Editorial
Dear
friends,
The
Eucalyptus Newsletter number 05 is arriving. As usual, it is plenty
of information and knowledge about the Eucalyptus.
Fortunately, this is our mission. I hope you enjoy what we have brought
to you.
In this issue, I have added a historical sequence about the Eucalyptus
in Brazil. The purpose was not to exhaust the subject, since I have the
idea to come back again with this theme. Also, due to the importance
the Eucalyptus are gaining in Asia, as forest plantations and sources
of wood raw material, I'm providing several references of euca-links
for your navigation on top quality information about Eucalyptus in several
Asian countries.
Now-a-days,
another very important topic is the one related to the environmental
aspects
of plantations and pulp and paper mills performances. In this
edition, I decided to offer to you the chance to read several Sustainability
and Environmental Reports from pulp and paper mills that are planting
Eucalyptus and/or using their woods and fibers for pulp and paper manufacture.
These
reports are very rich on information’s and images. Sure, they will
be very helpful to you.
As important as, is the issue related to the fragility of the forest
plantations to pests and diseases. These threats are gaining importance
due to the raising percentage of cloned plantations. In these situations,
many times, huge areas are planted with a single genome. Certainly, in
such way, the potential risk for pests and diseases attacks are increased.
In this newsletter we will provide references on books and links about
the main diseases of the Eucalyptus. In next newsletter, we'll come with
references about insects and other pests.
We are also bringing to you some statistical reports and eucalyptus
guidebooks, as references for your access and downloading. They are freely
available in the web. Remember, these basic information are very much
needed in our daily technical life. Have a look on them.
In case you like these Euca-Links, please download the files as soon
as possible, since the web is very dynamic, and websites are always being
changed, updated or restructured.
My
mini-article this time deals with the pioneering introduction and the
successful history
of Eucalyptus in Brazil. It consists in a part
and adaptation of an article I've sent to be published in the Brazilian
Visao Agricola magazine. This journal has a full issue dedicated to the
plantation forests in Brazil. Amazing articles and a precious magazine
published by the E.S.A."Luiz de Queiroz", from the University
of Sao Paulo.
To the eucalyptus bleached pulp producers I'm bringing some fresh news.
The Pulp and Paper Research Institute of Canada - PAPRICAN is launching
an inter-laboratory program for the evaluation of pulp quality (refining
and strength properties). This type of comparative evaluations is welcome
since it allows standardization and calibration of procedures.
Just in case you are not registered yet to receive the Newsletter, and
the book chapters attached to it, when they are made available, do it
immediately. There are no costs involved. Please, use the short cut Click
here to register. Please, accept my most sincere thanks for supporting
our work when accessing regularly our websites.
In case I may eventually count with your help, please, send a recommendation
to your friends who have the same level of interest for the eucalyptus,
suggesting them to register to receive these virtual publications. Thanks
for this cooperation.
Remember, this is a no-cost service offered to you. What we want is
to provide good benefits to the users.
Thanks for everything
Celso Foelkel
http://www.celso-foelkel.com.br
http://www.eucalyptus.com.br
Lots
of
Euca Links
The websites we are suggesting as links are not ours. Their contents
are not our responsibility. Our suggestion is based on the fact
that they are offering good technical material that we feel could
be valuable to you. In case you do not agree with their contents,
please get in touch directly to their web addresses. Please, be
patient when opening some of the suggested URLs. They may take
some minutes
due to the fact some files are very heavy. In case the URL does
not open in your first attempt, try it again, one or more times.
In case of heavy files, this is a common problem in the internet
use. Since most of the URLs are contemplating pdf files, you are
recommended to have Adobe
Acrobat Reader in your computer. Please,
give some minutes of your precious time for these links, you are
not to feel sorry.
