Alternatives To Rainforest Destruction

ALTERNATIVES TO RAINFOREST DESTRUCTION

By Todd Taggart and John Curtis

At the '88 GAL convention in Vermillion I was invited to participate In a discussion of alternative tonewoods. As I thought it was to be a roundtable discussion, more of a question and answer forum, I was ill-prepared to stand behind the podium and lecture; I had nothing of a formal nature to offer. (And I have a hard time relating a meaningful paragraph on ANY "Day at the Park").

As it turned out we worked our way into a discussion with several members of the audience leading the way. It seemed that there were two themes we were attempting to address: alternative tonewoods, and diminishing forests. More questions were posed than answered and it seemed that the conclusions we were left with were ones we did not want to admit, both for their cynicism and pessimism: namely, get as much of the good wood as you can while it's still around. There was no need for an in depth discourse on prices and quality. Those luthiers who used to buy well-quartered, good colored, Brazilian rosewood for $12 a set knew the formula. As scarcity increases, prices increase, and it appears, inversely proportional to quality.

Since there have been several articles written on alternative tonewoods, I'll only briefly touch on our experiences with them, but address further the question of vanishing forests.

It seems unlikely that Indian rosewood will not go the way of Brazilian rosewood (unless we are willing to accept coarse-grained, lackluster, faded, plantation grown Indian rosewood). Mahogany has now been targeted for embargo by conservation organizations (Friends Of The Earth, Sierra Club, Rainforest Action Network-"RAN") Many of the best spruce logs are being sold to Japan for $5/log because of a post wwII agreement. As well, it is expected that old growth western redcedar material will be around for only 15-30 more years.

1. It's a customer (player, not luthier) driven market and the customer wants his instrument to be made from the traditional woods. Of course, the traditional woods are traditional for good reason. Apart from their beauty and stability, they have superior tonal properties.

2. There are only a handful of woods that we know of that are as striking as the preferred woods and have some other desirable properties.

3. Many alternative woods are almost as difficult to obtain as the woods they are to replace. (Consistency in quality and supply over time is important.)

4. It is not always known how stable over long periods of time an alternative wood might be (although most of this information is available, we just need the research done).

5. Luthiers need to see and handle new woods before they feel comfortable using them. In introducing potential new tonewoods, prices must be kept down to encourage experimentation. Budgeting constraints do not allow for an unlimited inventory to sell at sample prices.

On the other hand some of the larger guitar manufacturers have gone beyond experimentation and are offering instruments of non-traditional woods, and even non-traditional materials. (I was told by a well-known luthier that he had repaired a Ramirez guitar that had a phenolic fingerboard.) Perhaps In a few years these non-traditional woods and materials will be seen as traditional. As for the rapidly diminishing tropical forests, most luthiers cannot help but be aware of the problems (unless they live in a vacuum!). If they read nothing else but the Quarterly Journal of the Guild of Amerlcan Luthiers they will be well apprised of the "World Forest Outlook" thanks to Nicholas Von Robison & Parry Thomas, PhD. (No.16, 1988). We are finding that there is some news, usually bad, of tropical forests nearly every day in our newpapers.

Four per cent of our redwood primary forests remain. Virtually none of the Eastern and Midwestern primary forest exists while Brazil still has 60% of the primary Amazon ian forests. (The Atlantic forest is the one that is nearly extinct). It is understandable, then, that the president of Brazil feels that a debt for nature swap is tantamount to giving up Brazil's sovereignty, and that such a proposal, even from a non-governmental organization - NGOs, as they are known, would never be entertained. However, the news of tropical forests is not always dismal...

