Forestry

Economic Contribution

The plantation forest industry in the grasslands (based on afforestation by fast growing pinus, eucalyptus and acacia wattle species) makes an important contribution to the national economy. The value of forestry product exports (including paper products, solid wood and pulp) has grown by 129% over the past decade.  

Most plantations are in the high rainfall, high runoff producing catchments. An estimated 991 900 hectares of land is committed to plantation forestry in the grasslands biome. This amounts to 18% of commercially cropped/planted land, the second largest commercial land use after maize.

Government Policy

Government policies since 1994 have introduced changes to the way forests are managed so as to achieve certain national goals. These include:

• The privatisation of publicly owned commercial forestry operations,
• Introduction of a new licensing system, and
• Increased support for outgrower schemes, which allows smallholders to grow trees with support from companies who later buy the product for pulp.

Commercial afforestation has been declared a stream flow reduction activity in terms of the National Water Act 36 of 1998, which has slowed the rate of expansion. The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) estimates that a realistic maximum new area of 200 000ha will be afforested over the next 20 years (2005 – 2025), with emphasis being placed on small grower expansion in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. However, the industry association, Forestry South Africa (FSA), expects only half of this target to be realised.

Protecting Biodiversity

Riparian zones within long established plantations are being cleared in line with government Wetland Delineation Guidelines, a policy that was developed in collaboration with the forestry industry. This is expected to result in the clearance of 60 000ha of plantations over the next 5 to 10 years.

The forestry sector is well organised under FSA with 2 500 members divided into small, medium and large growers. It is environmentally aware and part of the international certification system operated by the Forest Stewardship Council. Forestry companies, and in particular large growers, own large tracts of land that are presently unplanted with trees and are likely to remain so. Some of this land overlaps with biodiversity priority areas and the companies have indicated an interest in formalising their protected area status.