Global Perspective of Private Investments in Plantation Forestry

Plantation forestry is the planting, managing, and harvesting of trees for the production of industrial wood. Originally published in 1983, the principal focus and contribution of the study lies in Roger Sedjo's examination of the economic returns in twelve forest regions throughout the world. The results of the analysis strongly demonstrate the feasibility of major expansion of plantation forestry in a number of areas around the world and suggest the likelihood of major shifts in the principal supply areas. The results also have potentially important implications for countering the threats of deforestation. This title will be of interest for students of Environmental Studies. Can forestry compete with manufacturing and agriculture for scarce capital or is investment in forestry attractive only when non-economic considerations--for example, the social desirability of forestry investments--are taken into account? Addressing this question, the contributors to this book assess the market for forestry products in the short- and long-term future; examine the competition between agriculture, cities, and forestry for use of land; identify strategies that private, industrial, and public investors might adopt; and look at the effects of government policies on private investors.