WOOD UTILIZATION IN BANGLADESH

Fuel wood

Bangladesh forests are surviving under high level of demographic stress. The production from forest areas is continuously declining and most of it is consumed within the country, and a large quantity is imported to satisfy domestic consumption. The continual change in species and age group, and lowering of average age of forests is adversely affecting the sustainability of the current forest ecosystems. Therefore, production of timber and fuel wood from forest areas have fallen by more than 50% after the felling ban in 1988-89. However, the actual production after including private sources is much higher and is estimated at 7.9 million m3 of round wood of all kinds, and 656 million bamboos. The wood is primarily used for meeting needs of fuel wood, sawn timber, poles, pulpwood and other products in Bangladesh.

Fuel wood is the main forest product (61% of total round wood) in Bangladesh. The country annually requires about 9.4 million m3 of fuel wood against supply of about 6.18 million m3 whereas share of domestic 70% (like cooking), industrial 28% (like brick burning), and commercial 2% (like bakeries and restaurants) use of the total fuel wood consumption in the country. The consumption is expected to raise 11.9 million m3 by 2015. The majority of the fuel wood supply comes from the village groves.

The annual requirement of sawn timber in Bangladesh is expected to rise from 5.4 million m3 (round) in 2000 to 6.8 million m3 (round) in 2015. The sawn wood production is expected to increase from current estimated level of 1.45 million m3 (round) in 2000 to the estimated level of 1.9 million m3 (round) in 2015.

Bangladesh is now heavily dependent on imports of forest and forest-based products for meeting its basic consumption. A huge trade deficit exists in the forest products. Primary imports of logs and sawn timbers are from countries like United States, Canada, Australia, Myanmar, Singapore and Malaysia. The Government of Bangladesh tries to contain import of forest products through imposition of duty and restriction on imports.