Two- and three-dimensional velocity structure of the southwestern Canadian Cordillera from seismic refraction data

• Main Author: Zelt, Barry Curtis
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/7194

The forest tenure system in British Columbia is a fundamental element of provincial forest policy with important economic implications. The effect of tenure on land value and forest management has generated a great deal of speculation, but the lack of empirical information has hindered informed debate. This thesis contributes to this need for empirical information. Forest property rights are described in terms of bundles of characteristics. Analyzing differences in these characteristics locates each form of tenure in the spectrum from complete property rights to the complete absence of property rights. A model for predicting land value and the intensiveness of forest management is developed. An event study of forest policy changes, and a hedonic study, are used to analyze the value of thinly traded forest tenures and that of frequently traded tenures, respectively. The results suggest that the particular property characteristics embodied in a specific form of tenure are important factors in determining the value of forest lands. This thesis also analyzes empirically the effect of forest tenure on silvicultural investment and the quality of forest practices. The results show that variations in silvicultural investment and forest practice are strongly related to the specific characteristics of forest tenure. Variations in land value, silvicultural investment and productivity are attributed to differences in tenure characteristics: a strong and complete form of tenure leads to high land value, high investment and high outputs. Policy implications of this thesis are discussed, and research needs are identified. === Forestry, Faculty of === Graduate