The
History of the Eucalyptus in Brazil
The Eucalyptus were introduced in Brazil just a couple of years more
than a century. In that country, these magic trees were received with
a great favorable environment and with a lot of care and science for
studies and researches. The result was fast: the Eucalyptus planted
forests in Brazil are reaching the most impressive productivity rates
in the entire world. Although timidly in the beginning, the Eucalyptus
started being more used as ornamental trees, soon their abilities to
become a source of valuable wood was discovered. The title of father
of the Eucalyptus cultivation in Brazil has been given to Mr. Edmundo
Navarro de Andrade. His story of challenges and success (but also threats
and barriers) has been published in several books and articles. The
original plantations were oriented to the production of firewood, poles,
fences, railway sleepers, and other utilization’s for the Paulista
Railways Company, in the State of Sao Paulo / Brazil. Some decades
ahead, the eucalyptus have been converted to the main source of wood
to a number of different utilizations in the country: charcoal to the
steel industry, pulp and paper, panels, veneers, furniture, saw-timber,
fiber-boards, etc.
Have a look in this history through the following euca-links:
Master
Thesis "O
plantador de Eucalyptus: a questao da preservacao
florestal no Brasil e o resgate documental do legado de Edmundo Navarro
de Andrade", presented at the University of Sao Paulo
by Mr. Augusto Jeronimo Martini (In Portuguese):
http://www.ipef.br/servicos/teses/arquivos/martini,aj.pdf
Article "Sinopse
historica da Companhia Paulista de Estradas de Ferro" by
Mr. Joao Baptista Soares de Faria Lago (In Portuguese):
http://www.geocities.com/jblago/cpef_historia.html
Article "Navarro
de Andrade" , a historical writing by friends of the
Paulista Railways Company (In Portuguese, with amazing pictures):
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Street/2376/navarro.html
Article "Um
pouco mais sobre meio ambiente e Edmundo Navarro de Andrade"by
Mr. Augusto Martini in the website of the digital newspaper "Canal
Rio Claro" (In Portuguese):
http://www.canalrioclaro.com.br/colunas/?coluna=473
Article "A
introducao do eucalipto no Brasil completa 100 anos" by
Mr. Augusto Martini in the website of the digital newspaper "Canal
Rio Claro" (In Portuguese):
http://www.canalrioclaro.com.br/colunas/?coluna=61
Website
about the "Museu
do Eucalipto" (Eucalyptus Museum), in Rio Claro/SP
(In Portuguese):
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Street/4741/museurc.html
Pulp
and Paper Manufacturers Sustainability and Environmental Reports
The
forest based companies that are utilizing the eucalyptus wood as
source of raw materials are forest planters. They are using a renewable
raw material to manufacture their products. The growth of these forests
and the harvesting of the wood and forest production are performed
under strict environmental parameters. The same happens in the mill
operations. In recent decades, these companies have developed, together
with the universities and research institutes, environmentally sound
technologies to guarantee sustainability and environmental protection
in these activities. Some of these achievements are showed in the
sustainability and environmental reports they are used to publish
every year. This is a way to open results, efficiencies and behavior
to the society. These reports also provide company performances and
targets in environmental and social issues, and financial results.
All the pillars of the sustainable development. By the way, these
companies are included in a business and they want and they need
to be successful. Some companies have developed specific environmental
and/or social reports. Some others prefer to include these data
in the Annual Report oriented to inform the general stakeholders.
As a rule, these reports are pieces of art, with amazing images and
very comprehensive data. This time, we are providing references to
the pulp and paper companies that are planting eucalyptus forests,
and/or utilizing the wood and fibers in their industrial activities.
