Economic, environmental and social impact of alternative forest management in Baden-Württemberg (Germany) and Västerbotten (Sweden)

The forest sector is important for the German Federal State of Baden-Wurttemberg (BW) and the Vasterbotten (VB) County in Sweden. Their forestry wood chains (FWCs) are of similar magnitude and supply forest industries. This study provides a regional comparison of the performance of FWCs from roundwood harvesting, including hauling, to mill gate concerning the factors that impact sustainability and assess different sustainability indicators for alternative supply chains, in particular fully mechanized chains in comparison to motor-manual operations. The harvest volumes are similar but operational conditions differ. Analysis of sustainability indicators demonstrated that the total costs for roundwood to industry are similar. Higher harvesting costs in BW are compensated for by lower transport costs to the mills. Employment per unit is higher in BW because of the high share of labour in felling. Due to smaller machinery and shorter transport distances in BW, energy use and greenhouse gas emissions per unit a...