Our initial interest in the tropical forest problem began when we received a sample packet of woods about 7 years ago from Dr. Eugene Follmann. Dr. Follmann, In collaboration with the IPT of Brazil (something like our Forest Product Lab) and Tranquillo Giannini Co. (then one of the largest, if not the largest guitar manufacturer) had been experimenting with, and attempting to market, woods they felt had potential as musical instrument grade material. I think they were forced into this position by unyielding luthiers and speculators when they grew tired of having to reply "no more Brazilian rosewood." Interest among our customers was not overwhelming but there are several guitars out there of Brazilian maple (Micropholis gardnerium), yellow grenadillo (Dalbergia violacia), caviuna (Machaerium scleroxylon), tulipwood (Dalbergia frutescens), and even cedro (Cedrella tuna and Cedrella fissilis). Over those seven years we have traveled to various parts of Brazil on four different occasions and Dr. Follmann visited us for 6 weeks. We continue to stay in touch and he regularly sends us interesting woods with potential not only for the musical instrument market but for the general woodworking market as well. John Curtis, my partner, also spent a good deal of time in the State of Amazonia gathering information on various woods.

It was not too surprising that he saw little rosewood. That which was available was of small diameter with none of the traditional color. It was disturbing to learn that for every mahogany tree taken out, 2 or more acres of forest can be destroyed just to establish a logging road to it. (Of the average of about 200 tree species per hectare, about 2.4 acres, the incidence of occurrence for mahogany is .4 cubic meters per hectare, so one finds, with luck, maybe one tree every 6 acres) Once logging roads are forged, homesteaders establish their claims through slash and burn clearing methods. It was disturbing to learn that a major source of income for the Xingu Indians are handicrafts made from snakewood (Piratinera gulanensis), and their snakewood is regularly poached and finds its way to western markets. As one would expect, there were plenty of similar things to be disturbed about, but these two problems best illustrate in dramatic fashion the problems as they have continued to snowball.

What we learned became a regular topic of conversation around here. When John couldn't talk about sustainable woods, we had to keep him supplied with bits of rawhide to chew on. He began to spend more and more time studying and distributing information on the state of tropical woods, and we have been lucky to have as one of our sources for current information, John's brother, Randy Curtis. Randy has worked for The Nature Conservancy International Division for about four years. Prior to that Randy's company had been trying to bring the U.S.'s surplus grain to third world countries, and so was well versed in the intricacies and red tape involved in endeavors of good will. (Randy has been instrumental in some larger debt for nature swaps with Costa Rica, and some other South and Central American countries, about which, more later.)

About a year and a half ago Randy suggested we contact Michael Krones who lived nearby in Sonoma County. Michael was one of the founders of a pilot project in central Peru that is attempting to address both the problems of the native Amazonian populations and forest destruction. Since our first meeting with Michael, John has been devoting nearly all his time to this special project, and he has become fairly knowledgeable on the subject.

The Palcazu project, as it is known, promoted the formation of a forestry cooperative among the Amuesha Indians and developed a wood processing center to be run by the Amuesha. It is a sustainable yield project originally funded by United States Agency for International Development (USAID), but now receiving assistance from The World Wildlife Fund and the Peruvian Foundation for the Conservation of Nature. Technical support was provided by The Tropical Science Center of San Jose, Costa Rica, whose staff included, in addition to Michael Krones, Gary Hartshorn, Robert Simeone, and Joseph Tosi, Jr. The project began in 1981 and if politics can be kept at bay may well become a model for many more tropical forest regions.

Logs too large to be skidded with oxen are cut into 4" or 6" cants with a chainsaw and packed out to the nearest skid road.

Although not built for such work, a chainsaw's tooth angle and fuel-to-oil mix can be modified to do a passable job of ripping large logs. In this photo, a fine, close-grained log is being made into railroad ties for lack of a furniture maker to give it a better home. The purchasing agent for the railroads is one of the few wood buyers willing to make the trek to the cooperative.

A significant aspect of the Palcazu approach to land management is the actual volume of useful biomass extracted. Traditional logging methods in the tropics (excluding Malaysia) yield from 3 to 10 cubic meters per hectare compared to the 200 to 250 cubic meters per hectare produced by gap harvesting. Any method capable of multiplying resource utilization to such a degree merits a serious look.

The premise of the project is based upon an understanding of tropical forest dynamics gained only in the last decade. Previous attempts to manage primary tropical forests have always failed due to several reasons, including:

1. Low volume of commercial woods per unit area.
2. High extraction costs.
3. Government policies that discourage sustainable yield.
4. Promotion through tax breaks of agriculture and pasture, on lands unable to support same.
5. The most valuable wood has been too cheap at the source, averaging 4-5 cents a board foot for the standing timber!
6. Beneficiaries are not the residents, but absentee owners inclined to "mine" the forest.