Some of the reports are in Portuguese, Spanish and/or English. The
order of presentation is merely alphabetic, no preferences and no
ranking is aimed:
April
- Sustainability Report 2004 ( 2.7 MB - English )
http://www.aprilasia.com/csr/SR2004_final.pdf
Aracruz
- Sustainability Reports 2005 ( 2.8 MB - Portuguese
/ English )
http://www.aracruz.com.br/ra-2005/shared/rs2005_pt.pdf (Portuguese)
http://www.aracruz.com.br/ra-2005/shared/rs2005_en.pdf (English)
Aracruz - Annual Reports 2005 ( 1.17 MB - Portuguese
/ English )
http://www.aracruz.com.br/ra-2005/shared/ra2005_pt.pdf (Portuguese)
http://www.aracruz.com.br/ra-2005/shared/ra2005_en.pdf (English)
Aracruz - Sustainability Report 2004 ( 0.84 MB - English
)
http://www.corporateregister.com/data/showp.pl?num=12338
Arauco
- Memoria Anual 2005 ( 39.9 MB - Spanish /English
)
http://www.celco.cl/pdf/Memoria_2005.pdf
Botnia
- Environmental Reports and Balance Sheets 2005 (English
)
http://www.botnia.com/en/default.asp?path=204;215;270;272
Botnia - Annual Report 2005 ( 2.35 MB- English )
http://metsabotnia-new.visualsystems.com/en/default.asp?path=204;208;210;380;1100;1198
CENIBRA
- Annual and Sustainability Report 2005 ( 9.8 MB -
Portuguese
/ English )
http://www.cenibra.com.br/cenibra/Cenibra/RelatorioAnual2005.pdf
CMPC
Chile - Memoria Anual 2005 ( about 3.70 MB - Spanish
/English )
http://www.cmpc.cl/esp/documentos/memoria_2005/M_CMPC.pdf (Spanish)
http://www.cmpc.cl/eng/docs/annual_report_2005/M_CMPC_ING.pdf (English)
CMPC
Chile - Memoria Social Ambiental 2003 ( Spanish /English)
http://www.cmpc.cl/esp/documentos/memoria_social/cmpc_memoria_social_ambiental_2003.pdf (
3.5 MB - Spanish )
http://www.cmpc.cl/eng/docs/se_annualreport2003.pdf (
1.4 MB English )
ENCE
- Informe Anual 2004 ( 24.7 MB - Spanish /English)
http://www.ence.es/english/documentacion/documentacion.html
ENCE
- Memoria de Sostenibilidad 2003 ( 1.44 MB - Spanish )
http://www.ence.es/pdfs/memoria_sostenibilidad_2003.pdf
ENCE
- Environmental Report/Informe Medio Ambiental 2002 ( 2.8 MB -
Spanish /English)
http://www.ence.es/english/documentacion/documentacion.html
Fuji
Xerox - Sustainability Report 2005 ( 8.56 MB - English )
http://www.fujixerox.co.jp/eng/sr/booklet/pdf/2005e.pdf
Jari
- Annual Reports from 1999 till 2004 (
Portuguese
/ English
)
http://www.jari.com.br/web/pt/perfil/ra/index.htm
Klabin - Social & Environmental Report 2005 (
2.94 MB -
Portuguese
/ English)
http://www.klabin.com.br/upload/br/relacoesinvestidores/relatorioanual/RSA_2005.pdf
MONDI
Packaging - Sustainable Development Report 2004 ( 805 KB - English
)
http://www.mondipackaging.com/uploads/mondi_sd_report_2004_en.pdf
MONDI
Business Paper - Business Performance & Sustainable Review
( 1.06 MB - English )
http://www.mondibp.com/uploads/
FINAL_MBP_Business_Performance_and_Sustainability_Review_2004_600.pdf
OJI
Paper - Sustainable Report 2005 ( 484 KB - English )
http://www.ojipaper.co.jp/english/sustainability/e_report/pdf/2005/report_con06.pdf
Portucel
/ Soporcel - Annual Report 2005 ( 5.7 MB - English)
http://www.portucelsoporcel.com/downloads/public/annual_reports/Annual_Report_2005_8_Junho_PDF.pdf
Portucel / Soporcel - Environmental Report 2004 ( Portuguese
/ English )
http://www.portucelsoporcel.com/downloads/public/miscelaneous/Sustentabilidade_PTG.pdf (Portuguese)
http://www.portucelsoporcel.com/downloads/public/miscelaneous/Sustainability_ENG.pdf (English)
SAPPI - Sustainability Report 2004 ( 1.66 MB - English
)
http://www.sappi.com/NR/rdonlyres/313E9907-1D6E-4C3C-ABA4-781293243B6B/0/2004SDReport.pdf
Smurfit
Carton de Colombia ( Indicadores de sostenibilidad 2005 - Spanish
)
http://www.smurfit.com.co/modules.php?op=modload&name=PagEd&file=index&topic_id=0&page_id=60
Stora
Enso - Sustainability Report 2005 ( 7.13 MB - English )
http://www.storaenso.com/CDAvgn/showDocument/0,,3877,00.pdf
Suzano
- Annual & Sustainability Reports 2005 ( Portuguese
/ English)
http://www.suzano.com.br/rao2006/PDF/RA_papel_celulose.pdf (
9.7 MB - Portuguese )
