Forestry, sample survey of agriculture and forestry (discontinued), 1999-2000, final figures

Average size of the productive forest area was 571 decares per property. Over half of the forest owners owned less than 250 decares of productive forestland, and altogether they owned just over a tenth of the countrys productive forest area. Only one per cent of the forest owners owned more than 5 000 decares of productive forest, while all of these areas made up almost a third of the countrys productive forest area.

Less than half farmed

Forty-four per cent of forest owners also farmed in 2000, and they owned 43 per cent of the productive forest area in Norway. The number of combined farmer-forest owners has dropped in the last 20 years, while the overall number of forest owners has remained fairly constant.

Pure forest owners had larger forest properties

Forest owners who also farmed had an average of 44 fewer decares of productive forest area than pure forest owners. There were major differences among the counties, with the biggest difference seen in Nord-Trøndelag. On other hand, in just half of the counties combined farmer-forest owners had more productive forest than pure forest owners.

There was a correlation between the size of the forest area and farming area in production among combined farmer-forest owners, so that forest owners who farmed lots of land owned a considerable amount of forest and vice versa.

Combined farmer-forest owners did more often logging

Combined farmer-forest owners did more often logging that forest owners who did not farm. On a national basis, combined farmer-forest owners accounted for half of the quantity cut for sale. Large forest properties were logged more often than small ones.

One-tenth planted

Planting and sowing was done on 11 per cent of the forest properties in 1999, an average of 19 decares on each of them. This totalled 265 000 decares on national basis. Clear-felling took place on 333 000 decares that same year.

The percentage of forest owners who planted and sowed increased with the increasing size of the productive forest areas. Compared with pure forest owners, relatively more combined farmer-forest owners planted and sowed in 1999. Combined farmer-forest owners accounted for about half of the planted and sowed area on a national basis.

Contractors, forest owners, and hired help did about one-third of the planting and sowing each. Forest owners who also farmed did a smaller percentage of the planting and sowing themselves, the more land they farmed.

One sixth tended young forest

Young forest tending was done on 17 per cent of the forest properties in 1999. An average of 28 decares were tended on each property, for a total amount of 557 000 decares.

The percentage of properties on which young forest tending took place increased with the increasing size of productive forest area. Compared with pure forest owners, a relatively higher number of farmer-forest owners did young forest tending. On a national basis, these two categories of owners accounted for half of the young forest tending area each.

Forest owners carried out barely half of the work, while hired help and contractors accounted for one-fourth each.

One in three had a forestry plan

The portion of forest owners with a forestry plan has increased in the last 20 years. In 1999, one-third had forestry plans for all or part of their property. The plans covered around two-thirds of the productive forest area in Norway, and had an annual increment of 10.2 million m³.

The larger the forest area, the more forest owners had forestry plans. While forestry plans were also more common among forest owners who also farmed than among those who did not farm, the portion of productive forest covered was about the same in both categories. There were also differences between counties. In Vestfold, forestry plans covered 83 per cent of the productive forest area and fully 53 per cent of forest owners had plans. In Sogn- og Fjordane, coverage was 21 per cent and only 15 per cent of forest owners had plans.

Tables:

• Table 1 Productive forest area by size of productive forest area, county and agricultural area in use. 1999. Decares
• Table 2 Average size of forest properties, county and agricultural area in use. 1999. Decares per property
• Table 3 Average removals for sale, by size of forest area, county and agricultural area in use. 1999. m³
• Table 4 Properties with removals for sale at lest once in the course of the period 1995-1999. Agricultural area in use. Per cent
• Table 5 Forest area cleared for regeneration. 1999. Productive forest area
• Table 6 Forest area planted or seeded, by labour category, county, productive forest area and agricultural areal in use. 1999
• Table 7 Forest area with young forest tended, by county, agricultural area in use and productive forest area. 1999
• Table 8 Properties with planted or seeded forest area, and properties with young forest tended. 1999. Per cent
• Table 9 Management plan, by county, productive forest area and agricultural area in use. 1999