Scholarly record

SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF THE FORESTRY FUND BY IMPLEMENTING THE INTEGRATED INFORMATION SYSTEM FOR THE WELFARE OF WOODEN MATERIALS

Vătuiu Teodora

Abstract

Wood was the most common source of energy on earth, being gradually replaced by fossil fuels. Given that the wood used in the generating stations comes from properly managed forests, then the carbon emitted from the chimneys can be annihilated by the carbon that is absorbed and used by the freshly planted trees. Wood can therefore be considered as carbon neutral. It remains to be seen if this theory is actually verified. Once it was decided to classify wood as a renewable source, its consumption increased exponentially. According to data provided by the International Wood Markets Group, a Canadian company, Europe consumed 13 million tons of wood briquettes in 2012. Based on the current trend, European demand for lighters will increase to 25-30 million tons per year by 2020. As a result, the price of wood is steadily increasing. Wood is not an exhaustible resource and it does not have a single price: a price statistic from Argus Biomass Market shows a price increase of lighters from 116 euro / ton in August 2010 to 129 euro / ton at the end of 2012. The regional supply of energy from renewable energy sources closes not only ecological but also economic circuits. Using biomass for energy provides significant environmental benefits: plants in the natural growth process consume CO2 from the atmosphere; while fold fuel generates GHG (their combustion represents about 2/3 of total carbon dioxide emissions). Advantages of using wood as a source of energy compared to fossil fuels: is a renewable resource; is available continuously and not intermittently; is a more environment-friendly energy resource than coal, being carbon neutral, as emissions to the atmosphere through combustion processes are offset by the absorption of carbon dioxide in the photosynthesis process of the forest. Romania's forests have a very high potential for biomass production for energy and industrial use. Until a few years ago, the use of biomass was mainly limited to household use by direct burning for home heating, cooking and water heating, accounting for about 95% of current biomass exploitation, while industrial biomass use was only 5% according to the 2010. Energy supply from renewable energy sources includes not only ecological but also economic circuits, making wood a safe and inexpensive fuel, an indigenous raw material, which brings added value to the exploitation area by creating new jobs. In this context, a sustainable management of the forestry fund is required through the implementation of the integrated forest management system integrated SUMAL. The main objectives of SUMAL are: a) increase the effectiveness of control as part of public policies to reduce crime in the forestry field, to prevent and combat illegal activities, by controlling the origin of the wood and ensuring its traceability; b) obtaining statistical information at national level on the volume of timber exploited and the resulting wood materials; c) unitary practice in the management of wood materials by providing a free IT application to professionals in the field. In carrying out this work we used qualitative research methods considering that qualitative research is based more on textual interpretation, requiring proper definition of the concepts or their scientific substantiation, highlighting the importance of the theme addressed.

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DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/sgem2018/2.1/s07.107

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