Timber Damage Assessment

Timber Damage Tables 2012-2013

The Joint Energy/Utility and Forest Industry Management Committee (JMC) has agreed to the update of the pricing used to develop the Timber Damage Assessment (TDA) Tables for 2012-2013.

Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD) has accepted the pricing information as submitted by the JMC and as posted on this web page for its own use in billing industrial and commercial land users for timber damages.

These TDA tables will remain in effect until replaced by the 2013-2014 tables.

Private parties may also choose to use the JMC’s TDA values as the basis for determining compensation for damages to timber but they are encouraged to undertake their own research in order to understand whether or not the tables are appropriate for their circumstances and then to use the tables at their own risk.

Determining timber damages for privately held rights is ultimately a matter for private negotiation between the affected parties.

Overview of the 2012–2013 JMC TDA Tables

• The 2012–2013 table updates consider pricing information obtained from ESRD’s Coniferous Timber Permit and Deciduous Timber Permit auctions, as well as information obtained on the pricing of arms-length private timber transactions for the years 2010 and 2011.
• The private transaction pricing was collected through a survey of Alberta Forest Management Agreement and Quota holders on the value and volume of their private and public timber sales transactions and on logging costs.
• The survey and the methodology for using the auction, private sales and cost data in developing the tables were developed under the direction of those representatives of the forest/energy/utility industries and their associations that form the JMC.
  • Alberta Joint Energy/Utility and Forest Industry Management Committee (JMC) - Terms of Reference– Jan 2012 (8 pages)
• For coniferous timber, the standing timber value for inclusion in the 2011-2012 tables is $9.56 per cubic metre. This is higher than the $8.98 per cubic metre on which the 2010-2011 TDA tables were based.
• For deciduous timber, the standing timber value for inclusion in the 2011-2012 tables is $3.38 per cubic metre. This is higher than the $2.21 per cubic metre on which the 2010-2011 TDA tables were based.

The JMC oversees preparation of the tables that provide users with TDA values and the standing volume for each of the Boreal and Foothills natural regions.

The following maps illustrate the areas included in the Boreal and Foothills Natural Regions:

• Map: Forest Management Agreements – Boreal and Foothills Natural Regions– (1 page)
• Map: Forest Management Agreements – Natural Subregions– (1 page)

Please note southern forest management units outside of the Foothills Region use the Foothills tables and forest management unit A13 use the Boreal tables.

Following are links to the tables developed under the oversight of the JMC as noted above:

Full Value TDA Tables

These tables provide an estimate of the average total value of coniferous and deciduous timber damages for each hectare by forest cover type. The amounts in these tables recognize the collective value of the standing timber, the associated annual allowable cut and the cost of future reforestation.

• Boreal Full Value Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• Foothills Full Value Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)

Standing Timber Value TDA Tables

These tables provide an estimate of the average value of coniferous and deciduous standing timber damages alone for each hectare by forest cover type.

• Boreal Standing Timber Value Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• Foothills Standing Timber Value Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)

Annual Allowable Cut (AAC) Value TDA Tables

These tables provide an estimate of the average value of coniferous and deciduous AAC timber damages for each hectare by forest cover type also in isolation from the other table components.

• Boreal Annual Allowable Cut Value Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• Foothills Annual Allowable Cut Value Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)

Reforestation Cost TDA Tables

These tables provide an estimate of the average value of coniferous and deciduous future reforestation costs that the JMC has agreed to include in the determination of timber damages for each hectare by forest cover type. This is in isolation from the other table components.

• Boreal Reforestation Cost Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• Foothills Reforestation Cost Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)

Stand Volume Tables

The stand volume tables provide an estimate of the average volume of coniferous and deciduous timber found on a hectare forest land for each forest cover type in Alberta. These averages are prepared separately for the Foothills and Boreal natural regions.

• Boreal Stand Volume Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• Foothills Stand Volume Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)

Average Value Tables

Depending on location, the Crown applies a provincial average TDA value for linear disturbances and non-linear disturbances that are less than 16 hectares in size. In 2012–2013, for Crown administered areas the provincial average TDA values will continue to be applied in these situations.

In the majority of cases, where the use is not a linear disturbance, and where the disturbance is greater than or equal to 16 hectares in size (usually large dispositions), the stand-by-stand values may be applied.

These tables provide provincial average TDA values that have been calculated for each FMA and for non-FMA lands and feed directly into ESRD’s calculation of its TDA billing rates.

• Average 2012 TDA Values– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• Average 2012 Coniferous TDA Values– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• Average 2012 Deciduous TDA Values– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)

Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ESRD) Calculation of TDA Billing Rates

ESRD bills only for its share of the coniferous TDA value and the appropriate associated coniferous or deciduous salvage timber dues. Any portion of the TDA value that belongs to an FMA holder will be addressed separately by the FMA holder.

Unless the FMA holder has agreed that ESRD should collect 100% of the timber dues, the holder will also collect timber dues on their share of the volume and remit it to ESRD at a later date.

The following is the current ESRD Billing Rate Table and additional information on how this table was calculated.

• ESRD 2012-2013 TDA Billing Rate Table– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• ESRD 2012-2013 Billing Rate Table Calculation Details– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)
• 2012-2013 Timber Dues Calculations by FMA– Jun 28, 2012 (1 page)

Geophysical TDA Calculation Update

The JMC has provided a recommendation to ESRD and ESRD agrees that TDA values will be set to zero for low impact seismic programs where:

• Program average line width is 2.0 metres or less.
• No category of line width (new, source, receiver) is greater than 2.75 metres.

All activity must employ best practices i.e. meandering avoidance, line of site to be a maximum of 200 metres, avoidance of merchantable timber where and when possible. Failure to achieve best practices will result in the line being billed at the full rate regardless of the line width. This general practice has been in place since 2009.

Contact

• Aniko Parnell, Section Head, Approvals and Assurance

To request copies of tables from previous years, contact:

• Land Management Branch
  Tel: 780 427-3570

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Updated: Aug 29, 2012