Double trouble: the importance of accounting for and defining water entitlements consistent with hydrological realities*

When entitlements to access water in fully allocated river and aquifers are specified in a manner that is inconsistent with the ways that water arrives, flows across and flows through land, inefficient investment and water use is the result. Using Australia's Murray Darling Basin as an example, this paper attempts to reveal the adverse economic and water management consequences of entitlement and water sharing regime misspecification in regimes that allow water trading. Markets trade water products as specified. When entitlements and the water sharing system are not designed in a way that has hydrological integrity, the market trades the water management regime into trouble. Options for specification of entitlement and allocation regimes in ways that have hydrological integrity are presented. It is reasoned, that if entitlement and allocation regime are set up in ways that have hydrological integrity, the result should be a regime that can autonomously adjust to climatic shifts, changes in prices and changes in technology without compromising environmental objectives.     

TRANSFERABLE WATER ENTITLEMENTS WHICH SATISFY HETEROGENEOUS RISK PREFERENCES

Irrigators in Victoria have a water entitlement which is composed of a highly secure water right and additional water which may be purchased if available. Water entitlements in NSW are based on the irrigated area with the actual volume of water received in any year depending almost entirely on seasonal conditions. Musgrave and Lesueur (1973) argued that these entitlements could be replaced by a portfolio of entitlements, with each type of entitlement in the portfolio guaranteeing a nominated minimum value of water at a different probability. Thus, irrigators could purchase a portfolio of water entitlements which would suit their individual risk preferences. The purpose in this paper is to show how a water authority can construct a portfolio of water entitlements which satisfies these requirements and also to demonstrate that the entitlements in the portfolio satisfy a first degree stochastic dominance relationship. A worked example is presented in which these results are illustrated.     

Effects of industrial plantations on ecosystem services and livelihoods: Perspectives of rural communities in China

This paper addresses the current research void on local community views of changes in ecosystem services associated with rapid land use transformation in the context of plantation-based forestry. This interview-based study, conducted in southern China, aims at assessing the perspectives of local communities of: 1) the effects of Eucalyptus industrial plantations on selected ecosystem services and on local development; and 2) opportunities for future community livelihood development, based on the relations with the government and with forest industry operating locally. We analysed data from semi-structured interviews with 70 villagers for their views on changes in ecosystem services after the establishment of plantations, and their future expectations on the local livelihood development. Most interviewees mentioned some negative development on environmental quality after the establishment of the industrial plantations, especially on soil and water. Furthermore, the reduced productivity of cropland surrounding industrial plantations, coupled with other financial drivers, induced several villagers to switch from agricultural crops to household plantations. In the absence of destructive typhoons, household plantations can provide owners more free time, higher income, while industrial plantations provided some employment opportunities. Interviewees’ expectations for the future included receiving financial support and capacity building for household plantations and crops, support to local roads and schools, and higher employment opportunities. Some interviewees suggested that solutions should be implemented for improving degraded water quality, while others suggested reducing forestry operations. Even though being highly context-specific, our findings open up the discussion about the further community development opportunities in the context of plantation forestry. In particular, the potential of value sharing mechanisms between the private sector and the local communities should be further studied.     

Missing markets for storage and the potential economic cost of expanding the spatial scope of water trade

A great deal of attention has been given in recent years to the question of externalities associated with water entitlements and how third parties can be protected without restricting opportunities for water trade. Yet one market failure that has received no attention at all is the missing market for storage that arises from the specification of water entitlements, particularly in Victoria where historically all storage decisions were made at the centralised level and where any additional carryover was treated as common property. The economic significance of the missing market for storage is demonstrated using an empirical model that represents the spatial‐temporal pattern of irrigation water demand in the Goulburn Valley and decisions regarding inter‐year storage of water in Lake Eildon. It is shown that, because irrigators have no incentive to trade‐off the benefit of current use (or sale) with the value of water storage, there is an erosion of reliability when opportunities for trade are broadened. The empirical results demonstrate that the loss in economic value associated with reduced reliability are as large as the gains from trade, so there is no net benefit from trade.     

