Forest Policy and Economics最新文献

This paper examines how climate policy impacts wood use, the allocation of side streams between energy production and higher-value biochemical products, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in forest bioeconomy. The starting point is the European Union's (EU) climate policy, where burning wood-based side streams for energy is treated as carbon-neutral because emissions from harvesting are calculated in the land-use sector. This policy is compared to an alternative wherein wood use or burning wood-based side streams is taxed according to their carbon dioxide (CO₂) content. Numerical analysis shows that by increasing the price of electricity, EU's climate policy with emissions trading favors burning wood-based side streams for energy and reduces cascading use of side streams in the modern pulp mill. For traditional pulp mill using fossil fuels, use of fossil fuels and emissions decrease but other impacts depend on the pass-through rate of allowance price on electricity price. An alternative policy, emissions trading with a carbon tax on burned side stream favors cascading use of side streams for both traditional and modern pulp mills. If the alternative policy consists of emissions trading and a carbon tax on wood use, it dramatically decreases wood and energy use, renewable energy and pulp production and profits for both types of pulp mills. Our results show that there are climate and energy policy instruments targeting forest industry that at the same time might reduce GHG emissions and promote the cascading use of wood-based side streams in pulp mills.

Typology studies relating to forestry have typically tried to characterise private forest owners for the purposes of designing policies to fit owners' motivations and drives. However, little is known about how the public may perceive forestry both during and at the end of a planted rotation. As such, indications of public concern for current forest management practice can help to identify a different set of segments to influence decision making. Such a typology can help our understanding of social acceptability towards forest management practice as a legitimate consideration for wider public engagement in forest policy development.

A quantitative segmentation study was conducted into New Zealand public responses to planted forest operations, characterised by social acceptability concerns regarding three forest management practices – steepland harvesting, use of chemicals and mixed species forest regimes. We identified five key segments clustered according to differences in 22 dimensions along a gradient from most to least concern: ‘Culturally Concerned’; ‘Distrustful Forest Users’; ‘Disengaged Socially Equitable Organics’; ‘High-Trust Non-Environmentalists’; and ‘Forestry-Supportive Environmentalists.’ Characteristics of these clusters based on demographics, value orientations and attitudes to forest management were derived creating a public-acceptance typology to support forestry communication and engagement efforts.

In addition to identification of forest management engagement strategies, our findings show increased visits and forest experience do not result in higher forest sector support for management practice, reflecting a need for more targeted levels of sector engagement with forest users. Recommendations on engaging diverse public segments in planted forestry management and maintaining social licence are provided.

The use and trade of non-wood forest products (NWFPs) may simultaneously bring about positive outcomes for conservation and rural development. This assumption underlies national strategies on NWFPs and Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) in São Tomé and Príncipe. However, there is a lack of understanding of how native tree products such as Adansonia digitata (baobab), Dacryodes edulis (African plum) and Treculia africana (African breadfruit) are harvested, traded, and used. Besides, there is little knowledge about how both the landscapes these products originate from and the activities from harvest to consumption are governed. Using a value chain-landscape nexus approach, a quantitative survey with chain actors, semi-structured expert interviews and participant observations at marketplaces on São Tomé Island, we explored the socio-economic relevance of NWFPs included in FLR initiatives and how governance arrangements impact these. Despite being seasonal and limited to the capital, the formal trade of these products was of significant economic importance to the country. Nevertheless, weak statutory governance and an absence of customary governance arrangements puts the sustainability of NWFP harvesting, and thereby the outcomes of FLR, in jeopardy. The value chain-landscape governance nexus approach helps to understand how the use of NWFPs as part of forest restoration endeavors needs to take into consideration not only socio-economic benefits but also how the chains are governed in order to ensure that trade is compatible with FLR goals. Future research could further test the robustness of this conceptualization both in São Tomé and beyond.

This study investigated the willingness of citizens in the Czech Republic to engage in participatory forest management planning using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as its conceptual framework. The research design integrated quantitative and qualitative components to comprehensively examine attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and behavioral intentions related to participatory forest management planning among citizens. A diverse sample of 502 respondents was purposively selected to ensure representation across various demographic variables, including age, gender, education, occupation, residence, income, forestry-related background, and forest ownership inquiry. Data were processed using Microsoft Excel and RStudio, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed using the Covariance-Based approach (CB-SEM) to test the hypothesized relationships. The estimates of the structural model indicated that all three TPB constructs positively and significantly influenced behavioral intention. The research findings indicated that the TPB explains 75.1 % of the variance in citizens' behavioral intentions to engage in participatory forest management planning. These findings underscore the multi-dimensional influences on citizens' intentions to participate in forest management planning, with attitudes, social norms, and perceived control all playing pivotal roles. The research provides valuable insights for policymakers and forest management practitioners in developing strategies that enhance citizen engagement in sustainable forest management planning.

