Sustainable Forestry in China

China is now the largest importer of industrial logs and the second largest importer of forest products in the world, and the growth rate of these imports remains high.

The main imported pro­ducts are industrial logs, sawn wood and plywood.

Imports of wood-based fibreboard and particleboard have also increased. China also imports significant amounts of pulp and paper products every year, which account for a higher round-wood equivalent than timber pro­ducts.

To reduce the timber supply deficit and the timber imports, the Chinese Government initiated a timber plantation programme in 2000. It is expected that by 2015, the programme could produce 133 million cubic metres of logs annually, which could meet 40 percent of the domestic timber demand. This harvest, together with that from already existing plantations and from natural forests excluded from the logging ban, could enable China to balance its domestic timber supply and demand in the future.

As a result of this programme, as well as policies providing incentives for forestry development, many companies, primarily private ones, have been investing in large-scale plantations and wood processing industries in recent years. China has rapidly developed its wood processing industries, becoming a major exporter of high-quality and price-competitive value-added wood products, primarily furniture and then plywood. In 2003, the total trade value of forest products imports was US$15.5 billion while that of exports was US$12.2 billion. Forest products are listed among the top ten imports and exports, respectively. It is estimated that the trade value of forest products could be balanced within five years as the export of value-added wood products is increasing at a faster rate than the import of primary wood products. In terms of trade value, China has already changed from a net importer into a net exporter of wood products.

In a surprising move, China has developed guidelines for the establishment of sustainable forest plantations abroad by Chinese firms, according to the International Tropical Timber Organization's (ITTO) April 1 Tropical Timber Market Report. The move comes as China faces increasing criticism from environmental groups for pillaging the world's forests to feed its rapidly growing economy.
The State Forestry Administration will soon begin the process of selecting companies to implement the guidelines, which include bans on illegal logging and clearing of natural forests for plantations, on a "trial basis," according to ITTO.
The guidelines are significant as China plays an increasingly important role in resource extraction in forests around the world. Chinese firms are aggressively investing in oil palm plantations in Indonesia and logging operations throughout Asia and Africa. China's interest in foreign timber jumped dramatically following a domestic ban on logging after deadly flooding in 1998. Politicians blamed deforestation for the damage wrought by the floods.
The sustainable forest plantations initiative follows the announcement of a government "green buying" policy last December. Starting in 2008, the policy will prioritize purchasing of environmentally friendly products and service by state and provincial governments.

Certification is at the forefront of the international dialogue on illegal logging as governments cannot prohibit the import of illegal timber unless they can secure adequate supplies of legal timber. Certification is required to prove the legality of timber and wood products. Moreover, certification is expected to provide timber harvesters and processors with a premium price as an incentive to encourage better forest management

The hopes for certification in advancing sustainable forest management have been high. Certification has been described by the WWF as “the most important initiative of the last decade to promote better forest management”.

In China the Forest Conservation Project has been conducting research on the ‘Land Conversion Program from Cropland to Forest’, the biggest plantation program in history. Nineteen million hectares were planted between 1999 - 2004. Despite this remarkable achievement, our research suggests that the sustainability of the program in some locations may be jeopardized by a failure to sufficiently consider the concerns of local families responsible for managing the planted forests.

China had distributed 30 million hectares of wasteland and degraded forests to 57 million households to plant trees.