Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Timber Production Efficiency Analysis

  • Chapter
Forests in a Market Economy

Part of the book series: Forestry Sciences ((FOSC,volume 72))

Abstract

The term efficiency is widely used in economics to describe an optimal allocation of resources and is promoted as one logical economic goal for individuals, firms, and societies. In the simplest sense, efficiency means making the most out of what you have—minimizing waste of scarce resources. In this chapter we describe how one might go about thinking of both technical and economic, or productive, efficiency in a theoretical framework, as well as provide an overview of empirical techniques used to estimate productive efficiency levels of individual firms. The technical efficiency of southern U.S. logging firms is examined as a case study.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 169.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Literature Cited

  • Aigner, D.J., C.A.K. Lovell, and P. Schmidt. 1977. Formulation and estimation of stochastic frontier production function models. J. Econometrics 6: 21–37.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Banker, R., A. Charnes, and W. Cooper. 1984. Some models for estimating technical and scale efficiencies in data envelopment analysis. Manage. Sci. 30: 1078–1092.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Battese, G.E., and G.S. Corra. 1977. Estimation of a production frontier model: With application to the pastoral zone of eastern Australia. Austra. J. Agri. Econ. 21: 169–179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brännlund, R., R. Fare, and S. Grosskopf. 1995. Environmental regulation and profitability: An application to Swedish pulp and paper mills. Environ. Res. Econ. 6: 23–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carter, D.R., and F.W. Cubbage. 1994. Technical efficiency and industry evolution insouthern U.S. pulpwood harvesting. Can. J. For. Res. 24(2): 217–224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carter, D.R., and F.W. Cubbage. 1995. Stochastic frontier estimation and sources of technical efficiency in southern timber harvesting. For. Sci. 41(3): 576–593.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chambers, R.G. 1988. Applied production analysis: A dual approach. Cambridge University Press. New York, Ny. 331 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Charnes, A., W. Cooper, and E. Rhodes. 1978. Measuring the efficiency of decision making units. Eur. J. Oper. Res. 2: 429–444.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Coelli, T., D.S.P. Rao, and G.E. Battese. 1998. An introduction to efficiency and productivity analysis. Kluwer Academic. Boston, MA. 275 p.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Cubbage, F.W., and D.R. Carter. 1994. Productivity and cost changes in southern pulpwood harvesting, 1979 to 1987. So. J. Appl. For. 18(2): 83–90.

    Google Scholar 

  • Debreu, G. 1951. The coefficient of resource utilization. Econometrica 19(3): 273–292.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fare, R., S. Grosskopf, C.A.K. Lovell, and C. Pasurka. 1989. Multilateral productivity comparisons when some outputs are undesirable: A nonparametric approach. Rev. Econ. Stat. 71: 90–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fare, R., S. Grosskopf, C.A.K. Lovell, and S. Yaisawarng. 1993. Derivation of shadow prices for undesirable outputs: A distance function approach. Rev. Econ. Stat. 75: 374–380.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Färe, R., S. Grosskopf, and C.A.K. Lovell. 1994. Production frontiers. Cambridge University Press, New York, Ny. 296 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Farrell, M.J. 1957. The measurement of production efficiency. J. Royal Stat. Soc. Series A 120: 257–281.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fried, H.O., C.A.K Lovell, and S.S. Schmidt (Eds.). 1993. The measurement of productive efficiency: Techniques and applications. Oxford University Press. New York, Ny. 426 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grebner, D.L., and G.S. Amacher. 2000. The impacts of deregulation and privatization on cost efficiency in New Zealand’s forest industry. For. Sci. 46(1): 40–51.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hetemäki, L. 1996. Essays on the impact of pollution control on a firm: A distance function approach. Finnish Forest Research Institute. Res. Pap. 609. 166 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jondrow, J., C.A.K. Lovell, I.S. Materov, and P. Schmidt. 1982. On the estimation of technical inefficiency in the stochastic frontier production function model. J. Econometrics 19: 233–238.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kao, C., and Y. Yang. 1991. Measuring the efficiency of forest management. For. Sci. 37(5): 1239–1252.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kao, C., and Y. Yang. 1992. Reorganization of forest districts via efficiency measurement. Eur. J. Oper. Res. 58: 356–362.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kao, C., P. Chang, and S. Hwang. 1993. Data envelopment analysis in measuring the efficiency of forest management. J. Enviro. Manage. 38: 73–83.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kao, C. 2000. Measuring the performance improvement of Taiwan forests after reorganization. For. Sci. 46(4): 577–584.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kumbhakar, S.C., and C.A.K. Lovell. 2000. Stochastic frontier analysis. Cambridge University Press. New York, Ny. 333 p.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, L., and W.G. Tyler. 1978. The stochastic frontier production function and average efficiency. J. Econometrics 7: 385–389.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lovell, C.A.K. 1993. Production frontiers and productive efficiency. P. 3–67 in The measurement of productive efficiency, H.O. Fried, C. A. K. Lovell, and S. S. Schmidt (eds.). Oxford University Press. New York, Ny.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meeusen, W., and J. Van Den Broeck. 1977. Efficiency estimation for Cobb-Douglas production functions with composed error. Int. Econ. Rev. 18: 435–444.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pittman, R. 1981. Issues in pollution interplant cost differences and economies of scale. Land Econ. 57(1): 1–17.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pittman, R. 1983. Multilateral productivity comparisons with undesirable outputs. Econ. J. 93: 883–891.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rhodes, E. 1986. An exploratory analysis of variations in performance among U.S. national parks. P. 47–71 in Measuring efficiency: An assessment of data envelopment analysis, R. Silkman (ed.). Jossey-Bass. San Francisco, Ca.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shephard, R.W. 1953. Cost and production functions. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ. 104 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shephard, R.W. 1970. Theory of cost and production functions. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ. 308 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Siry, J.P., and D.H. Newman. 2001. A stochastic production frontier analysis of Polish state forests. For. Sci. 47(4): 526–533.

    Google Scholar 

  • Viitala, E., and H. HĂ„Nninen. 1998. Measuring the efficiency of nonprofit forestry organizations. For. Sci. 44 (2): 298–307.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yin, R. 1998. Dea: A new methodology for evaluating the performance of forest products producers. For. Prod. J. 48(1): 29–34.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yin, R. 2000. Alternative measurements of productive efficiency in the global bleached softwood pulp sector. For. Sci. 46(4): 558–569.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Florida, USA

    Douglas R. Carter & Jacek P. Siry

  2. North Carolina State University, USA

    Douglas R. Carter & Jacek P. Siry

Authors
  1. Douglas R. Carter
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jacek P. Siry
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Forestry, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA

    Erin O. Sills (Assistant Professor) (Assistant Professor)

  2. Southern Research Station, USDA Forest Service, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA

    Karen Lee Abt (Research Economist) (Research Economist)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2003 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Carter, D.R., Siry, J.P. (2003). Timber Production Efficiency Analysis. In: Sills, E.O., Abt, K.L. (eds) Forests in a Market Economy. Forestry Sciences, vol 72. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-0219-5_7

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-0219-5_7

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-6177-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-017-0219-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation