Forestry in Argentina - Forest Situation

Forest Situation

An estimated 1.115 million hectares were planted as of 2005. There are 33.2 million hectares (82 million acres) of additional land (native forest) for forestry. Out of this total, 20 million hectares (50 million acres) are high quality land for future development in Argentina. However, this vast amount of land is not easy to put into production due to its land tenure situation (the proliferation of owners holding areas of 5 to 10 hectares), legislation which protects native forests, and lack of infrastructure. If investors wish to expand their land for cultivation, the opportunity costs are substantial.

The growth of planted forests has increased dramatically since 1997 due to new investments (especially from Chile). The implementation of Law 25,008 in January 1999 has also been an important factor for growth in this sector. This law promotes and assists the forestry sector for a period of 10 years. Between 1990 and 2000, foreign and domestic investments surpassed US$ 1.5 billion. The forestry industry depends on both cultivated forests (85 percent) and native forests (15 percent). The major species cultivated in Argentina are pines and eucalyptus. In addition, species such as salix and populus are also cultivated in a smaller scale. Currently, there are no other species that have been introduced for cultivation in Argentina.

The current plantation rate is estimated to be 50,000 hectares per year. It is also estimated that the consumption of wood products from cultivated forests is 5.3 million cubic meters, and sustainable wood supply to the year 2015 will be more than 20 million cubic meters. Argentina, however, is not a major consumer of wood products. For instance, wood is not commonly used in building construction. About 60 to 70 percent of wood product production is used for internal consumption (wood boards, plywood, cellulose pulp, etc.) and the rest for exports.