University of the Andes (Universidad Nacional de los Andes) in the city of Merida, should be welcomed and approved. Following suggestions made at previous sessions for the establishment of regional forest research centers, the Commission considered that, at first, six such centers should be opened and strategically located in forest zones having their own individual characteristics, namely:
1. Mexico and Central America.
2. The Caribbean.
3. Tropical Andes.
4. Suthern Andes,
5. Parana - Plata - Paraguay.
6. Amazonia.
The following offers of sites had been made:
1. The Inter-American Institute of Agricultural Sciences at Turrialba.
2. The Tropical Forest Experimental Station, Puerto Rico.
3. The Tingo Maria Station, Peru.
4. Concepcion University, Chile.
The Commission authorized its Secretary to undertake the necessary negotiations for the formal establishment of the Latin American Forest Research and Training Institute, and appointed a sub-committee consisting of representatives of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Peru, United States and Venezuela and the Inter-American Institute of Agricultural Sciences to co-ordinate the work of setting up the Institute.
Forest policy
The Commission had before it the forest policy reports of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, 'Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, Paraguay and Venezuela which were discussed by the delegates. In the absence of the delegates of Ecuador, Haiti and Honduras, note was taken of those countries' reports.
The Commission considered that, in view of the importance of the reports submitted, it should accept the Secretariat's proposal that a summary be made and distributed to Member Countries.
Amongst its policy recommendations, the Commission requested FAO to foster the federation or union of Latin American forestry associations with a view to co-ordinating their activities; that Latin American governments should take appropriate steps to enable insurance companies, provident funds and other organizations, custodians of public funds, to invest their reserves in afforestation and reforestation projects; and that governments should promote forest credit by granting long-term and cheap loans for such projects.
The Commission took note of the proposal of the Venezuelan delegate to submit the text of a bill on the conservation of renewable natural resources to a committee for examination. A committee consisting of the representatives of Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico, was accordingly set up, which would communicate the results of its study through the FAO Regional Office in Rio de Janeiro.
Survey pulp and paper
The Commission took note of FAO's program for the development of world production of pulp and paper in compliance with the request addressed by the Economic and Social Council to FAO in its resolution No. 374 (XIII). It also took note of the surveys and work carried out jointly by FAO and ECLA following the latter's 4th session in Mexico in 1951, and welcomed this co-operation between international agencies on this important world problem.
The Commission recommended that FAO approach the countries producing and consuming seeds, requesting them to expedite interchange and trade in seeds of quick-growing forest species intended for the establishment of forest stands for the manufacture of pulp. The Commission believed that the various countries should take urgent steps to promote the import and export of seeds by working out commercial and financial agreements and by adopting appropriate customs measures.
Fourth World Forestry Congress
Taking advantage of the presence of Professor Eino Saari, organizer and chairman of the Third World Forestry Congress, the Commission heard his interesting statement on the various problems inherent in the organization of this type of international meeting.
Subsequently the Commission requested that, when it had been decided where the congress would be held, FAO approach the governments of Member Nations for their suggestions for the agenda and that it should request governments, in submitting their suggestions, to indicate an order of priority to facilitate the final selection of items for the agenda.
World Festival of the Trees
At the Sixth Session of the FAO Conference, held in Rome in November 1951, the delegates adopted an important resolution on the need for celebrating annually in each Member Country a World Festival of the Trees on a date suited to local conditions.
The Commission recommended that FAO provide countries with all possible information to enable them to bold this Festival in the most effective manner. It drew particular attention to the value which countries attach to publications and films and requested FAO to supply all possible details on the manner in which Tree Festivals are celebrated in other parts of the world.
Protection of nature
Since in many ways the problems of the protection of nature and forest problems are closely related, the Commission considered that they too should receive attention. As the International Union for the Protection of Nature was to meet in Caracas, Venezuela, in September 1952, the Commission requested governments to arrange representation there by foresters and thus give them the opportunity of making useful contacts with specialists from other parts of the world. Finally, the Commission recommended that OAS should prepare a revised draft of the Washington Convention on Nature Protection and Wildlife Preservation in the Western Hemisphere, and requested it to submit a draft, as soon as possible, to an ad hoc Panamerican meeting of qualified representatives.
Standardization
The Commission considered that the Anglo-Spanish forestry glossary now being compiled at the Tropical Forest Experimental Station at Rio Piedras (Puerto Rico), might serve as the ground work for standardizing forestry terminology in Latin America. The Commission requested the U. S. Government to place at the disposal of FAO the terminology and definitions available or in the course of preparation. FAO in turn would submit such terminology and definitions to the various countries for consideration, and then send the assembled data to the Rio Piedras Station to assist in the preparation of the final edition of the glossary.
