Sustainability of Canada's forest sector, estimating economic depreciation of Canada's timber resources

by Tamai, Satoshi

With increasing public concerns over sustainable development, the incorporation of environmental and natural capital into national accounting systern is one of the most important challenges to be investigated in economics. This study estirnated economic depreciation of Canada's timber resources for 1970-93, Two main methods are used to calculate the depreciation: the net price approach and the Vincent-Hartwick approach that accounts for the age-class distribution in Canada's forests. This study also shows the measurement of Canada's forest sector's sustainability using weak sustainability indicators: environmentally adjusted NDP and net investment. It is very difficult to conclude whether or not Canada's forest sector was sustainable during the period since two weak sustainability indicators provide different conclusions.