1.1 This Manual of Operations has been prepared for regional and district staff of the Forest Service to assist them to manage and monitor the timber harvesting activities on-reserve. The MoP will also have a role in providing training material for such institutions as Wood Industries Training Centre and the Sunyani Forestry School. Timber production is but one of the outputs from the reserves, though it is the most obvious one and the one which has the most direct economic value to the country. This manual is concerned only with natural timber production - not plantations.

1.2 Ghana has established 266 forest reserves of which 216 fall within the High Forest Zone (HFZ) and cover an area of 1,634,100 ha. The inventories carried out during the period 1986-94 have provided basic information on the composition and state of the forest. Currently, some 762,000 ha has been allocated for timber production after allowing for those areas excluded for permanent protection or for convalescence. A programme of preparing strategic management plans for each reserve is under way (refer MoP Section A) and it is possible that there will be some modifications to the present boundaries of the timber production areas after this process is completed for each reserve.

A Definition of “Sustainable forest management ”

Sustainable forest management is the process of managing permanent forest land to achieve one or more clearly specified objectives of management with regard to the production of a continuous flow of desired forest products and services without undue reduction of its inherent values and future productivity and without undue undesirable effects on the physical and social environment.

ITTO (1992)[1]

2. Timber Production Areas

2.1 The strategic planning undertaken for each reserve in turn provides the basic definition of the area into its respective management zones. Those areas requiring permanent protection either on the basis of condition (slope, swamps, etc.) biological value or susceptibility to fire are excluded from the potential timber production areas along with those areas that are currently too understocked to be considered for production.

2.2 The general objective of management of the timber production areas is:-

The sustainable production of timber to provide a perpetual flow of wood products to domestic and export markets and provide revenue for the resource owners; and to fund forest management whilst maintaining environmental quality and social responsibility

2.3 There is a national management regime for timber production within the HFZ - namely the use of a polycyclic selection felling silvicultural system using a cutting cycle of 40 years. Detailed rules defining the selection of harvestable trees and the setting of the allowable cut have been put into practice.

2.4 The Ministry of Lands and Forestry has embarked on a strategy through application of the Timber Rights Act to manage concessions both on and off reserve through a process of competitive tender and the issue of Timber Utilisation Contracts (TUCs). This MoP deals with the aspects of management of the TUC system by the Forest Service. The Logging Manual prescribes a code of practice for timber operations that all TUC holders are required to adhere to as part of the TUC agreement.

3. Annual Allowable Cut

3.1 The term “Annual Allowable Cut” - AAC is the maximum volume that can be felled each year without reducing the long-term sustainability of the forest resource; it is analogous to the taking of interest (growth) from a bank account without eating into the capital. A national annual allowable cut of 500,000 m³ has been set for the forest reserves using the results of the inventories and applied to 64 economic species making use of the current (referred to as “Interim”) yield formula and the adoption of a rotation of 40 years. The 64 species have been grouped in accordance with their level of cut related to the total stocks, namely: 18 Scarlet Star species comprising the main traditional commercial timbers now under threat of economic extinction where the level of cut is greater than 200% of the sustainable level; 16 Red Star species significantly being over cut and will eventually become economically extinct, the level of cut being between 50-200% of the level considered to be sustainable; and finally, 30 Pink Star species, some of which are being exploited but not at a rate to cause concern, i.e. less than 50% of the sustainable cut.

Annual sustainable Yield form Forest Reserves

Species Category Stems Volume (m3 )

Scarlet Star 5,460 115,900

Red Star 15,300 208,700

Pink Star 38,660 358,500

Total 59,420 683,100

(ref: Forest Development Master Plan, MLF, 1996)

3.2. The figure of 683,100 m³ has been rounded down to 500,000 m³ since many of the Pink Star species are currently regarded as unsaleable. The Annual Allowable Cut (AAC) has presently also been set at 500,000 m³ for off -reserves, to give a national figure for the total AAC of 1 million m3.

3.3. At the level of a compartment, the allowable cut is calculated on the basis of a 100% survey of commercial species and the application of the interim yield formula on a species by species basis. Fine-grained protection rules define those areas that must be excluded from logging either on the basis on environmental concerns (excessive slopes, closeness to watercourses) or biological conservation (protection of Black Star species). On average, around 14% of the harvestable area of the compartment area is reduced by adherence to these rules.

4. Overview of the Management Procedures for timber production

4.1 The Ministry of Lands and Forestry has embarked on a strategy through application of the Timber Rights Act to manage concessions both on and off reserve through a process of competitive tender and the issue of Timber Utilisation Contracts (TUCs). The TUCs seek to tighten the planning controls on timber utilisation and at the same time ensure that the interests of the communities and land owners are fully taken into account through the definition of the Social Responsibility Agreements.

4.2 The activities can be summarised as follows:-

Identification of TUC areas

progress maps updated

initial scheduling of compartments for harvesting

field checks

consultation with communities and land owners

endorsement of the Timber Contract Advertisement Consent Form

fixing of boundaries where area borders protection zones

Preparation of the contract

preparation of the Timber Operational Specifications (TOS) and the Social Responsibility Agreements (SRA)

advertisement of the TUC

submission of applications by interested companies

evaluation and award of contract

Management of the TUC areas

Following on from the preparation of the TUCs and the award of the contract, the following procedures are followed:-

preparation of the TUC Operation Plan

pre-survey compartment inspection

stock survey, check survey and preparation of a stock map

yield estimation and preparation of a yield map and list of approved trees for harvesting

preparation of the Compartment Plan

tree felling plus tree volume estimation

cross-cutting and estimation of log volume

issue of Log Conveyance Certificate