AS Guyana’s forestry sector continues to practise sustainable forest management and engage in value added production in the context of the Low-Carbon Development Strategy, the nation has realized an increase in exports in the sector for the year 2012, compared with 2011.

This is according to Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment, Hon. Robert Persaud, who noted that, over the period under review, Guyana realized increased export of value added timber and timber products to traditional and non-traditional markets.
Minister Persaud noted that, despite the increase in the value generated and the heightened interest in non-traditional activities within our forests (requiring the disturbance of the flora vegetation/forest), Guyana’s current rate of deforestation stands at 0.0545 % of its forested area.
This has resulted in Guyana receiving international commendation for its low rate of deforestation, the Natural Resources and Environment Minister stated.
The minister attributed this to the Guyana Forestry Commission’s (GFC’s) established guidelines for sustainable forest management, inclusive of a code of practice for harvesting and stakeholders’ compliance.
Persaud outlined that this low rate of deforestation is maintained by allowing concessionaires to fell trees only in accordance with a maximum allowable annual harvest. In addition, logging is very selective, and low-impact techniques are used.
All concessions above 20,000 acres utilize a felling cycle on a rotational basis for their harvest, which ranges from 25 to 60 years, he said.
With Guyana’s sustainable annual harvest being approximately 1.2 M m3-, in actuality, the harvest is only at 40 % of this allowable total. On such grounds, the minister said, a very robust system of monitoring is done.
The Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) has 32 strategically located fixed stations, and about 30 mobile ones that check for compliance with procedures, according to Minister Persaud.
Notwithstanding the set guidelines and heightened monitoring, the forest can also be disturbed by effects of climate change, which could cause extreme flooding or extreme drought, with possible negative impacts on the forest, he added.
Moreover, conversion of forested lands to agricultural lands or homesteads, whilst not a problem now, could pose a potential one in the future. Infrastructural development could also introduce some challenges, due to the expansion of the hinterland road programme.
This is all in keeping with the Government of Guyana’s continuing emphasis on the development of our natural resources sector, whilst ensuring that environmental, social, economic and safety safeguards are in place, Persaud said.