Impact of Forest Logging Ban on the Welfare of Local Communities in Northeast China

Background and Objectives: In order to effectively protect and restore natural forest resources, the Chinese government banned logging in state-owned forests of northeast China in April 2015. This is an enormous change for people who live in that region, especially forestry workers and their families, who depend on state-owned forestry enterprises. Following the welfare changes in worker households in a timely manner is conducive to gaining a better understanding of the development status of state-owned forest areas, so as to provide a scientific basis for the government to formulate forest policies that will contribute to sustainable development. Materials and Methods: Using Sen’s theory of welfare measurement, we measured the change in welfare of forestry worker households based on an empirical research framework that measures the function and gap in welfare before and after the logging ban. Results: (1) The welfare of worker households changed due to the logging ban in terms of function; social security, dwelling conditions, and psychological conditions improved, whereas economic status and social opportunity declined. (2) The logging ban had different impacts on the welfare of forestry worker households depending on their livelihood. Low-income households solely dependent on forestry work or engaged in this work for diversified income were impacted most by the ban, while high-income households engaged in forestry as a major source of income or for complementary income were impacted less. (3) The logging ban seems to affect social welfare distribution: the proportion of households classified as low welfare increased, while that of high-welfare households decreased.