Zimbabwe faces timber shortage’

Business Reporter Herald

ZIMBABWE could become a net importer of timber within the next 10
years, industry players have warned.

Although the country still has substantial tracts of land with
commercial trees mainly in Matabeleland and Manicaland provinces,
the current harvesting levels plus uncontrolled veld fires could
see it turning to other countries for its timber requirements. Pine
tree, which produces the bulk of timber products, is grown on a 25-
year rotation and the shortage could stretch beyond two decades. An
official with the Forestry Commission said there was unwarranted
cutting down of commercial trees with no replantations.
Manicaland,
Zimbabwe’s hub of commercial forests, last year lost timber worth
$20 trillion to veld fires. According to statistics compiled by the
Timber Producers’ Federation (TPF), timber covering close to 10 000
ha, constituting 12 percent of the country’s pine plantation, went
up in smoke just inside four months between July and November last
year. The area affected was equivalent to the volume normally
harvested over a three-year period. TPF chairman Mr Richard
Kanyekanye said the industry was working on a strategy to adopt
sustainable forests management before the situation got out of
hand.
"At the moment, the situation is still under control and we
are working on that. "The new strategy should entail that every
industry player should consistently grow trees equivalent to what
they harvested," Mr Kanyekanye said. Industry experts also urged
govt to come up with a comprehensive policy to safeguard the
country’s dwindling timber resources. An official with Hunyani
Holdings also expressed similar concerns describing the situation
as an "imminent disaster in the industry whose effects are to be
felt in the next 30 years". "During this period, the country
usually experiences veld fires and these are very prevalent in the
forestry areas. "govt in partnership with other stakeholders should
put in place firm measures to avoid a similar situation this year,"
said a forestry expert. He also noted the need to put in place a
legal framework that prohibits unlicensed honey collectors from
operating in commercial forests. TPF says honey hunters were
responsible for causing 14,8 percent of forest fires. At the last
count in 2004, Zimbabwe’s commercial trees declined from 12 million
in 1998 to 6,5 million. The annual growth rate also