Supply and Demand Situation of Wood-chips before and after the Increase in Power-plant Demand in the Chugoku Region

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  • OTSU Hirotaka
    The United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Tottori University, Tottori, Japan
  • YONE Yasumichi
    Faculty of Life and Environmental Science, Shimane University, Matsue, Japan
  • TAKAHASHI Erina
    Faculty of Life and Environmental Science, Shimane University, Matsue, Japan
  • KOIKE Koichiro
    Faculty of Life and Environmental Science, Shimane University, Matsue, Japan

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Other Title
  • 中国地方における発電需要増加前後の木質チップ需給実態
  • チュウゴク チホウ ニ オケル ハツデン ジュヨウ ゾウカ ゼンゴ ノ モクシツ チップ ジュキュウ ジッタイ

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Abstract

The Japanese government aims to raise the nation’s wood self-sufficiency to 50% by 2020 as stated in the 2009 Forest and Forestry Revitalization Plan. The consumption of wood biomass is expected to increase by creating a large-scale demand for powerplant fuel. Here, we examined the effects of increased bioenergy consumption on the wood-chip industry in the Chugoku region during recent years. We found that the ordered standards for wood chips differed considerably among clients. This multi-standard condition encouraged the wood-chip industry to add new checkpoints to control the quality of their products. Additionally, preferences for raw materials were biased toward hardwoods. The abrupt increase in the use of hardwood chips in 2015 coincided with an increased demand for fuel chips. Furthermore, our analysis of the wood-chip trading system suggested that foresters tend to new logging such as using low-quality parts for fuel while mainly producing pulp chips for hardwoods.

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