Total timber reserves are estimated by several factors: this is an indicator of forest cover, and the size of forest area, and timber reserves. Forest resources are exhaustible, but renewable, since they can be used for different purposes.
Explanation of indicators
Forest cover is estimated by the degree of ratio of forest area to the total territory of a particular country. So, according to this indicator, the leading countries are Finland, Sweden, Canada, Guinea, Mozambique, Russia. The total forest area is more than 4 billion hectares, which occupies 30% of the land. The leading country in terms of timber reserves per capita is Russia: here per person accounts for about 3 hectares of forest, while in European countries this figure is significantly lower - only 0.3 hectares.
What was - what became
The world's forest area is decreasing every year by approximately 20 million ha, which is caused by numerous deforestation. Moreover, most of the forests are cut down in Latin America and Asia. But in the countries of Scandinavia active work is underway to restore and reforestation, so that the area of forests here is not reduced. The world's standing stocks of wood are about 300 billion m 3, and Russia accounts for about 25% of the stocks of wood.
Forest resources are renewable, but if you do not deal with plantings in a timely manner, forest reserves will become less and less. Another leading country in terms of timber reserves is Suriname, where about 36 hectares of forest are per capita. But in tropical countries and in the south of the temperate zone, one person accounts for less than a hectare of forest.
How are the calculations carried out?
Forest resources are both forest reserves in the country and non-timber values. It is thanks to the forest that it is possible to obtain universal raw materials for many industries, in addition, the forest is the maintenance of the ecological system of the Earth. Due to the fact that forest resources can be renewed, global wood reserves can be constantly replenished and their productivity increased in order to satisfy human needs.
Forest resources around the world are unevenly distributed. For example, European countries have a large forest cover, while in Africa this figure is much lower. The lowest forest cover is in African countries, and its highest is in Latin America, Europe and North America. The leader country for coniferous timber is Russia: this country accounts for 88% of coniferous forests.
Features of the distribution of forests around the world
The modern forest grows in different climatic zones, and depending on the zones, they differ in species composition, stand structure, productivity, various economic and environmental significance. Most of Europe is occupied by the temperate forest zone, where boreal coniferous forests grow. In Central, South America, eastern Africa and eastern India, tropical forests are prevalent, in which evergreen mixed forests predominate. Mountainous areas are distinguished by vertical zonality, and depending on the height, the thermal regime and humidity will change.
If Russia is the leading country in terms of timber reserves, then in most European countries, most of the forests are cut down. For example, in England, Ireland, and the Netherlands, young growth and middle-aged trees are mainly grown, which are planted artificially. Coniferous forests are preserved only in Scandinavia, while there is a good forest cover, pure coniferous plantings prevail. Pine, spruce, fir, larch mainly grow in the center of Europe, while the forest area has significantly decreased due to constant felling and livestock walking.
Among European regions, the largest forest area is in the countries of Scandinavia. Here, 35.6% of productive forests and 28.5% of the total timber stock are concentrated. This region has the highest degree of forest cover.
What is in Asia and Africa?
The total timber stock in Asia is about 1/5 of the continent. Tropical forests, coniferous and deciduous plantations in the temperate zone grow here. The vast territory is occupied by taiga forests. In the east of the region, species diversity of relicts and endemic species is represented. In the south of the region there are massifs in which the steppes are interspersed with small bushes. Taiga and deciduous forests are represented in the mountains. Forests are also unevenly distributed across Africa. The total forest on the continent can be divided into four regions: in the north - subtropics, in the west - tropics, in the east - mountain tropics and in the south - subtropics.
North and South America
Forests in North America occupy about a third of the mainland, while in the north, due to difficult climatic conditions, the species composition of the tree is limited, and their productivity is low. The forest is mainly represented by conifers and an admixture of small-leaved trees. Closer to the south of the mainland, the composition of forests becomes wider, the trees themselves are more productive.
Almost half of Latin America is occupied by forest vegetation with a predominance of deciduous trees. Along the shores of the Amazon is a rich and ancient floral composition. Mexico and the Antilles are mainly occupied by coniferous forests - mainly pine trees.
In Australia, forest prevalence is noted on the coastal strip. Here, almost 85% of the territory is occupied by eucalyptus trees.
What is liquid stock?
A liquid stock of wood is the volume of the total stock of planting wood, which is equal to the entire volume of harvested forest products without bark and tree tops. This volume is set in different ways based on various computational techniques. Liquid wood is a material that can be used in logging. The root stock of wood is much higher.
The main trends in logging in Russia and the world
Even 60 years ago, little was known about the forest composition of Russia and the world as a whole. Rather, the breed composition has simply not been studied. During the Soviet era, more than 500 million hectares were registered in the USSR where forest inventory was carried out. However, over time there was a shortage of wood, primarily this applies to high-quality sawlogs and plywood logs, which are obtained from large parts of the trunk. That is why in industrialized countries, these assortments are used for growing forests.
The remaining waste from sawmilling and wood processing goes after deep processing to various industries - in the production of pulp, paper, cardboard. In the 1980s, wood shortages made international forest trade larger. And if the developed countries of Europe and North America are large exporters of finished wood products in the form of lumber and paper, then the developing countries in the person of Asia, Africa, Latin America mainly export roundwood. At the same time, unilateral forest exploitation prevails in these countries, as a result of which the forest area is becoming smaller and worse.
Towards the end of the 20th century, a tendency toward multi-purpose forest exploitation has become noticeable, especially in industrialized and densely populated countries. They faced the problem of creating measures that would restore forest resources, which would affect the improvement of the economic situation in the country.
As for Russia, here about 78% of the forests consist of species of industrial importance - pine, spruce, fir, larch, oak, birch. And as elsewhere in the world, forest wealth is unevenly distributed. Only 17.06% of the forest is in the European part, while 82% of forests are concentrated in Siberia and the Far East. At the same time, the entire forest volume can be divided into three groups: the first includes protective stands, the second includes raw materials, and the third includes reserve wood that is not used as raw materials. The total annual growth of wood is about 830 million m 3.
