Biodiversity in New Zealand plantation forests: policy trends, incentives, and the state of our knowledge.

Authors: E. G. Brockerhoff, C. E. Ecroyd, E. R. Langer
Publication: New Zealand Journal of Forestry, Volume N.Z.J.For. 2001, Issue N.Z.J.For. 46(1) 2001, pp 31-37, May 2001
Publisher: New Zealand Institute of Forestry

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Abstract: Biodiversity is an issue of increasing relevance to plantation forests in New Zealand. The New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy and other recent policy documents advocate 'sympathetic management' to conserve biodiversity on private land. As a component of sustainable forest management, biodiversity is also included in international agreements (e.g., Montreal Process) and in the certification of forest operations. However, a review of these and other policy and legal instruments revealed shortcomings in the definition of biodiversity as well as a lack of clear guidelines on how biodiversity should be considered in plantation forest management. In the few cases where explicit references have been made, 'biodiversity' is mostly used in the sense of 'threatened species.' Although our knowledge of vascular plants and birds occurring in plantations is relatively good for some regions, little knowledge is available about other taxa and the presence of threatened species. Moreover, it is not clear what exactly is meant by 'sympathetic management' and hardly any research has been undertaken in this area. More active management for preservation or enhancement of biodiversity in plantations could lead to improved public perceptions and international market access, and might enhance 'ecosystem function.' In this paper, we also discuss biodiversity indicators and provide a summary of recent research on biodiversity sustainability issues in plantations. To adequately address biodiversity in plantations, more research is needed, for example, on threatened species and other indigenous flora and fauna, sympathetic management (including cost-benefit analyses), and long-term monitoring. Interactions between policy makers, scientists and forest managers should be improved.
"In the tectonics of human affairs, biological diversity lies in the subduction zone where contentious human values confront scientific uncertainty. The profession of forestry, based as it is on modernist scientism, operates poorly when these matters collide without resolution." Clark Binkley(1998).

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