Is plantation forestry a wise investment? A perspective from Malaysia's initiatives

Abstract

Forest plantations are seen as a potential alternative to natural forest for timber supply. Leaders in forest plantation development include China, India, the Russian Federation, United States and Japan, which accounted for 65% of planted area in 2000. Other countries with increasing forest plantation development include Malaysia. Initiatives for large-scale forest plantation establishment in Malaysia started with an envisaged production of pulp, then second, an effort to augment timber supply with selected fast-growing species within 15 years, and third, to establish 375,000 ha of commercial forest plantation in stages. The first two initiatives ended up as failures due to shortcomings such as seed viability, mismatched downstream industry to the species planted and logistic unfeasibility. The third initiative looks promising as plantations are owned by the industry with the government providing loans and technical assistance. One industry has already entered its third rotation. Large hectarages of land are an advantage to have harvesting in perpetuity based on seven-year rotations. Choosing the right species that matches industry needs, improved planting materials and correct silvicultural practices are important factors, while having integrated downstream processing is an advantage.