A Survey of Logging Contract Rates in the Southern European Alps

Spinelli, Raffaele; Visser, Rien; Riond, Catherine; Magagnotti, Natascia

doi:10.1007/s11842-016-9350-1

Cited by 17 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Obviously, high productivity is not a primary requirement, because this machine will not be able to express its full potential. On the other hand, a smaller, cheaper and less productive machine may be unable to handle the large trees associated with mountain operations-the only trees that can justify the higher cost of yarding [27]. One solution is to task the processor with additional duties, such as fleeting, stacking, loading and general landing management.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use, Utilization, Productivity and Fuel Consumption of Purpose-Built and Excavator-Based Harvesters and Processors in Italy

Magagnotti

Pari²,

Spinelli

2017

Forests

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Annual use, utilization, productivity and fuel consumption of three purpose-built and three excavator-based harvesters and processors were monitored for one work year. All machines were owned and operated by private contractors and were representative of the Italian machine fleet. Despite challenging mountain terrain, annual use ranged from 675 to 1525 h per year, and production from 3200 to 27,400 m 3 per year. Productivity was lower for excavator-based units, and for machines working under a yarder, due to limited yarder capacity. Purpose-built machines offered higher utilization, productivity and fuel efficiency compared with excavator-based machines. Fuel consumption per m 3 was 2.4 times greater for excavator-based units, compared with purpose-built machines. Excavator-based units offered financial and technical advantages, but their long-term market success will likely depend on future improvements in fuel efficiency, in the face of increasing fuel prices.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use, Utilization, Productivity and Fuel Consumption of Purpose-Built and Excavator-Based Harvesters and Processors in Italy

Magagnotti

Pari²,

Spinelli

2017

Forests

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“…In our analysis, we used the average net primary production (NPP) from 2000 to 2012 to describe the variety of growth conditions across the study area (Neumann et al, 2016). Topographic conditions are also related to growth condition, but it can also affect harvest through increased costs of harvest (Spinelli et al, 2017) and through specific forest management goals, e.g. increasing the need to use forests for protection against rockfall and avalanches (Dorren et al, 2004).…”

Section: Natural Environmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding Europe’s forest harvesting regimes

Suvanto,

Esquivel Muelbert,

Schelhaas

et al. 2023

Preprint

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The functioning and structure of most European forests are actively shaped by intensive human use. Harvesting of wood is one of the key processes of forest management, making it a crucial element to include in any large-scale analysis of forest ecosystems. Yet, our understanding of how forests are harvested across Europe is limited, as the true harvest regimes – a realisation of decisions made by individual forest owners – are not well described by aggregated wood harvest statistics or formal management guidelines. To fill this gap, we analysed recent forest harvest activity, as observed in permanent plots of forest inventories in eleven European countries, totalling to 182,649 plots and covering all major forest types from boreal to Mediterranean forests. We aimed to (1) characterise harvest regimes through the frequency and intensity of harvest events spatially across Europe, and (2) build predictive models for the probability and intensity of harvest events at the plot-level, by linking individual harvests to the pre-harvest forest structure and composition, but also to climatic, topographic and socio-economic factors, as well as past natural disturbances. The results reveal notable variation in harvest regimes across Europe, with different harvest strategies emerging in regions with similar total harvest rates. These include, for example, low-frequency but high-intensity harvest regimes in northern Europe and high-frequency but low-intensity harvest regimes in eastern Central Europe. The harvest regimes were strongly driven by country-level variation, emphasising the role of national level factors in driving harvest patterns. Pre-harvest forest structure and composition was an important driver for the intensity of harvest events, whereas probability of harvest was more related to socio-economic factors and the occurrence of natural disturbances. The empirical quantification of the current forest harvesting regimes across Europe presented in our study provides much needed detail in our understanding of the contemporary forest management practices in Europe, crucial for understanding how human activities shape forests and providing a baseline against which to assess future changes in management.

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“…felling, processing and extraction -figures range from 8 to 16 € m -3 for ground-based harvesting in Nordic Europe (LUKE 2019), and over 40 € m -3 for cable-based harvesting in the Alps (Spinelli et al 2015). In France, a direct comparison between the cost of ground-based and cable-based harvesting indicates that the average contract rate is 12 € m -3 for ground-based operations and 48 € m -3 for cable-based operations (Spinelli et al 2017). Considering the large disparity in unit cost between forwarder and cable yarder extraction, it is highly unlikely that cable yarding will ever be competitive on flat terrain, even if all adaptations suggested by the manufacturers were applied.…”

Section: Challenges and Opportunitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Timber extraction by cable yarding on flat and wet terrain: a survey of cable yarder manufacturer’s experience

Erber¹,

Spinelli²

2020

Silva Fenn.

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Highlights• Survey of all European cable yarder manufacturers on flat-terrain yarding.• Manufacturers are frequently contacted concerning flat-terrain yarding.• Forest resource inaccessibility, regulatory and environmental considerations are most important motivations. • Lack of clearance, tree stability and installation costs are major challenges.• Mobile, self-anchoring tail spar is considered a chief adaptation.• Cost-competitiveness with ground-based systems cannot be achieved without subsidies.• Increasing environmental awareness and climate change present opportunity to expand flatterrain cable yarding. AbstractCable yarding is a general solution for load handling on sites not accessible to ground-based machinery, and is typically associated with steep terrain. On flat terrain, such conditions can primarily be found on soft or wet soils, most frequently encountered in Central and Northern European countries. Today, changed environmental and market conditions may offer an unprecedented opportunity to the actual implementation of cable yarding on flat terrain in commercial operations. The study goal was to collect cable yarder manufacturers experience regarding the use and adaption of cable yarding technology on flat terrain. European manufacturers of cable yarding technology were interviewed about customer experience, particular challenges, adaptation potential, future potential and main hurdles for the expansion of cable yarding on flat terrain. Almost all manufacturers have received requests for flat-terrain yarding technology solutions, primarily from Germany. Temporal or permanent inaccessibility, regulatory or environmental reasons were the most frequent motivation for considering cable yarding technology. Installation was considered particularly challenging (clearance, stable anchoring). Potential adaptations included higher towers, artificial anchors, mechanized bunching before extraction and un-guyed yarder-systems. An artificial, highly mobile, self-anchoring tail spar was considered the most useful adaptation. While concerned about limited profitability and qualified labour shortage, most manufacturers demonstrated a positive or neutral view concerning the expansion of cable yarding on flat terrain. However, cable yarding is not considered to be cost-competitive wherever ground-based systems can be employed and cable yarding is not subsidized.

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A Survey of Logging Contract Rates in the Southern European Alps

Cited by 17 publications

References 29 publications

Use, Utilization, Productivity and Fuel Consumption of Purpose-Built and Excavator-Based Harvesters and Processors in Italy

Use, Utilization, Productivity and Fuel Consumption of Purpose-Built and Excavator-Based Harvesters and Processors in Italy

Understanding Europe’s forest harvesting regimes

Timber extraction by cable yarding on flat and wet terrain: a survey of cable yarder manufacturer’s experience

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