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Chainsaw milling in Ghana: context, drivers and impactsTable 21. Summary of CSM statisticsdescription estimate referencetotal annual gross revenue from CSM GHC 279 million Section 3.6.4annual gross revenue retained by chainsawGHC 52 million Section 3.6.4operatorstotal annual profit from CSM GHC 37 million Section 3.6.3<strong>net</strong> profit of CSM GHC 66.6/m 3 Table 16volume of trees annually harvested by CSM 2.5 (2.2–2.9) million m 3 Table 13number of trees harvested 842,000 (745,000–970,000) Section 3.5.3conversion efficiency of CSM, based on total usable30.3% Table 11tree volumenumber of species processed by CSM 72 Section 3.4.2dominant species supplied to marketmahogany, wawa, Section 3.4.2dahoma, oframvolume of CSM lumber sold in the market 558,054 m 3 Table 13volume of chainsawn lumber consumed in Ghanafrom the domestic market496,815 m 3 Table 13proportion of chainsawn lumber in the market 84% Table 13number of people directly (and indirectly)engaged by CSM97,000 (direct)138,000 (direct and indirect)Table 19Section 5.1.1annual potential stumpage revenue lost by the FC GHC 25 million Section 5.2.3estimated annual value of informal payments GHC 33.5 million Section 5.2.36.2.1 Social and economic benefitsA specific economic, social and political environment drives chainsaw milling. Moststakeholders recognise that chainsaw milling is important, both as an employer ofrural youth and a supplier of domestic timber. Regularization or eradication of chainsawmilling could adversely affect the rural economy and the enterprises that dependon CSM for lumber.6.2.2 Dwindling forest resourcesIf the estimated harvest of about 2.5 million m 3 by chainsaw operators is added tothe official AAC of two million m 3 , it results in an annual potential harvest level of 4.5million m 3 . Based on timber inventories and yield calculations, this is approximatelyfour times the sustainable harvest established in 1996 (Planning Branch 1999). It isdoubtful that the state of the forest resources in Ghana today can sustainably accommodatean annual exploitation level of more than one million cubic metres. If thecurrent level of exploitation continues, a serious shortage of merchantable trees isimminent.48
Chapter 6. Conclusions and policy recommendations6.2.3 AccessTenure reforms that recognise some ownership or management rights on the partof communities, especially outside forest reserves, are an important consideration. Inpractice, farmers already decide the fate of trees on their land. The current regime ofbenefit-sharing — which alienates communities — needs major restructuring in orderto gain community support in the management of forest resources.6.2.4 Policy reform: lifting the ban?Chainsaw operations need to be regulated, either through effective enforcement ofthe ban or by being integrated into mainstream forest management and operations.Declaring that chainsaw milling is illegal without addressing the timber markets thatsell its “illegal” products is not realistic or effective.The legal framework criminalises the use of chainsaw milling and trading for commercialpurposes, although its enforcement has been fraught with difficulties andinconsistencies. The law does not criminalise CSM for household use, but the FSD’sManual of Operations fails to provide straightforward procedures for domestic usepermits. This makes it difficult to use a chainsaw to mill timber for local consumption.Studies of social, economic and environmental impacts show that most of thenegative impacts of chainsaw milling are the result of its being banned and of theattendant problems of ineffective monitoring, rather than the practice itself. If thefundamental reason for the chainsaw ban was its adverse environmental impacts, theempirical observations in the study do not support this claim.In spite of the ban on chainsaw milling in Ghana, the practice is highly acceptedamong the general public. It is also supported by some stakeholders, including morethan half of FSD District Managers. The timber trade associations, especially theGhana Timber Millers’ Organization, oppose it, however.Since chainsaw milling has broad social acceptance and significant economicimpacts and it supplies a critical domestic market, maintaining a ban without effectiveenforcement capability will likely only enforce connivance and illegality.Enforcing the ban will be challenging unless three critical conditions are simultaneouslymet:• the timber industry is prepared to supply wood to the domestic market;• FSD procedures are streamlined to allow for the processing of timber fordomestic use; and• resource governance is significantly improved (particularly in terms of corruptionwithin the FSD and law enforcement agencies) and genuine political willfor addressing chainsaw milling is secured.Since it is unlikely that these conditions can be met within the near future, and sincechainsaw milling is increasing, some immediate interventions should be instituted.49
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Chainsaw Millingin GhanaContext, dr
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The mission of Tropenbos Internatio
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Page 77: AcronymsAAC Annual allowable cutCE
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