Economics and Forestry: Solutions

 Industrialized forestry has managed to destroy countless ecosystems and have ended up costing more in the loss of ecosystem services than what can be made by harvesting the forest. Some countries are finding ways to maximize the profits of their forests without decreasing the amount of resources available. Two of the most common methods of sustainable forestry are companies that use restoration forestry and developing nations that serve as carbon offsets for the industrialized world.

            Restoration forestry requires companies to plant trees for every tree they cut down, ensuring that the ecosystem won’t suffer irreparable damage. Carbon offsets are countries that accept money not to cut down their forests; industrialized nations pay these countries not to cut down forests in order to make up for the carbon produced by the industrialize countries. For instance, Guyana could make up to $580 million in 25 years by harvesting their forests; instead, Norway paid them $20 million in 2010, and will pay an estimated amount of $250 million a year by 2015. This way, Guyana keeps their resource and they have money to fuel their economy. Restoration forestry and carbon offsets manage to restore the environment to its original state without limiting economic development.

Yale School of Environmental Studies - A website sponsored by the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies about “developing a science-based approach to forest management.”