http://www.suzano.com.br/rao2006/en/PDF/R_A_ing.pdf (
5.8 MB - English)
Torras
Papel - Memoria de Medio Ambiente 2004 ( 4.86 MB - Spanish
/ English
)
http://www.torraspapel.es/NR/TPF/TPF_pdf/MedioAmbiente/memoria_ma_torraspapel2004.pdf
VERACEL
- Relatorio de Sustentabilidade 2005 ( 4.17 MB - Portuguese
)
http://www.veracel.com.br/shared/rsdf2005_v2.pdf
VERACEL
- Annual Report 2003 ( 2.22 MB - English )
http://www.veracel.com.br/shared/ra.pdf
Votorantim
Celulose e Papel - VCP - Annual & Sustainability Reports from 2001
till 2004 and 2005 ( Portuguese / English )
http://www.vcp.com.br/Institucional/Relatorio+Anual/default.htm (Portuguese)
http://www.vcp.com.br/English/Institutional/Annual+Report/default.htm (English)
Technical
and Statistical Literature from ABRAF - The Brazilian Association of
Planted Forests Producers
ABRAF
is the Brazilian Association of Planted Forests Producers. It has
as members the most important companies in Brazil
planting Eucalyptus and Pinus species, among others. The forests are
planted as sources of wood to move several type of businesses. The
ABRAF headquarter is located in Brasilia, the country capital. However,
an electronic address (www.abraflor.org.br)
allows anyone to obtain valuable information about the plantations.
In the website there are
available for downloads very interesting materials, as the following:
Speeches
of the event "100 Anos de Florestas Plantadas no Brasil" ("100
Years of Planted Forests in Brazil")
http://www.abraflor.org.br/100anos
"Anuario
Estatistico da ABRAF - 2005" ( ABRAF Statistics Yearbook -
2005 ) - In Portuguese:
http://www.abraflor.org.br/estatisticas/anuario-ABRAF-2006.pdf
Eucalyptus
in Asia
It
is being fantastic the growth on area and productivity in the forest
plantations in Asia. This is an obvious need, as a result from
the economic development in many countries in that region. Wood
domestic consumption is growing for several purposes, and new plantations
are being demanded and required. Forest technologies are also being
adapted and created to promote fast growing in the new planted
areas. Those, who are far from Asia, cannot imagine the boom of
plantations and forest technological development over there. Several
are the countries involved on this: India, China, Philippines,
Thailand, Malaysia,
Vietnam, Indonesia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, Nepal,
and others. In this section of the Eucalyptus Newsletter, I'm placing
several euca-links to help you to find valuable information about
what is going on in Asia with the Eucalyptus.
First, to introduce the theme, we'll offer the opportunity to your
visit to some general technical documents. These suggested websites
are rich on information from different Asian countries, and the forest
subjects are also very variable and generic.
The
first recommendation is to read two virtual technical books edited
by the FAO - Food
and Agriculture Organization. They are the
Proceedings of the "FAO Regional Expert Consultation
on Eucalyptus" .
Volume I and Volume II. The event was sponsored by the FAO regional
office to Asia and Pacific Region, and it was held in 1993. These
books bring news about the eucalyptus in Asia under many aspects:
statistics, growth rates, environmental and social issues, etc. Please,
have a look:
Volume
I:http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/docrep/005/ac777e/ac777e00.htm
Volume
II: http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/docrep/005/ac772e/ac772e00.HTM
Another
virtual book about the Eucalyptus is also available in the web,
and it is a very good one. The book corresponds to the proceedings
of an important event which was held at the Popular Republic of China,
in Zhanjiang / Guangdong, in the year 2003. This event was co-sponsored
by the China Eucalyptus Research Centre and three Australian Research
Institutes: CSIRO Forestry and Forest Products, Forest Science Centre
and Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR).
The event was named "Eucalyptus in Asia".
