Introduction
This is the third edition of the National Exotic Forest Description (NEFD) National and Regional Wood Supply Forecasts.
An electronic copy is available on the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's Internet Site: http://www.maf.govt.nz/Forestry. Tables from the electronic report can be downloaded directly into Microsoft Excel.
Until 1987, forecasts of the wood supply from New Zealand's planted production forest estate were carried out by the New Zealand Forest Service (NZFS). The first comprehensive national forestry-planning model was prepared by the NZFS for the 1969 Forestry Development Conference. In addition to supply, this model considered future demand for forestry products. The NZFS revised this model in 1972, 1976, 1981 (Elliott and Levack, 1981) and 1986 (Burrows et al, 1987). NEFD wood supply forecasts were published in 1993 and 1996.
The forecasts are based on modelling carried out by the New Zealand Forest Research Institute Ltd (Forest Research) using area and yield data from the NEFD database. The model assumptions and constraints were jointly developed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Forest Research, and the NEFD Steering Committee.
The collection and publication of all NEFD information is overseen by the NEFD Steering Committee, which is a forest industry committee with members nominated by the New Zealand Forest Owners' Association and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
The information in this report is intended to assist in resource and policy planning and in assessing processing opportunities and infrastructural requirements. It is expected that new NEFD wood supply forecasts will be produced every three to five years.