New Chairman of the Commission
The final action of the Commission was to elect its new chairman for the period until the end of the next session.
Mr. Lucas A. Toriorelli, General Administrator of Forests of the Argentine Republic, was unanimously elected.
The Sixth Session of the International Poplar Commission was held at Rome from 26-28 May under its chairman Prof. Ph. Guinier (France) with Prof. G. Houtzagers (Netherlands) as vice-chairman. Marcel Leloup, Director, Forestry Division, represented the Director-General of FAO.
Delegates attended from the following 13 countries, which included members and non-members of the Commission: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) was also represented.
The chairman in his opening address gave an account of the work carried out by members since the creation of the Commission and welcomed delegates from countries who were participating for the first time, namely, Finland, Greece, Spain and the United States. Mr. Leloup, welcoming the delegates to FAO's Headquarters, commented on the rapid development of the Commission since its creation in 1947 and emphasized the results achieved. He also drew attention to the importance of the
Commission's future activities, which would be discussed in the course of the session, and the recommendations which might result from it leading to a world-wide extension of its activities.
Reports on the Work of National Commissions
Reports were submitted by National Commissions and similar organizations on their work, as well as by certain non-members represented at the session, in particular Greece and Spain. The Commission recommended that studies not yet complete on diseases such as "black heart" and "splitting of poplar" as well as the cultivation of poplar other than in forest stands (that is, in agricultural and particularly pastoral areas) should be continued and reports presented at the next session. Much information had been received from National Commissions on research on poplar diseases, and the Commission recommended that work should continue along the lines already indicated. -Stress was laid on the dangers that could arise from the spreading of Hyphantria cunea which had recently been introduced in Europe (Hungary, Austria and Yugoslavia) from the United States, and it was suggested that National Commissions should watch carefully for centers of infection and take appropriate action to stamp it out.
Finally, the Commission considered it desirable for the purpose of comparison that the annual reports of National Commissions should be uniform in presentation and requested the Secretariat, in conjunction with the Permanent Committee to draw up a questionnaire to be sent to National Commissions prior to each session. It was decided that the questionnaire should be divided into two parts: the first comprising a general statement on activities on which an annual report had been requested at previous sessions, and the second special reports on the particular projects recommended for the year considered or undertaken by different countries in the course of the year.
Study of Poplar Cultivation on Selected Sites
In view of the preliminary results obtained in certain countries, in particular France and Belgium, the Commission recommended that surveying continue in order to get precise information on the increment on selected sites, with special reference to ecological and cultivation factors. National Commissions would later work in conjunction with forest research stations if it seemed likely that such co-operation would be advantageous.
Economic Aspects of Poplar Cultivation
The Commission recommended that National Commissions continue their research on the economics of poplar cultivation, particularly as regards cultivation on land other than forest land.
On the question of spacing, the necessity for adapting techniques to actual economic conditions was emphasized and, since no new information had been received which necessitated reconsidering the conclusions arrived at during earlier sessions, the spacing recommended previously was still considered to be the best. However, since such conclusions were based on economic conditions, National Commissions were advised to continue their studies on the subject in order to be able to bring technique into line with changing conditions and to benefit from the introduction of new types of clones.
Utilization of Poplar Wood
Following a recommendation made at the last session, an ad hoc working group to study the utilization of poplar wood was convened by the Chairman prior to the present session. The report of this working group was presented by the rapporteur Mr. A. Janis (France), who referred to the Second Conference on Mechanical Wood Technology which was held at Igls, Austria, in August 1951. At this meeting it was agreed that the work of the International Poplar Commission conformed to its own objectives, and recommended that these should be followed up and developed. Mr. Janis also drew attention to the difficulties which resulted from lack of co-ordination between producers and consumers. The exchange of samples between countries was recommended and the attention of National Commissions was drawn to the possibilities of using poplar wood in the construction of wagons.
In view of the importance of this subject, the Commission decided that the working group on utilization, which up to the present had been established on an ad hoc basis for the different meetings, should become a permanent working group under the chairmanship of Prof. G. Giordano (Italy), with Mr. Janis as rapporteur.
Aspens
The Commission thanked Dr. Heimburger (Canada) for his report prepared at the request of the Secretariat. Reports were also presented to the Commission by some of the delegates on the situation and studies undertaken in their respective countries, in particular Finland and Sweden. National Commissions were advised to study the different types of aspen and their methods of reproduction, with particular reference to hybrids of American and European aspens.
