Effect of growth and yield modelling on forest regulation and earnings

Abstract

The elaboration of a forest schedule involves constructing and solving a forest regulation model. The regulated structure is not easy to obtain, considering the fluctuations in the effective planting area during the planning horizon, technological advances, and changes in annual demand. Nevertheless, the establishment and implementation of a regulation model often results in an improvement of the forest, in terms of the distribution of age classes. The successful use of regulation models and consequent definition of a forest management plan depends on the quality of data from forest inventory plots and prediction accuracy of stand wood stock. This study evaluated the effect of different alternatives of growth and yield modelling on the regulation of a eucalyptus even-aged forest. Each alternative was used to create yield tables, which were used as inputs in a linear programming model. In this model, restrictions of area, demand, and regulation were included, with the goal of maximising the total net present value. The most consistent forest schedule was obtained with a total stand model.