中国森林资源的过去、现在与未来发展趋势

中国是少林国家。在20世纪70年代中期进行“四五”清查以前,中国只掌握一些局部性的调查数据。在1978—1981年间又进行了以省为总体的宏观抽样调查,即“五五”清查。两次清查结果很接近,但都表明中国森林太少,远低于世界平均水平和有代表性的国家。 古代中国的林区远比现在为大。森林面积则比现在大若干倍。中国缺林少材的现状是几千年来农业社会发展进程中火烧、滥伐、滥垦、滥牧的结果。其中,置森林于万劫不复的是滥垦和滥牧。这一过程至今尚未停止。 根据中国的自然条件和宜林地资源的状况,有条件大幅度扩大森林面积和增加森林蓄积量。经过努力,森林面积可达到2.53×10⁸ha,蓄积量可达到210×10⁸m³以上。都是现在的2倍多。但对保护生态环境和向国民经济提供木材和林产品来说,仍然不能完全满足需要。

PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENT TENDENCY OF THE FOREST RESOURCES IN CHINA

China is a country which is deficient in forests. China just had some partially data about it's forest resources until the 'Four-Five' Survey, a thorough investigation made on forests in the midseventies. It was the first time for China through the 'Four-Five' Survey to find out the forest resources of the whole country, including the gross area of forests, the area and growing stock of woodland and sparse woods land, and the area of shrubbey. Meanwhile, the geographic distribution of the forests, the structure of dominant species and the age composition were also found out exclusively. Most provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities made the surveys by means of the small-group investigation, surveying all woodlands one by one. Afterwards, every province made macrosampling survey of it's forest resources, named as 'Five-Five' Survey from 1978 to 1981. The results of those two surveiys are almost identical and show clearly that China's forests are so little that it's forest cover rate is far lower than the average level of the world and that of the typical countries in the world.The area of China's forest regions in the early period of history was about several times larger than that of today. The present situation of woods and lumber deficiency was caused by forest fire, destructive lumbering, and especially the overreclaiming and overgrazing over the past thousand years in China's agricultural society. This damaging process has been still continuing.China's natural conditions and the situation of the land are suitable for forestry. China can expand the area of forests by a big margin and rise the growing stock. It is possible for China to expand it's forests to 252 million ha. and rise the growing stock more than 21000 m3, both are more than two times that of the present. Even though, China's forest resources will not meet all the needs of ecological environment protection and the demands of economic growth.