The technical document is about 1.45 MB, written in English and available
through
this address:
http://www.aciar.gov.au/web.nsf/
att/JFRN-6BN9BD/$file/pr111.pdf
Another very good forestry workshop
was held in South Africa, in 1998. Several papers were presented
about plantations,
and some of them about the eucalyptus. Since the event was global,
there are many possibilities to compare data from Asia with data
from South America, Europe, Africa, and other regions. The forest
workshop was organized by the CIFOR - Center for International Forestry,
an Indonesian organization. The event was titled "Site Management
and Productivity in Tropical Plantation Forests". The access
is possible through the following direction:
http://www.cifor.cgiar.org/publications/pdf_files/Books/StMgnt.pdf
Another interesting article was written
by Mr. Henry Scheyvens and presented in the event "Sustainable Asia 2005
and Beyond". The paper comments about the forest management
and forest trends in several Asia countries. Visit it at:
http://enviroscope.iges.or.jp/modules/envirolib/upload/267/attach/FC-05-013.pdf
Offering
information about tropical countries, including several Asian countries,
is the technical report edited by the ITTO - International
Tropical Timber Organization. The report title is "Status
of Tropical Forest Management 2005". In this document,
there are forestry reports about 33 countries, all ITTO members.
The report
has about 5 MB, and it is possible to be accessed at the following
address:
http://www.itto.or.jp/live/PageDisplayHandler?pageId=270
Some individual analysis extracted from the ITTO
report and from other sources are presented ahead, providing useful
information about some important countries in Asia. In most of them,
the eucalyptus are finding room for growth:
Asia & Pacific
Region
http://www.itto.or.jp/live/Live_Server/1225/AsiaPacific.e.pdf
http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/DOCREP/005/AC778E/AC778E00.HTM
China
http://www.forest-trends.org/documents/publications/
China%20and%20the%20Global%20Forest%20Market-Forest%20Trends.pdf
http://research.yale.edu/gisf/assets/pdf/tfd/impf/china1/
Xie%20Forestry%20in%20Leizhou%20TFD%20IMPF%20China%204.06.pdf (excellent
images)
http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/environment/forestry/pubs/forestry_emerging_trends.pdf
http://www.forest-trends.org/documents/meetings/Beijing_2004_sept/Christian%20Cossalter.ppt
http://research.yale.edu/gisf/assets/pdf/tfd/ifm/Word_Bank_report.pdf
http://www.forestry.ubc.ca/cbom/articles/achinamarketprofileforwoodproducts.pdf
http://www.state.sc.us/forest/fprodchi.pdf
http://www.aciar.gov.au/web.nsf/att/JFRN-6BN9E8/$file/ias30.pdf (Eucalypt
tree improvement in China)
India
http://www.itto.or.jp/live/Live_Server/1239/India.e.pdf
Indonesia
http://www.itto.or.jp/live/Live_Server/1240/Indonesia.e.pdf
Philippines
http://www.itto.or.jp/live/Live_Server/1244/Philippines.e.pdf
Malaysia
http://www.itto.or.jp/live/Live_Server/1241/Malaysia.e.pdf
Thailand
http://www.itto.or.jp/live/Live_Server/1245/Thailand.e.pdf
http://www.forest-trends.org/documents/publications/Thailand_Final_Report_6-10-05.pdf
Eucalyptus
Diseases
Until
some time ago, the Eucalyptus were renowned and admired by their
strong resistance to pests and diseases. Today, the advance
on the silvicultural practices and in tree breeding has enabled the
plantation of cloned forests. The consequence is an enormous reduction
on the genetic variability in the plantations. Few clones are planted,
and most of the new forest parcels are based on monogenomic seedlings.
Because of this fact, cloned plantations may become more fragile
and more sensitive to pests and diseases. Even considering the emphasis
given to the tree breeders, searching tree individuals that may show
resistance to the known diseases, there is always a risk for a
new or a modified
pathogen.
In
this edition of the Eucalyptus
Newsletter we are
giving references of books and web literature about the most common
eucalyptus diseases.
The references are based on publications from Brazil, Asia & Australia.
Next Eucalyptus Newsletter will be dedicated to the same kind of
service, but with focus in insects attacks.