Forest plantations in Paraguay: Historical developments and a critical diagnosis in a SWOT-AHP framework

Over the last century, Paraguay has seen deforestation on a massive scale. At the same time, forest plantation efforts have been very limited. This paper examines why this is the case, and why until today investment in forest plantations in Paraguay is constrained despite visible wood shortages. Paraguay’s forest plantation sector is analyzed based on a typology of five plantation paradigms. This is followed by a critical diagnosis of the current plantation situation on the project level conducted through a SWOT-AHP analysis and supported by an expert survey. Thirty-six specific factors for establishing plantations are identified and evaluated for both small-scale and large-scale plantations. The analysis reveals strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for both plantation types, and shows that small-scale plantations possess more highly valued strengths, while there are more significant threats for large-scale plantations. Critical conclusions and policy implications for expanding the scale of forest plantations in Paraguay are provided, focusing on forestry, institutional, political and intersectoral issues.     

Being good neighbours: Current practices,barriers, and opportunities for community engagement in Australian plantation forestry

Although community engagement (CE) is widely recognised as an essential element of sustainable management, few studies have evaluated CE at an industry-wide scale, i.e. in terms of the specific CE needs and best practice methods needed when addressing engagement issues that apply across more than one business in an industry. We explored stakeholder views of the barriers to industry-wide CE within the Australian plantation forest industry. Interviews with key informants were conducted in 2010 throughout three major plantation regions in Australia: Tasmania, south west Western Australia, and the Green Triangle region (south west Victoria and south east of South Australia). We found that stakeholders often considered CE implemented by the forest plantation industry ineffective, due to: (a) lack of strong industry voice, (b) issues of trust, and (c) because technical experts in the forest industry lack skills in CE. Measures that are likely to promote more effective CE are discussed, including enhancement of relationships with external stakeholders, and enhancing CE skills of forestry professionals.     

Capturing benefits from water entitlement trade in salinity affected areas: A role for trading houses?

While there is potential for substantial benefits from water entitlement trade, external effects such as salinity may mean that traders cannot capture these benefits. This paper demonstrates that by creating a trading house as a single seller of water entitlements, with trade profits distributed to buyers, it is possible to achieve an allocation of entitlements which gives a social outcome higher than that possible from atomistic competition for entitlements. Such an outcome may be comparable to an optimally set uniform charge for water entitlements, but the trading house mechanism has the advantage that it makes use of trade to generate information on the optimal level of charging in the presence of salinity.     

中俄木质林产品贸易的现状、新态势及对策

首先,分析了2000-2012年中国对俄罗斯木质林产品进口贸易和出口贸易的变动情况;其次,从俄罗斯调整林业产业政策、提高原木出口关税、实施新森林法、加入WTO、扩大森林认证面积等方面分析中俄木质林产品贸易面临的挑战和机遇;最后,提出加强中俄政府合作、拓展木材来源区域、鼓励森林资源合作开发、建立木材合法性联合认定体系的对策建议。     

福建三明市林业社会化服务体系调研报告

通过对福建三明市尤溪县和永安市林业社会化服务体系建设情况的调研发现,当地的林业部门创新服务形式,成立林业服务中心提供多种社会化服务,开通科技服务热线服务林农。集体林改后,林农林业投入增加明显,林业收入占总收入的三成以上。用材林联户经营增加,以大户经营为主,出现提供采伐服务的合作组织。经济林和林下经济的生产规模扩大,生产技术服务和产品销售以农户家庭为主体,合作社发挥作用并不明显,病虫害防治等公共服务不健全。建议:政府加强对合作社的支持和管理,发挥合作社在产前和产中服务林农的功能,促进合作社在带动林农增收中的作用;进一步完善林业服务中心建设,强化公共服务职能;完善基层林业技术服务体系,加强与林农合作社平台对接。     

黑龙江省国有林区林业生产率变化研究——2000～2009年天然林资源保护工程期实证分析

选取黑龙江省国有林区40个林业局作为决策单元,收集2000～2009年各林业局投入、产出的面板数据,运用DEA方法进行测算,从技术、规模、效率等层面对10年间黑龙江省国有林区林业生产率的变化进行动态评价,分析林业生产率在此期间的变化趋势。结果表明:一期天保工程的实施对黑龙江省国有林区林业生产率的提升产生了积极的效果,林区在未来应以提高林业生产率为本质目标,要敢于跳出"资源优势陷阱",在二期天保工程及大小兴安岭生态功能区建设的良好机遇下,坚持生态优先为前提,积极进行林业产业转型,构建各林业产业自身的生态化,以及林业各产业之间的生态循环产业体系。     

