The market for forest machines has been stable in Sweden for many years. But in 2007 something happened that could turn the market upside down in the long term. Market challenger Ponsse increased its share of the forwarder market by 38 per cent. The Finnish manufacturer Ponsse greatly strengthened its position in Sweden following Hurricane[…]
In preparation for the most comprehensive picture ever drawn of the state of the Earth’s forests, which cover 30% of its land and are a crucial factor in mitigating climate change, the United Nations agricultural agency has put out a call for accurate data. “Stronger support from countries and advances in communication technology will make[…]
New Zealand’s wood supply chain is a NZ$1billion cost centre. Currently, it’s estimated that, as an industry, it is leaking around NZ$150m each year. Neither the forest owners nor service enterprises are capturing this loss. This declining level of industry financial performance is not sustainable with New Zealand forestry’s international competitiveness seriously at risk. Resin[…]
Tembec is imposing a temporary shutdown for a period of at least three months at its Béarn sawmill located in Quebec, Canada, effective March 31, 2008. The shutdown decision was based on the lack of reasonably priced logs in the region and the overall depressed lumber market. “This shutdown is a reflection of the severe[…]
The Polish Forest Certification Scheme has been endorsed by the PEFC Council following a rigorous assessment process. The Polish system is the second new forest certification scheme to achieve PEFC endorsement this year after Estonia. Forest cover in Poland is 8.6 Mha, almost 28% of the country. About 82% of the forests belong to the[…]
Australia’s CSIRO is collaborating in a NASA-funded project, using a CSIRO-designed instrument, to help develop new methods of measuring forest carbon stores on a large scale. Forests are the world’s main above-ground carbon store and are therefore critical in controlling the global carbon cycle. But estimating the amount of carbon stored in forests over a[…]
WWF published its WWF Paper Scorecard at the end of last year. The PEFC (Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes) Council has welcomed WWF’s acknowledgement that “several schemes have made contributions to improving forest management”. However, the PEFC says, “this is not reflected in the scorecard, and an opportunity to make the scorecard[…]
An increasing number of construction firms around the world are committing to using Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified timber in their building projects. Royal BAM Group in the Netherlands and Even Construtora e Incorporadora in Brazil are two of the latest examples. In Brazil, Even Construtora e Incorporadora is set to use more FSC for[…]
This paper gives an overview of the concerns, perceptions and reactions surrounding ‘Conversions’. Given the universal appreciation of the importance of forests, especially tropical forests, and concern at their potential demise the solution appears to be to simple – either leave them alone or replace the trees that we use. So why has the debate[…]
Wayne Keith has converted his pickup to run on scraps of wood from his Alabama (US) sawmill. The heart of the wood-powered vehicle is a gasifier, which basically converts solid fuels into gaseous ones. Though the fuel in their tanks is liquid, gasoline and diesel engines actually run on vapour. Thus, the wood gas produced[…]