News: Portfolio 2008

University of Georgia Researchers to Timberland Owners: Improve Forest Inventories or Risk Losing Billions in Timber Value

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“By its nature, this method is costly in human and financial resources and produces imprecise results at the stand level with sampling errors of 25 percent or greater,” he continued.

 

“We showed what can happen to decisions about thinning and harvesting when foresters and owners rely on imprecise stand data. Basically, their management plans do not accurately reflect the condition of standing timber, so they cannot achieve an accurate assessment of its worth, or the maximum return on their investment through development of optimal management regimes,” he said.

 

“Today, with new technology, it is possible to have real-time data about the location, dimensions and health of trees, all of which lead to more-informed decisions about forest management and investment,” Dr. Borders noted. “The methodology we used in this study can help improve timberland

management by showing the effects of precise inventory data at the stand level.”

 

Warnell researchers assisting Dr. Borders in the research were Dr. Michael Clutter, Warnell’s dean; William Harrison, forest biometrician; and Dr. Barry Shiver, professor emeritus. Also assisting was Dr. Ray Souter, research forester, USDA Forest Service in Stoneville, Miss. Borders noted that ImageTree commissioned the report.

 

Select report highlights:

 

• Although foresters differentiate timber inventory information used for management planning from that used for timber sales, it is the high-sampling-error “management cruise” (25% error or greater at the stand level) that is applied to help guide management decisions.
• Timber inventory data should not be viewed as a cost center but rather as a vital asset, crucial for maximizing timberland value; improved inventories will have a profound effect on forestry management and asset evaluation.
  

 

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