Forest Investment Framework (FIF) enables decision-makers to identify sub-catchments or regions across New Zealand and assess their viability of purchasing land and its conversion to forestry. It supports policy decisions and strategic planning on the economics of forestry scenarios and the value of ecosystem services provided by future and existing forests (natural or planted).
The Forest Investment Framework (FIF), previously called the Forest Investment Finder, has been developed to enable the assessment of key ecosystem services provided by planted forests in New Zealand.
A spatial economic framework for mapping, assessing and quantifying multiple forest ecosystem service values. Its timber viability component combines forest productivity surfaces with infrastructure networks, economic data (e.g. establishment, silvicultural, harvesting costs, log prices) and impedance layers. Its ecosystem service component combines a wide range of data to assess key ecosystem services values provided by planted forests in New Zealand. FIF's timber viability component is validated using data from seven case-study forests in New Zealand. Results of the validation exercise suggest that FIF is a very good viability assessment tool because it provides very accurate estimates of costs and revenues that case-study forests actually generated.
Modelling of services provides spatially explicit value estimates of carbon sequestration, erosion reduction, flood mitigation and provision of native species habitats. Developing spatial economic functions include avoided nutrients, water supply, recreation and aesthetics. It enables market (timber and carbon) and non-market (avoided sedimentation) values of ecosystem services from proposed afforestation sites as well as existing planted forests to be estimated.
FIF’s spatially explicit outputs include maps and tables of values which can be used to describe the broader benefits of existing or proposed forests or tree blocks. In addition, the FIF can accommodate new spatial functions of other ecosystem services.
It provides meaningful results for strategic-level planning objectives across different types of forestry regimes such as pruned, unpruned, bioenergy and permanent forests
Initally the tool was called Forest Investment Finder (FIF). This version only included timber and carbon sequestration values. Then an avoided erosion layer was added and it was termed FIF plus (Barry et al. 2014). It has now had further spatial value layers developed such as avoided nutrients, water yield and recreation, and it is now refered to as Forest Investment Framework (also FIF) as described in Yao et al. 2016.
Latest Version | Version 1.0 |
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State of Development | Released and updated |
Current Development Activity | Adding new forest productivity layers, for example redwood, cypresses, manuka, eucalypts,Douglas-fir, kauri, totara and red beech. Developing new spatial economic functions on ecosystem services including avoided nutrients, water yield, recreation, aesthetics, and cultural values. |
Outcome Areas | Environmental, Economic |
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Management Domains | Land, Ecosystem Services, Freshwater, Biodiversity |
Subdomains | Water Yield, Water Quality, Ecosystem/Habitat, Erosion/Sediment, Flooding |
Intended End Users |
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Spatial Extents | Local (i.e. Catchment or District), Regional, National |
Spatial Dimensions | 2D |
Temporal Resolutions | Months, Years, Decades |
Temporal Extents | Decades, Years |
Steady State or Dynamic | Dynamic |
Level of Integration | Economic, Environmental |
Key Input Data | Land Use Maps: Road networks, forest locations (future forests are the default forest locations in FIF) (Watt et al. 2010), Fundamental Soils Layer (FSL). Impedance layer developed from River Environments Classification (REC) and terrain attributes. Impedance layer based on soil type and slope. Economic data: MPI 12-quarter average log prices, standard forestry growing, harvesting and transport costs; Economic valuation survey data on biodiversity conservation in planted forests (Yao et al. 2014) Environmental data: New Zealand Empirical Erosion Model (NZEEM) (Dymond et al 2010) |
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Input Data Formats | GIS compatible files Raster 25x25m grid |
Key Output Data | Macro-economic data ecosystem service values |
Output Data Formats | GIS Compatible Files, XLS(S) |
Open/Closed Source | Closed Source |
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Licence Cost (Non Commercial) |
Not available for non-commercial use |
Licence Cost (Commercial) |
Price negotiable |
Operating Systems | MS Windows |
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User Interface | Graphical desktop Requires Python GUI |
Ease of Use | Moderate Level of technical capability required. |
Use in Policy Process | Do (Policy Implementation), Plan (Policy Formulation) |
Documentation | Currently in-progress |
Programming Language | Python |
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Methods included for calibration and validation | Timber viability component validated using seven forest case study sites (within 22% accuracy) |
Analytical Techniques | Input/output, GIS |
Model Structure |
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Keywords | Forest ecosystem services, timber viability, pimus radiata, impedance layers, revenue layers, carbon sequestration, avoided erosion, provision of habitats, roading costs |
Linkages to other Models | |
Links | Scion Website |
Key References | Barry, L. E., Yao, R., Harrison, D. R., Paragahawewa, U. H., & Pannell, D. (2014). Enhancing ecosystem services through afforestation: How policy can help. Land Use Policy, 39, 135-145. doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2014.03.012 Beets, P.N., Robertson, K., Ford-Robertson, J.B., Gordon, J., Maclaren, J.P., 1999. Description and validation of C-change: a model for simulating carbon content in managed Pinus radiata stands. N. Z. J. For. Sci. 29, 409–427.
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This study serves as a proof of concept for the application of the ecosystem services approach as a framework for realising the full value of the services derived from ecosystems in a catchment.
Ecosystem Services in the Ohiwa Catchment (2014)
Maniapoto Forest opportunities - Scenarios (2014)
Analysis of setback options and harvesting implications for forestry - Marlborough Sounds (2017)
An assessment of climate mitigation co-benefits arising from the Freshwater Reforms (2016)