Supply potential and annual availability of timber and forest biomass resources for energy considering inter-prefectural trade in Japan

This study estimates the supply potential and annual availability of timber and forest biomass resources under profitable forest management in Japan. It focuses on four prefectures, namely, Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, and Gunma, and considers the trade between these prefectures. Production forests were extracted as subcompartments where the expected revenues surpassed all costs, from planting to final harvest. To estimate harvesting costs, appropriate harvesting systems were determined according to each prefecture’s topographical features. The log markets and woody biomass power generation plants were assumed to be the destinations for timber and forest biomass resources. Annual availability from the Cut-To-Length (CTL) system, consisting of the use of harvesters and forwarders, accounted for 58 % of the total availability, even though the supply potential from CTL was only 15 %; this is because CTL is the most productive and least expensive harvesting system. Then, the effects of subsidies on availability are examined. Availability under an additional regeneration subsidy meets almost the entire current demand in this region. Furthermore, availability with a thinning subsidy can meet the forecasted future demand in this region, while availability with both thinning and additional regeneration subsidies can meet future demand in all prefectures analyzed in the present study. Thus, subsidies play an important role in the profitability of forestry operations as well as the supply of timber and forest biomass resources in Japan.     

Allocation trade in Australia: a qualitative understanding of irrigator motives and behaviour*

Governments in Australia are purchasing water entitlements to secure water for environmental benefit, but entitlements generate an allocation profile that does not correspond fully to environmental flow requirements. Therefore, how environmental managers will operate to deliver small and medium‐sized inundation environmental flows remains uncertain. To assist environmental managers with the supply of inundation flows at variable times, it has been suggested that allocation trade be incorporated into efforts aimed at securing water. This paper provides some qualitative and quantitative perspective on what influences southern Murray–Darling Basin irrigators to trade allocation water at specific times across and within seasons using a market transaction framework. The results suggest that while irrigators now have access to greater risk‐management options, environmental managers should consider the possible impact of institutional change before intervening in traditional market activity. The findings may help improve the design of intervention strategies to minimise possible market intervention impacts and strategic behaviour.     

南方集体林区森林经营联合认证实践应用分析

结合中国南方集体林区林权制度改革后的森林经营现状,对森林经营联合认证在其发展的有利条件、障碍及机遇进行深入分析。结果表明:林权改革发展、林业合作社兴起以及联合认证花费较低、信息技术共享等为南方集体林区发展森林联合认证创造了有利条件;林农森林认证思想薄弱、农村缺乏专业技术人才与资金以及林农分布较为分散等问题在一定程度上阻碍了联合认证的发展。此外,在南方集体林区发展森林联合认证还有一系列的机遇,例如"三农政策""扶贫政策"等国家政策的保障,巨大的林产品出口量推动合作社林产品的认证以及社区林业与林区联合认证理念契合等。因此,针对其障碍,提出开展认证培训、增设认证试点、拓宽资金渠道及明确和统一高保护价值森林定义等相应的改善对策。     

Management flexibility,price uncertainty and the adoption of carbon forestry

A price on carbon has the potential to drive significant land use change through reforestation. Understanding the likely locations and extent of these changes is therefore a key focus for researchers and policy makers. Models of reforestation based on net present values (NPV) typically compare the economic returns of carbon forestry to alternative land uses. However, these models often neglect the impact of uncertainty. Two sources of uncertainty highly relevant to carbon forestry are the opportunity cost of the land on which the trees are established (i.e. future returns from alternative land uses) and carbon prices. In addition to foregoing the current land use, a landowner making a permanent land use change such as carbon forestry is also giving up the opportunity to change management in the future, for example by changing crop mix in response to commodity price changes. We develop a Monte Carlo model to demonstrate the value of management flexibility, based on a case study property in Australia. While in the absence of management flexibility carbon forestry is more profitable than the current land use, under uncertain future commodity prices it is less attractive to a landowner. We go on to show that, even if the returns from carbon exceed those from more flexible agricultural land use, uncertainty over future carbon prices is likely to delay the adoption of carbon forestry. Overall the models presented in this paper demonstrate that the adoption of carbon forestry is likely to be substantially lower, and slower, than models based on static values would suggest.     