As book references, we would mention the following:
"Diagnose
Visual e Controle de Doencas Abioticas e Bioticas do Eucalipto
no Brasil" ( In Portuguese and with many illustrations)
Edited in 2003 by International Paper do Brasil, the authors are
Mr. Doraci Milani & Mr. Francisco Alves Ferreira
https://ssl8.locaweb.com.br/livraria2/produtos.asp?produto=650
"Clonagem
e Doencas do Eucalipto" (in Portuguese, with many pictures)
Edited in 2004 by the UFV Press, the authors are Mr. Acelino Couto
Alfenas, Mr. Edival A. Valverde Zauza, Mr. Reginaldo Goncalves Mafia,
Mr. Teotonio Francisco de Assis
https://ssl8.locaweb.com.br/livraria2/produtos.asp?produto=672
"Diseases
and Pathogens of Eucalypts" ( in English, and well illustrated)
Edited by the CSIRO Publishing from Australia, the authors
are P.J. Keane, G.A. Kile, F.D. Podger & B.N. Brown
http://www.publish.csiro.au/nid/18/pid/2484.htm#contents
In the following euca-links, please find available
web literature about diseases of eucalyptus plants in several countries:
Australia
http://path.murdoch.edu.au (
Program for Australian Tree Health)
http://www.publish.csiro.au/nid/39/paper/AP99045.htm
Brazil
" Seja o Doutor do seu Eucalipto" (Be the Doctor to your Eucalyptus" -
In Portuguese) - A Potafos publication- Associacao Brasileira para Pesquisa
da
Potassa e do Fosfato:
http://www.potafos.org/ppiweb/brazil.nsf/87cb8a98bf72572b8525693e0053ea70/
d5fbc829a2f54298832569f8004695c5/$FILE/Encarte%2093.pdf
" Doencas dos Eucaliptos" ("Eucalyptus Diseases" -
In Portuguese) - A Potafos publication- Associacao Brasileira para Pesquisa da
Potassa e do Fosfato:
http://www.potafos.org/ppiweb/brazil.nsf/87cb8a98bf72572b8525693e0053ea70/
d5fbc829a2f54298832569f8004695c5/$FILE/Enc26-32-93.pdf
" Doencas do Eucalipto no Sul do Brasil" ("Eucalyptus
Diseases in the South of Brazil" - In Portuguese) - An Embrapa Florestas
publication:
Technical paper nº 45: http://www.cnpf.embrapa.br/publica/gratcit.htm
Indonesia
http://www.cifor.cgiar.org/publications/pdf_files/Insect-pests.pdf
http://www.ansinet.org/fulltext/ppj/ppj3297-104.pdf
Thailand
http://www.dnp.go.th/foremic/fmo/fmoproject/IUFROnair.pdf
E-Monitor
for the Eucalyptus Pulps
Among
the many technical services provided by the Pulp & Paper Reasearch
Institute of Canada - PAPRICAN to its members and customers, there
are those related to the evaluation and
standardization on pulp quality. Recently, the institute decided
to include a special program about Eucalyptus worldwide bleached
kraft pulps. The inter-laboratory evaluation program is named E-Monitor
Eucalyptus. Under the guidance of Mr. Pierre Simon, the program aims
to give reliability and trustness in the laboratoty evaluation of
the eucalyptus pulp qualities.
More information are available at:
http://www.paprican.ca/wps/portal/paprican/util?lang=en&extsrc=AS_QAS
http://www.celso-foelkel.com.br/artigos/outros/E-monitor%20Eucalyptus.%20Paprican.pdf
Technical
Mini Article by Celso Foelkel
The
Eucalyptus in Brazil
In the past decades, Brazil was
capable to develop a fantastic technology to grow Eucalyptus
planted forests. We are
able to make them grow fast and to produce tailor-made wood, with
properties adapted to different end-uses. The jump in productivity
was also amazing: from average growth rates below 20 m³/ha.year
in the 60’s to about 40 - 55 m³/ha.year in the first
half of the 2000’s. The planted forests were improved for
wood production (and other forest products) to several industrial
businesses, and also to provide wood to the rural farmers. Thanks
to the Eucalyptus plantations and to the quality of their products,
Brazil is deserving admiration in the forestry world. Brazil is
being seen as competitive and talented, having one of the most
modern forestry technology in a world basis. This is very outstanding
to us Brazilians, but it also gives us an enormous level of responsibility.
