Kaewta Kongchuntuk
Statistician
Data Center, Information Office
Royal Forest Department
BACKGROUND
Since harvesting in forest concessions, except the mangrove concession, was banned in 1989 in order to save the nation's forest throughout the country, Thailand's forest products industry has turned to another facet. At present wood supplies in Thailand depend on imported wood especially from neighboring countries. In the future, timber imports will be reduced and domestic requirements will rely on forest plantations as much as possible. To provide direction, Thailand's Eighth National Economic and Social Development Plan (1997-2001) covers such forestry policies as restoration of forest conservation area to 25 percent of the total country land area. It also incorporates a policy of conservation of existing mangrove forest area to 1,600 million square kilometers in the last year of the plan, in order to maintain environmental equilibrium and also promote biodiversity. Utilization of forest products has also been closely monitored. A data collection system was established in order to help determine progress of the plan.
The current status of national forest information system
The Royal Forest Department of Thailand has set up a Data Center in its Information Office, responsible for collecting, compiling and disseminating information on forestry. Forestry statistics reports are published annually. Electronic copies of the report are available at the Royal Forest Department's website (www.forest.go.th). The Data Center provides forestry data to Thai and foreign students and researchers. Some detailed specific forest information are excluded from the annual report, for example forest inventory information. Most data received are from various reports that have been specially designed and assigned to forestry branch offices throughout the country to fill in and send back monthly. Some data are extracted from reports of other offices such as Department of Customs or Internal Trade.
Data are currently collected and made available in six subject areas:
1. Forest resources
Data forest resources are the existing forest area and forest inventory collected and compiled under the responsibility of Forest Resources Assessment Division, Forest Research Office. Data of the existing forest area are acquired from the interpretation of satellite imageries (LANDSAT) every two or three years. This information is included in the annual forestry statistical report. For forest inventory, the Royal Forest Department uses the Unit System Forest Inventory Method to collect data. Using computers, data were processed and collected in the form of database on forest resources in each forest. It indicates number of trees, species, regeneration, growth and yield and composition of forest and is disseminated in reports classified by forest name in certain provinces.
2. Forest plantations
Data of forest plantations available are only for those plantations that are on government budget. The task is under the responsibility of the Reforestation Office. This office receives plantation area data reported by Regional and Provincial Forest Offices all over the country. Besides the government forest plantation area, there are other data on forest plantations areas from the Forestry Industry Organization and Thai Plywood Company Limited, which are the government organizations involved in reforestation. The Data Center then collects all these data from the responsible units and uses computers to analyze and disseminate the information in the annual forestry statistical report.
3. Wood supplies and trade
In 1989 concession harvesting was banned in order to save the nation's forests throughout the country (except the mangrove concession). Since then, wood supplies in Thailand depend on imported wood especially from neighboring countries. Quantities of wood production available are those of permitted and confiscated logs reported by Provincial Forest Offices monthly to Data Center who then analyzes them using computers. Data of imports and exports are collected and analyzed from data extracted from monthly report of Department of Customs, Ministry of Finance. For wood trade, only in Bangkok and suburban areas are domestic wood prices collected and compiled, from data derived from reports of Department of Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce.
4. Fuelwood production and consumption
Data on fuelwood production available include imports, exports and also data of permitted production and confiscated products reported monthly by Provincial Forest Offices directly to Information Office. These data are inevitably underestimated since true data of production and consumption exclude wood that rural people collect without permission. Imports and exports data are collected and analyzed from data extracted from a monthly report of Department of Customs, Ministry of Finance.
5. Trees outside forest
Data of trees outside forest is only available in the form of quantities of log production. This excludes trees grown in private area because the owner can legally cut any tree without permission. The exceptions are teak (Tectona grandis) and yang (Dipterocarpus spp.) because a permit is required before cutting even though they are grown on private land. These data are reported by Provincial Forest Offices and sent monthly directly to Data Center for collection and analysis by computer.
6. Non-wood forest products
Data of non-wood production available include imports, exports and also data of permitted production and confiscated products reported monthly by Provincial Forest Offices directly to the Information Office. These data are inevitably underestimated since true data of production and consumption exclude those that the rural people harvest harvested without permission. Imports and exports data are collected and analyzed from data extracted from a monthly report of Department of Customs, Ministry of Finance.
MINISTRIES, DEPARTMENTS, AGENCIES, ORGANIZATIONS, NGOS AND OTHER NATIONAL INSTITUTIONS INVOLVED IN DATA COLLECTION, ANALYSIS AND DISSEMINATION
INFORMATION/DATA SOURCES OUTSIDE THE ROYAL FOREST DEPARTMENT INCLUDE:
Department of Customs, Ministry of Finance, (for imports and exports data);
Department of Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce, (for domestic prices data);
Forestry Industry Organization (FIO), Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, (for plantation data); and
Thai Plywood Company Limited, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (for plantation data).
Perceived weaknesses and gaps in the existing system of data collection, analysis and dissemination
At present, forest statistics data rely mainly on reports from Regional, Provincial and District Forest Offices. With constraints on manpower and budget together with amount of work to be done, reports are sometimes perceived as low priority (if not least priority). In terms of coverage forestry statistical system does not cover information on all wood data. This is the biggest problem encountered in data collection since the government intends to provide people or factories with convenience and facilitate industry growth by cutting short the permission on processing to none. Without permission, there is no way to know the amount of production from trees not grown in a forest.
Changes or addition that would significantly strengthen or improve process for information gathering, analysis or dissemination
Royal Forest Department tries to improve process for information gathering, analysis or dissemination by training provincial forest officers on how to fill information required in the reports using computer. Currently, Royal Forest Department has a development plan on computer system. Every Provincial Forest Office will have at least one computer that can be online with the Royal Forest Department and every report can be sent to Data Center directly, correctly and quickly through electronic system.
National planning framework or strategy for improving collection and analysis of forestry information
A national planning framework for improving collection and analysis of forestry data remains unavailable. However, the Forest Research Office of the RFD is developing criteria and indicators at the national level for the implementation of sustainable forest management.
