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Md. Nurul Islam (email), Mikko Kurttila, Lauri Mehtätalo, Arto Haara

Analyzing the effects of inventory errors on holding-level forest plans: the case of measurement error in the basal area of the dominated tree species

Islam Md. N., Kurttila M., Mehtätalo L., Haara A. (2009). Analyzing the effects of inventory errors on holding-level forest plans: the case of measurement error in the basal area of the dominated tree species. Silva Fennica vol. 43 no. 1 article id 218. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.218

Abstract

Accurate inventory data are required for ensuring optimal net return on investment from the forest. Erroneous data can lead to the formulation of a non-optimal plan that can cause inoptimality losses. Little is known of the effect of using erroneous stand inventory data in preparing holding-level forest plans. This study reports on an approach for analyzing such inoptimality losses. Furthermore, inoptimality losses caused by measurement errors in the basal area of the dominated tree species were investigated in a case study. Based on the inventory data including routine measurements by 67 measurers, four measurer groups were created with different measurement error profiles for the basal area of the dominated tree species. This was followed by measurement error simulations for each group and by adding these to the accurate control inventory data to create erroneous data of different error profiles. Three different forest plans were then constructed by using erroneous data of each group. The plans were then analyzed and compared with plans based on correct data. The effect of measurement errors on the net present value from the whole planning period, and on the amount of remaining growing stock at the end of planning period, were analyzed and utilized in calculating the inoptimality losses. It was concluded that even errors involving dominated tree species can cause significant changes in the holding-level forest plans.

Keywords
inoptimality loss; dominated tree species; erroneous inventory data; forest plan

Author Info
  • Islam, University of Joensuu, Faculty of Forest Sciences, FI-80101 Joensuu, Finland E-mail nurul.islam@joensuu.fi (email)
  • Kurttila, Finnish Forest Research Institute, Joensuu Research Unit, FI-80101 Joensuu, Finland E-mail mk@nn.fi
  • Mehtätalo, University of Helsinki, Dept. of Forest Resource Management, FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland E-mail lm@nn.fi
  • Haara, University of Joensuu, Faculty of Forest Sciences, FI-80101 Joensuu, Finland E-mail ah@nn.fi

Received 21 April 2008 Accepted 18 December 2008 Published 31 December 2009

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Available at https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.218 | Download PDF

Creative Commons License CC BY-SA 4.0

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