Of course, the fundamental reason for mismanagement has been the lack of understanding of tropical forest dynamics.

The more recent understanding of these dynamics, arrived at almost simultaneously in southeast Asia and Central America offered new possibilities for forest management. The Tropical Science Center working at a biological station in Costa Rica learned that the median life span of trees greater than 100 cm dbh was 34 years. These trees fall and create a gap or natural opening. In this area, 50% of the native tree species required natural openings for regeneration. The shade tolerant species regenerate in the gap left by the fallen trees with the help of the fast growing shade providing trees and reach the forest canopy in 20-30 years. This seemed the natural regeneration pattern common to most tropical forests, and it was after this pattern that the Palcazu project was modeled.

Known as the strip-shelter belt system of tropical forest management, or "gap harvesting," it works thusly: after a team of advisors and cooperative members determine which areas are to be part of the forest management plan, strips about 30 to 40 m wide and from 200 to 500 m long are clear cut. An area this size allows the trees on either side of the gap to provide enough shade to prevent the ground from becoming sun- baked. This also helps maintain a high level of species diversity and provides for erosion control and protection from the wind.

Almost everything is harvested. Saw logs are processed by the cooperative members and sold to local markets, smaller trees are fitted with what is called a "Pres-cap," which uses air pressure and preservative to displace the sap. These are then sold nationally as fence posts, utility poles, and railroad ties. Tree branches are made into charcoal, and remaining organic matter is left to nourish the strip for the next generation of trees to be harvested 30-40 years later.

An inspection 27 months after the first strip had been harvested found 125 tree species more than 1 m tall. That number was more than twice the number of tree species initially harvested! Birds and bats, which will cross small clearings, and surrounding foliage all contributed to this increase in diversity. Diversity is reduced as pioneer trees are taken over by the shade tolerant species.

Among other important points to be made with respect to the Palcazu project, two stand out:

1. Before this project, the Amuesha Indians were linked to a cattle economy by a system of debt-peonage, as the meat market was controlled by the colonists of German and Swiss descent. As a precondition to fund the Palcazu project, USAID, with the encouragement of Richard Chase Smith, then of Cultural Survival, stipulated that the Amuesha Indians be given land title. The Amuesha are now controlling their lands and deriving income from it. With the machinery they have in place they can process saw logs into dimension lumber.

They plan to bring in sanders, duplicating lathes, driers, and other tools which will allow them to retain more value added. (A small furniture making project has turned into the largest money spinner so far.) If the project stays its present course, the profit picture looks good for many generations of Amuesha to come, and the benefits of the sustainable yield system of forest management are that the forest remains for many generations of Amuesha.

2. Until the last decade, only a few of the many hundreds of species were considered valuable. As these species have become depleted, national and local markets have been opened to timber species that were hitherto ignored. In Central and South America, in places where timber is scarce, local markets now accept any log of adequate size and decent form and give the wood a generic name such as "mountain oak." In turn, market acceptance of many species opens the door to more sensible management of tropical forests (Palcazu style) as an alternative to selective exploitation of a few species. This is surely a precursor to the way the international market will learn to adapt to the rhythms of sustainable yield natural forest management.

We might now answer one of the lingering questions that was posed at the convention: like the elephant poacher what is to stop the poacher of exotic and valuable woods? In the case of the Amuesha Indians they have become quite familiar wlth the woods native to Palcazu valley, and they know the market value of these woods. Any poacher nearing their now titled lands with thoughts of taking out a large turupay or quinilla tree must contend with a few Amuesha Indians, and it is unlikely that the poacher would escape with the tree or his health. Furthermore, sawn woods for export will soon be worth more than $1.00 a board foot, to them a far cry from the previous $.30-.35/B.F.