日本林业经营的现状与问题以及其对中国的启示

通过历史分析法,详细分析了日本林业经营存在的问题以及存在的原因。林业存在的问题是人工林荒废、森林资源没有得到有效利用等。导致日本森林资源低效利用的原因是:小规模的森林所有结构、国产木材产业的衰退、向非皆伐方式转变的条件还不够成熟。同时,日本森林经营体制也存在种种问题,例如:林业合作社没能发挥出其应有作用、林业合作社的体制损害了林业体制的健全性、林业合作社没有起到促进扩大国产木材需求的作用。基于以上研究,提出加快林业研究机构和林业合作社的功能变革等建议。     

中国人工用材林规模化经营实现途径分析

在对规模经济理论进行反思的基础上,指出对中国人工用材林规模化经营的正确理解应该是依据分工专业化理论、价值系统理论和交易费用理论,将人工用材林培育业、林产工业以及林产品贸易部门进行整合,实现产业间的协同效,即实现林工贸一体化经营。对人工用材林林工贸一体化实现规模化经营的内在机理进行分析,提出人工用材林林工贸一体化经营在实践中宜采用的组织形式,并且指出中国人工用材林林工贸一体化经营过程中存在的实际问题。     

把握形势促进发展——兼论东北林区的改革与发展

如何改革与发展，仍是东北国有林区未解之谜。根据林业的国际发展趋势和我国林业发展的历史经验教训，特别是在森林资源极度过伐的状况下，如何进行东北国有林区改革，是目前亟待研究的问题。笔者认为，从资源本身考虑，主要是让森林资源有一个自然恢复的时间；从体制方面考虑，首先要政企分开，然后彻底改变目前的森工管理体制，恢复营林的经营体制，并与国家改革与发展要求同步创新；改革所需经费，要由国家财政解决，因为林区目前处于无能为力的状态。     

新一轮林改后南方集体林区乡村林场发展问题研究——以贵州锦屏县为例

在新一轮集体林权制度主体改革基本完成之后,家庭式的分户经营为主的林业经营形式更加稳固,而曾为集体林区林业建设做出巨大贡献的乡村林场则陷入内外部经营不善的困境,更面临着林农收回林地资源而倒闭的问题,进一步剖析这些问题的原因,提出改革乡村林场经营体制的政策。     

林地产权制度对林工联合效率的影响——以亚洲浆纸业有限公司为例

以APP在中国的林业实践为案例,着重分析了林地产权安排(包括:集体林权制度改革以及林地资产的特殊性等)这一基础性因素对公司实施林工联合战略效率的影响。研究表明:林地产权控制的分散化、不完全的产权安排、林地资产的特殊性质均减低了林工纵向一体化战略效率,公司在林地组织和经营方面所采取的应对之策,对化解因林业产权改革形成的过高资产获取及管理成本具有明显效果。     

Upstream demand for water use by new tree plantations imposes externalities on downstream irrigated agriculture and wetlands*

Large‐scale tree plantations in high rainfall upstream areas can reduce fresh water inflows to river systems, thereby imposing external costs on downstream irrigation, stock and domestic water users and wetland interests. We take the novel approach of expressing all benefits and costs of establishing plantations in terms of $ per gigalitre (GL) of water removed annually from river flows, setting upstream demands on the same basis as downstream demands. For the Macquarie Valley, a New South Wales sub‐catchment of Australia’s Murray‐Darling Basin, we project changes in land and water use and changes in economic surpluses under two policy settings: without and with a policy requiring permanent water entitlements to be purchased from downstream parties, before plantation establishment. Without the policy, and given a high stumpage value for trees ($70/m³), upstream gains in economic surplus projected from expanding plantations are $639 million; balanced against $233 million in economic losses by downstream irrigators and stock and domestic water users for a net gain of $406 million, but 345 GL lower mean annual environmental flows. With the policy, smaller gains in upstream economic surplus from trees ($192 million), added to net downstream gains ($138 million) from sale of water, result in gains of $330 million with no reduction in environmental flows. Sustaining the 345 GL flow for a $76 million (406–330) reduction in gains to economic surplus may be seen to cost only $0.22 million/GL; but this is much lower than the market value of the first units of that water to agriculture and forestry.