Silva Fennica issue 52 includes presentations held in professional development courses, arranged for foresters working in public administration in 1938. The presentations focus on practical issues in forest management and administration, especially in regional level. The education was arranged by Forest Service.
This presentation describes the history of road transport of timber in Finland and discusses its significance and potential to forestry in the state forests.
The costs of floating have increased by about 20-fold after the Second World War in Finland, which has raised concerns in the forest sector. At the same time, the costs of road transport have increased by 16% and costs of rail transport by 15%. Floating has been replaced mainly by road transport in transport of roundwood, especially near the factories. This development is likely to continue as new roads are built and the truck fleet develops.
In spite of the changes in timber transportation, floating was still the most common way of transporting roundwood in 1952: 69% of saw logs, 53% of veneer timber, 42% of domestic pulp wood, 14% of exported pulp wood and mining timber and 14% of firewood was transported by a water route. There are several ways to improve the efficiency of floating and decrease its costs. This can be achieved in two ways. First, using modern technology, such as tugboats, bundlers and other equipment, and second, improving the operation and co-operation between different actors.
The PDF includes a summary in German.