Mathematical formulation and exact solution for landing location problem in tropical forest selective logging, a case study in Southeast Cameroon

In Central Africa, creating forest roads and skid trails is one of the most costly and environmentally damaging operations for the forest's ecosystem. An optimized road network is essential for reducing construction costs and improving the sustainable management of timber resources. The location of landings is vital in the development of a future forest road network. In this study, a binary integer programming model similar to the uncapacitated facility location problem is formulated to optimize the locations of the landings. The model is applied to selective logging in Central Africa and tested on an annual logging zone in Southeast Cameroon. The results are compared to that of manual road planning, the currently used method. (C) 2011 Department of Forest Economics, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umea. Published by Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.