We are having good success with the Eucalyptus and Pinus, but we
also have other trees with a lot of potential: Acacia, Tectona,
Mimosa, Araucaria, etc. In all cases, the generation of incomes
and business results to those involved is being satisfactory. It’s
known that plantation forests are responsible for an important
generation of the country’s wealth. Recently, the ABRAF – Brazilian
Association of Planted Forests Producers has ranked the plantation
forest sector of Brazil as being responsible for 4% of the Brazilian
GDP. This is very impressive, since this segment is relatively
very young as a business in the country. The genus Eucalyptus has
a fundamental role in this process. For this reason, this article
aims to bring some historical information about its challenges
and achievements. This is the first part of this story, the second
will come in another issue of the Eucalyptus Newsletter.
The origins
Edmundo Navarro de Andrade, the father of the Eucalyptus cultivation
in Brazil, was able to write several and valuable books about
the Eucalyptus. With a simple and easy-reading style, his books
are still very useful. Unfortunately, they are not very much
handled or used by the today’s generation of forest engineers in
the country. I have the privilege to own one original from the first edition
(1939) of the "O Eucalipto" (The Eucalyptus). I have also the
second edition of this book (1961), which had a complementary revision
by Armando Navarro Sampaio. Another
of Edmundo’s books was "Manual do Plantador de Eucaliptos" (A
handbook to the Eucalyptus planter), in 1911. I’m very
fortunate to have all of them. Several of his books appeared
in early 1900’s, except the second edition of the Eucalyptus
bible "O
Eucalipto". This revision of the original book was dedicated
to the commemoration for the Second World Eucalyptus Conference,
which took place in Sao Paulo, in 1961. We still have a lot to
learn from these original knowledges, to be added to the today’s
generation of scientific and technological production at the
universities, institutes and forest companies. Thanks to this,
we are being able to build our future in the plantation forestry
business. According to Navarro de Andrade, the Eucalyptus arrived
in South America in 1823, in Chile, thanks to some seedlings
disembarked from a British sailing ship. It’s difficult
to have the exact time the Eucalyptus first arrived in Brazil.
This is a controversial issue. There are several possibilities:
Rio de Janeiro in 1855 or 1865; Rio Grande do Sul, 1868, etc.
In the Navarro de Andrade’s notes, he mentions that any
of these possibilities are feasible to be true. However, there
are no historical data to support them. There is also another
earlier possibility, further before these already mentioned dates.
In 1825, there is a chance that two Eucalyptus gigantea trees
had been planted in the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden. Navarro
de Andrade had also other notes, indicating planted seedlings
in the Sao Paulo state from 1861 to 1863. Independently when
or where, the important fact is that the Eucalyptus arrived in
Brazil sometime from 1825 to 1868. The initial trees were from
the species E.globulus and E.gigantea. In the
beginning, the trees had ornamental purposes, or used as wind
barriers, or even
oriented to the production of odorous essential oils. However,
the planted trees soon proved to be vigorous, resistant and productive.
For these reasons, Navarro de Andrade decided to consider and
to recommend the Eucalyptus as potential wood resource to the
Paulista
Railways Company. The railways was demanding wood as fuel, and
for poles, sleepers, fences, etc. And the demand was huge.
The economy of the planted forests: 1903 – 1960
Armando Navarro Sampaio was the substitute to continue the Edmundo’s
work after his death. The introduction of the Eucalyptus for commercial
purposes in Brazil was made possible thanks to a lot of determination,
tenacity and enthusiasm coming from these two men.
Edmundo
had had his graduation in agronomy in Coimbra/Portugal, in the
year 1902. Just after been graduated, in 1903, he started
with Paulista Railways, as director of the Jundiai Forest Garden,
in the state of Sao Paulo. In December 1904, he started his studies
planting collections of homogeneous stands of Eucalyptus in that
Forest Garden. As a consequence of these first studies, he had
no doubts: he recommended the Eucalyptus as the new source of wood
raw material to the railways company. Paulista Co. decided to support
him in this challenge. A larger area was bought in the Rio Claro
municipality, oriented to the plantation trials with new species
of the Eucalyptus. From 1910 to 1919, Edmundo was able to build
a collection with 123 species of Eucalyptus in Rio Claro. Other
additions of species and provenances continued to happen there,
and in other places.
Navarro
de Andrade was a simple and hardworking person. Although renowned
today and acclaimed as the father of
the Brazilian modern
silviculture, he faced strong criticism, coming mainly from farmers
and politicians. Despite the opposition, he continued his work.