This photo was taken before the lumber drying sheds were built, while wood was being stored here under the tool shed roof. This space is occupied by the Mighty Mite, trim saws, and cut-off saws. Several useful machines that were already paid for languished in Lima's custom house for several months. Among those were a 42" band resaw, a moulder, and some sharpening machines. These will go a long way toward allowing the cooperative to produce custom dimension wood products, resulting in a higher value-added for the cooperative; faster drying with less degrade; a major reduction in transport costs; more usable wood at the destination; less time and expense at the destination spent reducing large timbers to final dimension; and better quality control.

Most of the sawn wood produced by the cooperative has gone into construction material and furniture for local consumption, and some has been sold for railroad ties. To develop the international market would allow the cooperative to match or exceed the returns from its preserved poles operation, widen its economic base, and increase its odds for survival.

In late May, early June 1989, John, along with Scott Landis, traveled to Peru to visit the Palcazu project. Scott, who has been a writer and editor for Fine Woodworking, and wrote The Workbench Book, provided documentation of their trip and has an excellent article in the June 1990 issue of Fine Woodworking. (Scott was in the audience at the Vermillion convention and was convinced by our feeble attempts to answer questions about alternative woods, that a man with the sensitivity of a writer could make some sense out of our mumblings.)

An average size log is being skidded through a bad spot in the road. The locally-made logging arch keeps most of the log out of the mud and makes skidding easier for the oxen.

There are a number of advantages to the use of oxen, as opposed to heavy equipment, in gap harvesting. These include a significant reduction in soil compaction; much lower capital outlay than for a skidder or bulldozer; fuel for the oxen is locally available, renewable, and cheaper than diesel; in the event of a breakdown, defective components will usually fix themselves; oxen will continue to work when muddy conditions have sidelined the heavy equipment; and they taste somewhat better and are easier to chew than a D6.

Disadvantages of oxen include slower cycle times; few logs moved per shift; an effective range of 1 km under load; and their limited application in road building.

Support among local woodworkers, guilds, and woodworking schools as well as enthusiasm for the samples shown has generated enough orders to import the first container of wood from the cooperative. Although, John inspected the wood, all of which had been harvested and processed by the Amuesha cooperative, it was most satisfying to find the support among local woodworkers who not only funded Scott's passage, but are buying this wood sight unseen, confident that this project points the way to the future.

A few final comments: most of the information for this paper came from John, Randy and The Nature Conservancy, Michael Krones, J.J. Earhart of World Wildlife Fund, Arturo Elejalde of The Peruvian Foundation for Nature Conservation. They persist in their good efforts and continue the search for sustainable yield sources.

The Von Robison, Thomas article mentions the role that wood gathering for cooking and heating plays in deforestation. A few months ago we signed up with an organization that is making great strides in offering solutions to the fuelwood shortage: Solar Box Cookers InternatIonal, 1724 Eleventh St. Sacramento, Ca. 95814. Briefly, they offer plans, kits, and demonstrations of solar cookers which are being used with success by many in third world countries. The cookers will allow countries that burn 95% or more of their trees for fuel to: restore degraded land and develop a sawnwood industry; promote topsoil and rainwater retention: and lower temperatures to promote carbon dioxide absorption. The cookers also help avoid many wasted man hours in the search for fuelwood, and they can be used to pasteurize water. (The U.N. has funded travel costs by company representatives to help spread the word on these solar cookers.) Their use In the U.S. is limited to about 5 months out of the year, depending on where you live. You can become a member with a tax deductible gift of $25.

Finally, I mentioned debt for nature swaps. If you're not sure how they work, it's basically like this: an organization like the Nature Conservancy, for example, buys some of Costa Rica's debt at a discounted price from CityCorp Bank. They may buy $5,000,000 worth of debt for $750,000. The government of Costa Rica, their central bank, and The Nature Conservancy agree in advance of the transaction that in exchange for the $5,000,000 debt relief, Costa Rica will maintain so many acres of forest in a preserve. The Central Bank of Costa Rica then will issue bonds worth, perhaps, $1,500,000 in the local currency, keeping the money in the host country. interest payments go mostly for protection activities like paying salaries of park rangers, nature guides, etc.

Text From The Luthiers' Mercantile Catalog - 1993