Single Factor Analysis-A Decision Criterion for Forestry Operations

Tending and cultural operations are generally considered essential for raising successful forest plantations. Despite this realisation the foresters' earnest endeavours are' however' sometimes frustrated by several limitations of which the 'paucity of funds' may perhaps be the singularly important one. An appraisal of the causations reveal that budgetary constraints arise primarily as a consequence of the quest for present investments aimed at increasing future returns' when fiscal rationality demands that selection among alternatives be directed toward maximisation of the net present value of the outcome. Since forest plantations are necessarily investments for the future' the expenditure on connected activities ought logically follow similar financial considerations. Single factor analysis' which weighs cash outflows necessary for rectifying a particular deleterious situation against the expected cash revenues' provides a convenient meaas' in such cases' for arming the forest administrator with a quantitative basis for deciding what' if any' should be the funds allotted for various related operations. Additionally' the technique also provides a rationale for evaluating the alternatives' where they do exist. In this paper theoretical framework is developed to assess the financial impact of one of the tending operations' namely weeding and cleaning' in forest plantations. The model is applied to a typical teak plantation of the hypothetical locality of Norgalia where fiscal constraints generally preclude this operation' though often considered necessary' beyond the first three years of creation. The results reveal that the investment embodied in additional weeding and cleaning is highly profitable and thus rationally speaking' there should be no 'paucity of funds' for the purpose.