Paulista Co. bought new areas for plantations. The company’s
purpose was to have the firewood available wherever it would be
needed to fuel the locomotives. Sao Paulo state agricultural area
and landscape started to be modified. Dispersed in the agricultural
crops areas, the Eucalyptus plantations started to be noticed.
In 1941, the year of Edmundo’s death, there were estimates
of about 24 million of Eucalyptus planted trees in Sao Paulo, only
by Paulista Railways Co. In 1960, this number was 46.5 million.
The success of the original task had been achieved, no doubt about.
The plantations in Sao Paulo state were good examples to other
Brazilian regions. Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais
had also good experiences on growing plantations with the Eucalyptus.
The initial species being intensively planted in Brazil were: E.saligna,
E.botryoides, E.viminalis, E.tereticornis, E.robusta, E.alba, E.grandis,
E.paniculata, Corymbia citriodora, Corymbia maculata, E.camaldulensis,
E.pilularis, E.propinqua, E.microcoris, E.triantha, E.punctata,
among others. Hybridization was also known, since that time. In
Sao Paulo, there was a productive and vigorous hybrid known as
Eucalyptus "paulistana", a natural hybrid between E.globulus and E.robusta.
Since
the early stages of the Eucalyptus silviculture in Brazil, it
was possible to notice the ability of the trees to provide wood
for several purposes: firewood, charcoal, poles, structural and
construction lumber, pulp, paper, wood panels, etc. The trees could
also be source of essential oils, and flowers for the production
of honey. Magic trees, surely. The knowledge about silviculture,
genetics, soil fertilization, plant nutrition, appropriate weather
and environmental conditions, etc, etc was being very fast raised.
The foundations to the modern and competitive silviculture in Brazil
were definitively launched.
The historical success for the growth of the plantation silviculture
had several drivers. The first was the need for biomass fuel. After
that, the need of fibers to supply the pulp and paper industry.
Navarro de Andrade had a vision some years ahead of his time.
He was convinced that the Eucalyptus could pump the economy in
many segments in Brazil. One of them, it was the paper manufacturing
sector. In 1925, he took some samples and traveled to the Forest
Products Laboratory - FPL, in Madison, USA. The purpose was to
have the E.saligna and E.tereticornis wood samples tested for pulp
and paper by that institute. Again in December, but now in the
year 1925, the results arrived. Navarro de Andrade announced that
a new era was coming to the Brazilian pulp and paper industry.
His calculations, based on the FPL evaluations, could project production
costs reductions to half in the paper manufacturing. Amazing results,
but not to bring fast enthusiasm to the papermakers. Although Edmundo
had made several moves to convince the government and the paper
businessmen to build new paper mills using Eucalyptus, the road
of this success was paved little by little.
There are good reasons to believe that the first
paper mill (10 tons/day) using Eucalyptus wood in Brazil was
Gordinho, Braune & Co.,
in Jundiai, in the year 1927. Just reminding that Edmundo had started
his career in Jundiai in 1903. Two euca-goals to this city. The
manufactured paper had 75% Eucalyptus short fibers and 25% Araucaria
angustifolia long fibers.
Since
paper business depends a lot on proven technology, the initial
utilization has brought incentive to other users:
Matarazzo, Cicero
Prado, Melhoramentos, Suzano, Simao, etc. In the 1960’s,
a foreign company, Champion from USA, started up an astonishing
paper mill making more than 100 tons a day of paper: a source of
fibers was also the wood from Eucalyptus. Brazil had found its
way. Eucalyptus had become an important driver for this business.
In
1957, the Suzano company had the honor and privilege to pioneer
the manufacture of bleached paper having only Eucalyptus fibers
as fiber furnish. From late 50’s till now, Brazil started
to win its world cups, both in football and in the Eucalyptus pulp
and paper business.
...
( to be continued )
Literature
ANDRADE, E.N. - Manual do plantador de eucaliptos. Tipografia
Brasil de Rothschild, 343 p., 1911
ANDRADE,
E.N. – O eucalipto. Cia Paulista
de Estradas de Ferro. 667 p., 1961
MORA,
A . L. ; GARCIA, C.H. – A cultura do
eucalipto no Brasil. Sociedade Brasileira de Silvicultura, 112
p., 2000