Poplars in the U.S.A.
Prof. Houtzagers (Netherlands) commented on the conclusions reached by the mission of experts sent by the O.E.E.C. to the United States in 1950 to study American poplars and on the collaboration with American poplar experts, in particular Dr. Schreiner, the United States delegate to the present session. Dr. Schreiner gave an account of the work at present under way in the United States, illustrating his paper with a film. This was followed by a further discussion on plant spacing, and the Chairman emphasized that the objective of poplar cultivation was to increase production to meet the needs of industry, and said that the Commission had received valuable hell) in this field from American experts.
Future Activities of the Commission
After approving the general conclusions of the Secretariat with regard to future activities, the Commission approved in particular the extension of research to aspens and white poplars and the intensification of research on utilization by creating a permanent working group to study the subject. It was also agreed that regional meetings should be attended by poplar experts, if need be at the time of other forestry meetings. The Commission emphasized the danger presented by wood-destroying insects, a danger which would increase with the extension of poplar cultivation, and hoped that entomologists would always take part in the work of National Commissions.
It recommended that the most recent statistical methods should be applied to current research and requested that the methods actually used be presented at the next session for examination by a working group.
The Commission decided to meet only every two years starting with 1953, while the Permanent Committee would continue to meet every year, and would increase its members to nine, a third being renewable at each meeting. It was also agreed to request the Secretary to propose that the statutes be amended according to the decisions taken by the Commission, in order to permit the development of the Commission's activities.
The invitation of the government of the Federal Republic of Germany to hold the next meeting at Baden-Baden in the spring of 1953 was accepted, and it was confirmed that the fifth session of the International Poplar Congress would take place at the same time.
Brazil
At the fourth session of the Latin American Forestry Commission held at Buenos Aires in June 1952, a report was presented on the work carried out so far on the development of the resources of the Amazon forests. This report covered the work done by a mission of three FAO specialists - K. McGrath (logging), R. Gachot (sawmilling), and N. M. Gallant (marketing and distribution) - as well as on the immediate and long-term programs proposed by the mission.
An initial acquaintance with the forests and forest industries of the Amazon brought out the two main problems to be tackled: (1) that the forests cover an area of some 3 million sq. kin. with a widely dispersed population of 2.5 million, therefore necessitating development by successive stages of the areas most accessible to the inhabited regions; and (2) that numerous improvements are needed at once to maintain the woodworking industries even at their present level of efficiency. On the basis of these conclusions, and with the approval of the Brazilian Government, the members of the mission worked simultaneously on two programs - a short-term program for improving existing installations and a long-term one for development of forest industries as a whole.
Short-term Program. Logging is at present carried on virtually without mechanical means and hence is possible only near rivers. Neither the hand tools in present use nor the methods employed are suitable, and it has therefore been proposed to employ a trained lumberman to give demonstrations in the use of new equipment and the means of improving yield. Since logging is often carried out in areas subject to periodic flooding, a study of the equipment required for these conditions has also been undertaken.
There are three sawmilling problems of immediate concern: (1) the training of forest workers (a proposal to set up an Amazon training center with the help of FAO has been provisionally approved by the Brazilian Government); (2) the utilization of sawmill waste; and (3) the possibility of using light transportable mechanical saws in regions far from an industrial center.
Long-term Program. The overall aim is the intensive development of selected zones suited to the building up of a modern industry.
Although numerous botanical studies of forest species exist, very little is known of their distribution. Map data, too, is particularly scanty. Aerial surveying could, however, be profitably used over a large area of the Amazon basin (1) to determine the boundary between regions subject to periodic flooding and those free from flooding, and (2) to make a rough assessment of the different types of forest stands.
Since kiln drying has never been practised, it is proposed to establish a center for the study of methods of sawing and drying the chief Amazon species.
The mission is still investigating the possibility of reducing production costs and marketing questions, and proposes to study the possibility of extending trade both on the home and foreign market, and of increasing exports of species already on the market as well as of lesser known species. Investigations will also cover market conditions for products of the wood-using industries, veneers and wood pulp for example.
Honduras
In the course of one of his field trips, the FAO adviser on forestry, E. J. Schreuder, visited an experimental farm of the Banco Nacional de Fomento near Jalteva which included about 1,000 acres of agricultural land and a vast area of pine forests. He reports that, although the valley suffers from lack of water, there is no reason why irrigation should prove difficult. Most of the pine forests between Tegucigalpa and Jalteva gave evidence of serious fire damage, but, as many plots along the way and on the slopes showed, regeneration was mainly a matter of fire protection.
