Abstract
Biomass harvesting for energy production and forest health can impact the soil resource by altering inherent chemical, physical and biological properties. These impacts raise concern about damaging sensitive forest soils, even with the prospect of maintaining vigorous forest growth through biomass harvesting operations. Current forest biomass harvesting research concurs that harvest impacts to the soil resource are region- and site-specific, although generalized knowledge from decades of research can be incorporated into management activities. Based upon the most current forest harvesting research, we compiled information on harvest activities that decrease, maintain or increase soil-site productivity. We then developed a soil chemical and physical property risk assessment within a geographic information system for a timber producing region within the Northern Rocky Mountain ecoregion. Digital soil and geology databases were used to construct geospatially explicit best management practices to maintain or enhance soil-site productivity. The proposed risk assessments could aid in identifying resilient soils for forest land managers considering biomass operations, policy makers contemplating expansion of biomass harvesting and investors deliberating where to locate bioenergy conversion facilities.
Highlights
The demand for forest products is projected to increase with global population growth over the century, while actively managed forest land is projected to significantly decrease [1]
Can forest soils in the western US support more intensive timber harvesting for both traditional and emerging bioenergy markets? Is it reasonable to assume that biomass harvesting and sustainable soil productivity are compatible? Both private and public forest land holders seek answers to these questions for both economic and environmental reasons
Despite higher organic matter inputs in the north, colder air and soil temperatures usually results in lower decomposition rates (Figure 3b)
Summary
The demand for forest products is projected to increase with global population growth over the century, while actively managed forest land is projected to significantly decrease [1]. The search for carbon neutral alternative energy sources, including forest bioenergy, further increases pressure on the productive capacity of the forest land base. These increasing demands on forest production capacity raise concerns over the capability of forest lands to meet society’s demand for forest products. To meet changes in global market competition, private forest land holders are shifting rapidly from extensive forestry to intensive forestry [1,4,5]. The primary question for private forest land holders becomes, how does intensive forestry, and perhaps utilization of harvest “waste” for bioenergy, affect long-term soil-site productivity and long-term net revenue?
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