In many countries with plentiful forest resources, forests are at the core of the agendas to achieve sustainable societies. However, there is plenty of disagreement among societal actors about forest-related issues. This is also the case in Finland, where culture and income have traditionally relied on the forests. However, promoting the sustainability transition requires in-depth knowledge of the involved actors. The main goal of this article is to identify key actors, their discourses and relations in the Finnish newspaper discussion on forests and their utilization. The data consists of the leading national newspaper Helsingin Sanomat (HS) and Maaseudun Tulevaisuus (MT), which is addressed to rural actors. The sample consists of 283 articles from 2019 to 2021. Critical discourse analysis was chosen as the method of analysis. The key actors in HS were the researchers and politicians and in MT the forest-based companies, forest owners and their interest organizations. In MT hegemonic discourses originated from the needs of forest owners and businesses whereas in HS the forest per se was the origin of many discourses, with a focus on forest-related policies and environmental sustainability. In both newspapers, politicians were seen as the most powerful actors steering the forest-related transition. Otherwise, direct discussion of power relations was almost non-existent. Forest industries were criticized rarely, and large companies had a passive role in the debates. Market sector actors hold existing structures, creating structural power that hampers the change. However, there are signals that many actors are seeking platforms to create shared understandings.

Forest fires are a major socioeconomic and environmental threat across many countries. There is increasing recognition of the need to develop integrated fire management approaches that emphasise the roles and perspectives of all stakeholders. Stakeholders' perspectives on this complex issue can inform research and policy development. Furthermore, stakeholders have a right to be involved in issues that affect them, and this involvement, in turn, improves the social acceptance of policies. This study conducts a participatory integrated assessment through focus groups with three stakeholder groups in Portugal, namely members of the general public (including from areas with a history of forest fires), local residents, and decision makers. Two main topics were analysed, i.e. perceived causes of forest fires as well as prevention strategies. Causes identified were mostly associated with socioeconomic factors and a lack of knowledge and awareness of the risks involved in the use of fire. Prevention strategies proposed significantly relied on government intervention and a shift in awareness and responsibility by direct actors and the population in general. A participatory integrated assessment allowed us to propose a framework of causes and prevention strategies for fire prevention, which can be included in a more bottom-up policy design that reflects the views of stakeholders.

The attempt at creating a legally binding agreement on forests in Europe has failed after two periods of negotiations. The first period (2011–2015) ended with an unresolved question about what organization should become the Convention's host. During the second negotiation period (2018–2021) the parties arrived at the conclusion to transfer secretarial duties to UNECE. However, eventually, the process was closed due to lack of consensus by the participating parties. Our analysis of the reasons that stood behind the failed agreement has confirmed two key conflicts typical for international forest agreements and occurring at both international and national levels – the tension between commodity and amenity-oriented goals and the question of national interest and relative power. Given the dynamics of the forest policy discussion, new opportunities for a legally binding agreement on forests in Europe may arise in future.

Forests are increasingly prominent in global policy discussions. Conservation, sustainable management, and restoration of forests are widely understood as necessary to reach climate and biodiversity goals. This attention to forests is vital. However, it risks overshadowing or, worse, undermining the livelihoods and well-being of the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who live in or near forests, especially Indigenous Peoples and marginalized groups. New international commitments to plant trees and halt and reverse deforestation and degradation are intensifying demands on forests and other lands. What are the implications of these shifts for the rights, livelihoods, and wellbeing of those living in forest and tree-based landscapes? What new thinking and evidence exists to help advance knowledge and policy on this topic? And what do current dynamics suggest for future research? The articles in this Special Issue on “Trends in Forest Livelihoods Research” respond to these questions. This introduction contextualizes current research at the forest-livelihoods nexus and provides an overview of the 18 articles compiled in this volume. We identify three key themes and two cross-cutting social sustainability concerns that emerge from this collected work. We conclude by highlighting implications for forest-related policy that better supports local livelihoods and broader sustainable development goals, and by identifying pressing research needs.

Forests have a crucial role in mitigating climate change. The Chinese government is currently deliberating the utilization of carbon taxes and subsidies to incentivise the potential for forest carbon sequestration. The impact of the policies on China's forests, especially the quantitative information is unknown. To fill this gap, we follow the Faustmann-Hartman model to examine the relationship between the policies and forest carbon sequestration. We find that due to extending the rotation age, policies will increase China's forest carbon sequestration by 1.99 tCO₂e/ha/yr, contributing 11.15%–17.31% to the 2060 carbon neutrality target, as the carbon price increases from 0 to 400 CNY/tCO₂. China's forest carbon sequestration supply curve is inelastic, with an average elasticity of approximately 0.08. Policy implementation in the northwest region is more effective for the northwest region to improve carbon sequestration potential both per unit area and total amount, in contrast to certain provinces in the South Central and Southeast coastal regions. The average costs of the policy are generally higher in the southeast, averaging about 2.2 times higher than in the northwest. However, considering financial affordability, some southeast provinces in China are more economically feasible. These findings have important policy implications.