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Research article2011Peer reviewedOpen access

Uneven-aged forest management in boreal Sweden: local forestry stakeholders' perceptions of different sustainability dimensions

Axelsson, Robert; Angelstam, Per

Abstract

To implement policies on sustainable forest management (SFM), there is a need to satisfy economical, ecological and socio-cultural sustainability objectives. Due to a long history of sustained yield wood production to satisfy the needs of the forest industry, clearfelling management systems are used in similar to 96 per cent of managed forests in Sweden. To satisfy the intentions of contemporary forest and land use policies, uneven-aged forest management systems as a complement are currently debated. We interviewed local forestry stakeholders in the Swedish boreal forest region's north and south about their views on and attitudes towards different forest management systems' contribution to SFM. Most stakeholders were generally negative to the use of uneven-aged system for sustained yield wood production but saw advantages for ecological and socio-cultural dimensions of SFM. To encourage the use of even-aged cohort and uneven-aged systems to satisfy all dimensions of SFM, there is a need for improved communication, education and public awareness. This could ultimately lead to a more constructive and less heated debate. In addition, there is a need of more empirically based knowledge about uneven-aged and cohort forest management systems' pros and cons when it comes to satisfying economical, ecological and socio-cultural objectives.

Published in

Forestry
2011, Volume: 84, number: 5, pages: 567-579
Publisher: OXFORD UNIV PRESS

      SLU Authors

      • Sustainable Development Goals

      Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
      Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

      UKÄ Subject classification

      Forest Science

      Publication identifier

      DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/forestry/cpr034

      Permanent link to this page (URI)

      https://res.slu.se/id/publ/46040