The Finnish forest industries have doubled their use of wood raw material during the past two decades. The average annual overcut of 4.0 million m3 in 1960–64 has been turned into an average annual surplus of 2.7 million m3 in 1965–69. By 1974 industry’s requirements for domestic roundwood would increase by about 6.3 million m3, if all new capacity can be taken into full production. The MERA allowable cut, if realized, would leave a 1.5 million m3 annual surplus in the forest balance in 1974. Less intensive forestry programs would mean a 1.5 to 4.4 million m3 overcut in 1974.
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The Economic Council asked Heikinheimo, Holopainen and Kuusela to prepare a report on the development of Finland’s forest resources up to the beginning of the next century. The expansion of forest industry beyond the level foreseen in earlier forecasts, the large-scale removal and neglect of the basic improvements required have weakened the condition of the wood production to such an extent that extensive measures are needed to ensure the continuity of the supply of wood. The results of the calculations are formed in three separately analysed alternatives.
Alternative I: Realisation of the Teho programme and the removal corresponding to it. The development of the growing stock according to the programme would only permit a cut amounting to an annual drain of ca. 51 million m3 up to the year 2000. After that it would be possible gradually to increase the removal. This drain would not itself to utilise fully the already existing production capacity of the industry.
Alternative II: Consequences of the predicted removal if the Teho programme is realised as such. The wood utilization forecast based on the premises given to the team show that the annual drain will grow in 1964–1975 from 52 to 58 million m3, and thereafter by 0.5% annually. This would lead to over-cutting, and exhaust the present growing stock by the turn of the century. If annual total drain of ca. 58 million m3 would after 1975 be sufficient, exhaustion of the growing stock would be postponed for 4–5 years.
Alternative III. Teho programme expanded in conformity with the removal forecast. A new programme is proposed, which includes, among others, large scale fertilization of fully grown firm forest land at about the rate of 100,000 ha/year, intensified artificial regeneration, assurance of the supply of planting stock and seed, increase of forest drainage from the present 155,000 to 250,000 ha/year by 1970, site preparation of the cutting areas for artificial regeneration, increase of tending or seeding stands to 300,000 ha/year, replacement of fuelwood by other fuels, increase of wood import and new forest roads.
The article is a joint study of the Forest Research Institute, the Forest Association and the Society of Forestry (now Finnish Society of Forest Science) on means to increase the productivity of forestry in Finland.
The study identifies five ways to improve the productivity of forestry in the country. First, the yield of forests should be increased by draining peatlands, reforestating understocked forests, changing tree species, if they are unsuitable for the site, increasing improvement fellings and enhancing regeneration in the cutting areas. Second, the utilization and trade of small-diameter timber should be developed. Third, export of wood should be promoted, while the use of wood as fuel instead of imported fuels should be increased. Fourth, the export of Finnish wood products should be secured, for instance, by reducing manufacturing costs and developing production methods in the industry. Fifth, both the elementary and higher education of forestry should be developed further.
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The Forest Research Institute made an investigation on the wood consumption in Finland in 1927. This work brought up a need to organize continuous collection of statistics of wood consumption. Three kinds of existing statistics can be used: statistics of wood consumption, statistic of the fellings, and statistics of transport of wood.
Statistics on wood consumption, such as the fuel used by the industry and State railways are collected annually. The fellings in state forests are published annually, and also the wood manufacturing companies publish statistics of their forests. Furthermore, all fellings on sale, and use of own wood in wood manufacturing industry have to be reported to the forestry committees. These statistics are published annually. Railroads and floating are the main means of long distance transport of wood. These statistics give additional information of wood consumption. Further studies are needed to combine and standardize the statistics collected from different sources.
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About 60%, 20.5 million hectares, of Finland is covered by forests. Of this area 10.5 million hectares are peatlands. The forests are divided in fertile forest land (17 million hectares), forest land of low productivity (3.5 million hectares) and nonproductive lands (about 10 million hectares). Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) is the dominant species in 60%, Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) in 23%, and Betulasp. 17% of the forests. The younger age classes are poorly represented, but despite the abundance of older age classes, the growing stock and productivity of the forests are not very high. The reason is low density of the forests, unfavorable tree species composition and the condition of the forests. Timber is used as household timber in towns and in rural areas (16.5 million m3), in traffic (1.3 million m3), fuelwood in industry (3 million m3), raw material in wood industry (9.1 million m3) and export (4 million m3). State owns 36.9% of forest lands, companies and associations 8.1% and other private forest owners 53.5%. The article describes the administration of state and private forests, and forest education in Finland. There was about 600 sawmills, 25 mechanical pulpwood mills, 24 pulp mills and 31 paper mills in the country in 1920.