Vital Forest Graphics

Trends in area of produc-

tive forest plantations

South Korea

Russia

Mongolia

China

perate species generally need 60 to 150 years to mature. In Brazil, China, Indonesia, Thai- land, Uruguay and many other coun- tries, concerns have been raised about the impact of fast-wood plantations on biodiversity; such plantations often result in ecosystems being fragmented while hydrological cycles are in some cases disrupted and soil fertility levels reduced (Urgewald 2007). While there are standards and guidelines for responsible manage- ment of forest plantations, progress in implementing them is still slow. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), for example, has been able to certify only about seven million hectares of the world’s tropical forest plantations. The figure is even smaller for forest planta- tions established for pulp production (FSC 2008).

United Kingdom

Vietnam

Sweden

Malaysia

Indonesia

France

Thailand

Spain

Portugal

India

Australia

Iran

Turkey

New Zealand

Morocco

Sudan

Senegal

Million hectares

28 17 10

1990 2005 Plantation surfaces decreasing between 1990 and 2005

5 1 0.5

South Africa

Source: FAO 2006a.

more planted forests, particularly in China, the world’s biggest paper pro- ducer (Urgewald 2007). In order to sat- isfy the needs of its national pulp indus- try, the Indonesian government has set an initial target of developing 5 million hectares of industrial wood plantations by 2009 (Down to Earth 2006). In 2005, there were 3.4 million hectares of indus- trial forest plantations in Indonesia (FAO 2006a). The way in which paper production has led to the growth of forest plantations has caused concerns. Though most gov- ernments subscribe to the idea that natu- ral forests shouldnot be replaced by forest plantations, conversion to forest planta- tions accounts for six to seven per cent of natural forest losses in tropical countries (Cossalter and Pye-Smith 2005). Indo- nesia is one of the countries where there has been a massive conversion of tropical forest to industrial tree plantations (Cos- salter and Pye-Smith 2005).

Fast growing industrial hardwoods – often referred to as fast-wood – such as eucalyptus and acacia can be har- vested in less than 10 years while other plantation species, such as tropical pine and teak, are managed for more than 20 years before harvesting while tem-

See also pages 54, 60

Changes (in %) in area of productive forest plantations

Over 4% annual rate of growth Up to 4% annual rate of growth No sizeable increase in forest plantation area Decrease in forest plantation area No data available

Source: FAO 2006a.

VITAL FOREST GRAPHICS 25