Sustainable Harvesting in China

Why adopt sustainable practices?

In China, companies are beginning to explore the idea of adopting sustainable harvesting. This is beneficial for both companies and the environment. If resources are used up without thought as to how they will be replenished, after an extended period of the time the company will not have any resources left to use and will either have to stop producing their product or move into a new area and strip it of its resources as well. Short term planning in terms of utilization of natural resources leads to severe environmental problems, extinction of plant life and loss of income for the local people living in areas affected by short sighted companies.

Due to these concerns, China has begun to look at the way they harvest both timber and non timber forest products (NTFPs). Sustainable harvesting is especially relevant considering that around 6,000 species of rain forest plants that are found in Southeast Asia have economic uses. The bamboo industry in China is a large one, and thus this field has been researched extensively. Bamboo is used in a variety of products such as picnic baskets, wine rack and other common products such as flooring.

Domestication

Some solutions that have been suggested for the bamboo industry include domestication and the establishment of plantations, thus allowing the harvesting of bamboo to be conducted in a controlled fashion that does not result in plant extinction and disappearance of the species from the wild. By domesticating bamboo and other NTFPs, production can be intensified, creating higher yields, better quality plants, control over the time of harvest, clear ownership rights and reduction of pressure on wild species. However, this tactic is not without its problems – domestication can lead to genetic homogenization and runs the risk of creating such a high market value for the domesticated plant that people will clear natural forest land and wild species in order to plant domesticated NTFPs.

How to implement sustainable harvesting

Several studies conducted on sustainable harvesting in China point to the fact that exploitation of NTFPs often results from lack of knowledge. For example, many people and companies do not grasp the immense damage they are causing by practicing unsustainable harvesting methods. There is little to no in depth or long term monitoring of forests, so companies do not know how many plants or trees they can harvest before the forest cannot sustain itself. Companies also need to be taught how utilizing sustainable practices like domestication will results in increased product quality and price.

A Success Story

One such company in China which is trying to implement sustainable practices is the Weyerhaeuser Company. This company manufactures various products derived from wood. Weyerhaeuser manages nearly 52,000 acres of timberland in the Chinese province of Fujian. The land is being used as a plantation forest composed of pine, hardwood, fir and eucalyptus trees. When the trees are harvested, the forest is replanted with new fast growing pines and eucalyptus that can be used to help meet China’s growing lumber needs. The company is also looking into soil conservation and watershed protection practices to be implemented in the future.

Allen Moore is a writer for the wine industry, specializing in practical solutions for wine-related events. He is a strong advocate for the use of proper wine glasses and wine decanters to fully appreciate wine.