Wood identification presentation by Paul Lunakwita, former of NFA

This was presentation was made by Paul Lunakwita to help participant identify wood species that are commonly illegally traded across borders.

1. wood identification A presentation made to Uganda revenue authority, 20 TH May 2019 PAUL lunakWIta Former timber supervisor, FNFA [phone]

2. Outline of presentation INTRODUCTION SOFT AND HARDWOODS METHODS TO IDENTIFYING WOOD/TIMBER CHALLENGES CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

3. INTRODUCTION Timber identification aims at naming the species of tree from which the unknown sample has been cut, thus providing a means of assessing useful information about the timber; Different types of construction projects call for different kinds of timber; Hardwood and softwood are used for everything from structural to decorative.

4. difference between hard and Softwoods Softwoods come from trees of Sub-phylum Gymnospermae - conifers, which usually remain evergreen. Leaves are usually needle-like and evergreen. Hardwood come from trees of Sub-phylum Angiospermae - the flowering trees. That are deciduous trees which lose leaves annually. Leaves are typically broad and flat. Terminology ; softwood/hardwood is somewhat misleading because some hardwoods have wood that is much softer than some softwoods and visa versa.

5. Types of hard and soft woods hardwood Mahogany; Mvule ; Ngalati ; Maesopsis – Musizi ; Cynometra alexidrii – iron wood; Afzelia africana ; Eucalyptus; Cordia africana . softwoods Pine; Cypresses; Araucaria cunninghamii  

6. Hardwood - mvule Softwood - PinE

7. KHAYA IVORENSIS    - African Mahogany deep reddish brown color. The grain can be straight, but is typically interlocking .

8. Tectona grandis –teak Color/Appearance :  Heartwood tends to be a golden or medium brown, with color darkening with age . Grain/Texture :  Grain is straight, though it can occasionally be wavy or interlocked

9. Chlorophora excels- mvule

10. METHODS and APPROACH of Identifying wood/timber Observation of physical properties: Most carpenters and builders are familiar with the timbers they use by observation of physical properties such as colour , odour , texture, figure, and density, and can often immediately identify the various types that they use. *But properties (i.e. colour , odour , texture, figure, and density ) can be quite variable so are not reliable, and describing these features to others is mainly a personal matter since they can’t be quantified.

11. … METHODS and APPROACH of Identifying wood/timber Reliable identification of wood is by examination of its microscopic structural features and comparing the presence/absence, size, shape distribution and frequency of the various features with those of a known standard: Magnifying glass which will give 4 to 20 times magnification - usually sufficient for hardwoods but not for softwoods; Light microscope gives 5 to 400 times magnification and is the prime tool for wood identification; Scanning electron microscopy: gives up to 100,000 times magnification, 3D views, no colour . But is expensive. Note. For best visibility of features present in the wood, sections for viewing should be cut in three planes: Transverse, Radial Longitudinal and Tangential Longtudinal .

12. Combination of physical , and visual information of the wood features Compare the salient features of the sample with published drawings, photographs, or textual descriptions (Atlas); Use a card index system - all the features of that tree species on the card. Computerised systems make the identification of both common and uncommon timbers easier .

13. Transverse plane - horizontal plane in the trunk

14. Radial longitudinal Section – one passing through a radius of the trunk

15. Tangential longitudinal section – one at a tangent to the trunk

16. Maosopsis Log Lira lira Pole Pine Log

17. CHALLENGES Softwoods have a simple anatomy; Hardwoods exhibit a impressive arrangement of end-grain patterns and intricate styles .

18. challenges Softwoods have a simple anatomy; whereas hardwoods exhibit complex patterns; Differentiating between some timbers of closely-related species is hard because they are not different enough to make them individually distinct; Within-tree and between-tree variation - differences between trees grown within and outside of their native conditions; Human error in identifying timber features – e.g. some people are colour blind.

19. FRA Categories 1990 2000 2005 2010 2015 Forests 4,751,418.00 3,869,480.00 3,428,511.00 2,752,968.00 2,077,424.00 Other Wooded Land 1,369,933.00 2,376,650.00 2,880,008.00 2,879,271.00 2,878,533.00 Other Land 13,588,649.00 13,463,870.00 13,401,481.00 14,077,761.00 14,754,043.00 Inland Water 4,394,000.00 4,394,000.00 4,394,000.00 4,394,000.00 4,394,000.00 Total 24,104,000.00 24,104,000.00 24,104,000.00 24,104,000.00 24,104,000.00 FOREST AREAS 1990 - 2015 Source: NFA Biomass Reports 1990 - 2015

20. 21 TRENDS OF FOREST COVER IN UGANDA, 1990 - 2015

21. Illegal trade stands at 80% Illegal timber trade stands at 80% causing an estimated annual financial loss of UGX 23Billion (US$8 Million through unpaid taxes. Uganda loses 90,000ha of forest cover every year (NFA, 2017) through conversion to land use practices (subsistence agriculture, charcoal burning) with low economic benefits, simply because the value of timber made it attractive for outsiders to log and nobody had effective control.

22. RECOMMENDATIONS Training and equip the relevant desk officers in the Ministries, Department and Agencies (NFA, URA) to identify logs and timber from any tree species; Strengthen anti-corruption efforts to protect the forests. URA and others should curb illegal timber trade and collect the respective unpaid taxes.

23. END THANK YOU