Promoting Better Logging Practices in Tropical Forests

64 Pages Posted: 20 Apr 2016

See all articles by Marco Boscolo

Marco Boscolo

World Bank

Jeffrey R. Vincent

University of California, San Diego (UCSD) - Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies (IRPS)

Date Written: May 21, 1998

Abstract

Performance-based renewal conditions for tropical forest concessions provide a powerful incentive for loggers to adopt reduced-impact logging practices and to comply with minimum-diameter cutting limits - even with short concession agreements.

In government-owned tropical forests, timber is often harvested under concession agreements with private logging companies.

Forestry departments typically impose logging regulations to minimize the negative environmental impacts of logging, but logging practices throughout the tropics appear to be undermining the sustainability of timber and nontimber benefits from tropical forests.

Boscolo and Vincent use bioeconomic simulations to test the empirical significance of several common recommendations for promoting better logging practices in tropical forests. They find that:

Because of the effects of discounting, longer concessions give loggers little incentive to adopt reduced-impact logging or to comply with minimum-diameter cutting limits.

Royalties can be used to encourage compliance with minimum-diameter cutting limits but discourage the adoption of reduced-impact logging. And per tree royalties, which encourage compliance with minimum-diameter cutting limits, tend to be less effective as revenue instruments.

Relatively small performance bonds can be used to induce loggers to adopt reduced-impact logging, but very large bonds are needed to induce compliance with minimum-diameter cutting limits.

Reduced-impact logging and minimum-diameter cutting limits both have significant positive effects on environmental indicators, but these benefits come at the cost of a substantial reduction in the timber value of the stand.

Performance-based renewal conditions provide a powerful incentive for loggers to adopt reduced-impact logging and to comply with minimum-diameter cutting limits - even with short concession agreements.

Performance-based renewal conditions sharply reduce the size of the performance bond needed to induce compliance with minimum-diameter cutting limits. Royalties, but not area charges, have a similar, although weaker, effect.

The authors' results also suggest that a cause of premature reentry into logged forests is minimum-diameter cutting limits that exceed minimum commercial log diameters, combined with weak control over access to logged-over forests.

This paper - a product of the Development Research Group - is part of a larger effort in the group to elucidate the economics of conservation policies. Marco Boscolo may be contacted at mboscolo@hiid.edu.

Suggested Citation

Boscolo, Marco and Vincent, Jeffrey R., Promoting Better Logging Practices in Tropical Forests (May 21, 1998). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=604987

Marco Boscolo

World Bank

1818 H Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20433
United States

Jeffrey R. Vincent (Contact Author)

University of California, San Diego (UCSD) - Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies (IRPS) ( email )

9500 Gilman Drive
La Jolla, CA 92093-0519
United States

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