On another trip he saw a similar experimental farm at Comayagua, where abundant irrigation and better soil in the valley made a marked difference, and where it is planned to set up an irrigable forest tree nursery. However, the road between Comayagua and Siguatepeque, reports Schreuder, winds along steep mountain slopes and offers an excellent show of the already denuded or partly devastated pine forests as well as those which are still almost untouched. Thousands of hectares of pine forest could be saved here without artificial planting if a vigorous fire protection organization could be set up. At different places between 3,000 ft. and 5,000 ft. above sea level we perceived thousands of very small pine seedlings, probably only waiting for their fate at one time or another. In the long ago denuded area, mostly at lower altitudes, erosion appears everywhere and xerophytic vegetation creeps in.
Haiti
L. Vinton Burns, FAO forestry officer in Haiti, writes that the Government has commissioned him to work out a plan for forest development in the Artibonite valley. Preliminary work has already been started there for the construction, at a cost of $20 million, of a dam and reservoir for hydro-electric power and irrigation purposes.
The plan provides for afforestation of 25,000 acres of Government land over a 10-year period: first year, 500; second, 1,500; with a maximum of 3,000 in 5 years and with a total expenditure of $780,000. In 15 months 23 nurseries have been established and 400 acres planted, and in order to carry out further plantation schemes the assistance of landowners, peasants, school teachers and even priests has been enlisted.
The "Service des Eaux et Forêts," which forms part of the Department of Agriculture and which was formerly responsible for the country's forestry and irrigation activities, has been split, irrigation being transferred to the Public Works Department. Since March 1951 an Afforestation and Soil Conservation Section has been created within the Forest Service and has done good work.
With the friendly co-operation of the Forest Service, plans have been established for forest development in the Artibonite, Grise, Blanche and Matheu-Delices valleys, and oil and around the Morne de l'Hôpital hill that overlooks Port-au-Prince, whence the town draws its water supply.
A plan, part of a larger program, has recently been drawn up for commercial utilization of the country's forest resources, at the request of the Minister of Finance, and covers such questions as short-term investment such as plantations of species for production of fuel, tanbark, and rubber.
On the training side, in order to fulfill the need for trained foresters, lectures on afforestation and field demonstrations are being given to third-year students of the National School of Agriculture by the head of the Afforestation Section as well as by the FAO officer.
Fig. 2 shows the two boards and two cants cut by circular saw from this log.
ChileL. Hartman, a member of the FAO forestry mission to Chile, has recently prepared a report dealing with estimates of waste from logging operations awl the present yield of sawmills. The two photographs reproduced above are taken from his report.
The David Lubin Memorial Library, which was formally inaugurated in June at the Headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization, is the largest agricultural library in Europe. It is not surprising that it should be, for it is a combination of three libraries, the Library of the International Institute of Agriculture, the International Silvicultural Centre and the small FAO Library of 30,000 volumes collected in Washington. The new installation at FAO Headquarters is impressive. Housed on the ground floor of a light, modern building, it contains 18 kilometers of shelves, 350,000 volumes, reading rooms, reference, photostat and microfilm services.
The major part of the collection dates back to 1909 the early days of the International Institute of Agriculture, and it is especially rich in its collection of agricultural statistics, which was a primary aim of the Institute's founder, David Lubin. The Library, however, also has a comprehensive collection on such subjects as agricultural economics, rural sociology, agricultural legislation, and sciences related to agriculture, such as botany, zoology and chemistry.
Marquis Cappelli, one of the first presidents of the Institute and a great book-lover, collected 1,000 volumes in his period of office, and bought, among other books, some of the Institute's thirty-two incunabula. These fifteenth century books are mentioned in such catalogues as those of Hain, Copinger and Reichling. Five are treatises on agriculture; Crescentius, Libro dell'agricoltura (1480), Scriptores rei rusticae (1494), a collection of writings on agriculture by Columella, Varro, Cato and Palladius (1496) and (1499), and the Bucolica et georgica of Vergil (1490).
Works of literature and philosophy owned by the Institute in their early Italian or German editions are: the De deorum of Boccaccio, De rerum natura by Lucretius and Historia naturalis and Storia naturale of Plinius.
Thanks to the $32,000 granted by the 1951 FAO Conference from residual Institute funds, the Library will be expanded and some of its gaps filled.
FAO owes its existence, in part, to the persistence of this American of Polish origin who fought for, and established, the first international organization for the improvement of agriculture, the forerunner of FAO.
