There are many ways for private forest owners (PFOs) to manage their properties. One way is to manage it by oneself, to use the individual approach; however, our focus is on a cooperative solution, which, in many cases, is much more challenging due to the incorporation of multiple players and the structure of their forests, not to mention the needs and objectives related to forest management. Cooperative forest management has different forms, as shown by numerous socio-economic theoretical and empirical findings. This paper discusses how the traditional organisational forms of cooperation among Lithuanian forest owners are operating and more specifically, how they are adopting their performance in addressing the goals of forest management. A case study is used to show how cooperation among private forest owners has been developing in Lithuania over recent years and finds some new forms of cooperational management.

During the first half of the 20 th century the Baltic States were independent democratic nations where private forest ownership was practiced. After annexation to the Soviet Union, individuals in the Baltic States lost their ownership rights and collective ownership was introduced. Currently, after the break-up of the Soviet Union, the land restitution process in the forest sector is coming to an end and the ownership pattern as well as tenure rights are settled. A survey was undertaken to investigate the current state of the private forest sector in general, and the needs and expectations of private forest owners (PFO). Results of the study indicated that for private forest owners their forests first of all provide aesthetic and environmental protection values. Lithuanian PFOs lack information of forests and forest management, face extensive bureaucracy and need help in protecting their forests from fires, diseases and timber thieves.

The current state of cooperation in private forestry in Lithuania is examined, with a focus on the analysis of objectives, organisational structure and the ways forest owners' cooperatives operate. A postal survey has been used as a main research instrument, the questionnaire consisting of a series of multiplechoice close-ended questions. This paper provides insights into the state forest enterprises and other private companies operating in the private forestry sector, and places forest owners' cooperatives in a broader context of the private forestry sector. A typical forest owner's cooperative in Lithuania has up to 10 members and about 20 clients to whom services are provided. The leaders of cooperatives indicate that the optimal number of clients using their services should not exceed 40. The main stated objectives of cooperatives are the provision of services to their members under the most attractive conditions, uniting members, and earning a profit for the members. These activities of cooperatives revolve around timber harvesting and trade. It is concluded that the process of cooperation of private forest owners in Lithuania is rather slow, although positive development can be observed.

Background and Objectives: Significant progress in developing European national forest inventory (NFI) systems could ensure accurate evaluations of gross annual increment (GAI) and its components by employing direct measurements. However, the use of NFI data is insufficient for increasing the efficiency of forest management and the use of wood, as well as for meeting sustainable forestry needs. Specification of forest characteristics, such as GAI and its components, identification of the main factors that impact forest growth, accumulation of wood, and natural losses are among the key elements promoting the productivity of forest stands and possibilities of rational use of wood in large forest areas. The aims of this research were (a) to validate the quality of forest statistics provided by a standwise forest inventory (SFI) and (b) to reveal the potential benefits of rational wood use at the country level through the analysis of forest management results, which are based on GAI, including its components derived from the NFI. Materials and Methods: SFI and NFI data from 1998–2017 were collected from 5600 permanent sample plots and used to evaluate the main forest characteristics. Potential wood use was estimated based on the assumption that 50–70% of the total GAI is accumulated for final forest use. Results: Mean growing stock volume (GSV) is underestimated by 7–14% on average in the course of SFI. Therefore, continuous monitoring of the yield changes in forest stands, detection of factors negatively affecting yield and its accumulation, and regulation of these processes by silviculture measures could increase potential forest use in Lithuania. Conclusions: Implementation of sample-based NFI resulted in an improvement of forest characteristics and led to an increase in GSV and GAI. Continuously gathered data on GAI and its components are a prerequisite for efficient forest management and control of the use of wood.

Understanding of the basic determinants of cooperation among private forest owners is of crucial importance to forest owners, private forest owners’ cooperatives and other key players in the forest sector. This topic concerns complementary empirical and theoretical studies from the fields of economics and social studies. A recent study shows that private forest owners differ in their attitudes towards forest management and processes of cooperation in terms of the time perspective and, correspondingly, make different decisions in various situations related to forest management. Based on the data from two surveys, this paper shows how private forest owners’ views of forest management in Lithuania have developed over the last thirteen years and finds some basic socio-economic aspects that drive cooperation among private forest owners for joint forest management.<br /><br />