Diversity, productivity, profitability, sustainability, and the tao of underutilized species

Improved utilization of underutilized timber species may offer increased op portunities on a global scale for both needed products and healthy, sustain able forests. Their effective use is an integral element in forest conserva tion. Processing of such species is a key factor and both processing techno logy and marketing are more important than is generally considered to bring adequate supplies into the product mix. The unused, or underutilized, part of the resource is usually larger and more extensive than that commonly us ed, amounting to as much as 90 percent of the forest by some estimates. The resource is highly diverse and processing will need to accommodate that di versity. Productivity and profitability are as essential as for the more co mmonly used resource. Sustainability of the forest is a pervasive criterion for species use. Advances in technology for using diverse species, groups of species, and mixtures of species provide new options to broaden the reso urce base. Marketing is a critical element in relating consumer needs to pr oducer output. Achieving increased use of underutilized species means overc oming many obstacles. Chief among those is the fact that this woody biomass is generally not of the size, species, and quality currently being used in the industry. Also, there is usually no assured supply around which to dev elop economical conversion processes and marketing systems. Effective proce ssing and use will require careful attention to productivity and profitabil ity if it is also to maintain forest diversity and sustainability.