Softwood Products Research Articles

Estimation of annual harvested wood products based on remote sensing and TPO survey data

ABSTRACT Accurate estimation of Timber Product Output (TPO) is important for carbon budget accounting, since wood products can act as delayed release carbon pools. However, the existing timber harvest data in the US relies on Forest Service’s TPO survey, and the survey does not happen every year. In this study, we proposed a methodological framework to produce annual TPO volume estimates for seven southeastern states (North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee) of the US by integrating TPO survey data, Landsat Time Series Stacks (LTSS), and National Land Cover Database (NLCD). First, a forest disturbance product was derived based on Vegetation Change Tracker (VCT) algorithm using LTSS from 1985 to 2016. Then, by linking the predictor variables derived from the disturbance data and the TPO survey data, two regression algorithms were tested and compared, and Random Forest was selected to create TPO estimation models for different wood types. The results show that from 1986 to 2015, the region produced more than 5 × 109 m3 wood products, including 3.7 × 109 m3 softwood products and 1.6 × 109 m3 hardwood products. The derived TPO estimates had large spatial variations among the counties within each state as well as large temporal variations across the study period. The TPO data derived through this study can provide an observational basis for calculating the amount of C transferred from the standing biomass to the wood products through logging and for partitioning of harvested C among different wood product pools.

Environmental Impact Assessment of Waste Wood-to-Energy Recovery in Australia

Wood is a renewable material that can store biogenic carbon, and waste wood can be recycled to recover bioenergy. The amount of energy recovery from the waste wood can vary depending on the type of wood and its chemical and structural properties. This paper will analyse the life cycle environmental impact of energy recovery from waste wood, starting from the wood production stage. These are cradle-to-cradle systems, excluding the use phase and the waste collection phase. The types of waste wood considered in the current study are softwood, hardwood, medium-density fibreboard (MDF), plywood, and particleboard. The results showed that all waste wood has great potential to produce energy while reducing climate change impact. Hardwood and softwood products showed the most beneficial aspects in terms of energy recovery from waste wood and thus could help to reduce harmful environmental emissions. However, MDF and particleboard show the least potential for energy recovery as they contribute to the greatest emissions among all types of wood products. The outcomes of this study could be used as guiding principles for Australia to consider waste-to-energy recovery facility establishment to generate additional energy while reducing waste wood.

Examination of Impulse Breakdown Voltage of a New EFB Insulation Paper

Demand of softwood fiber has rapidly increased as a result from the variety of new softwood products. Therefore, nonwood fibers have been introduced as alternatives in pulp for presspaper making to supplement the limited wood fiber resources. Malaysia is the second largest producer of oil palm where the empty fruit bunch (EFB) has a potential to be developed as an insulating paper. This paper aims to determine the performance of EFB as non-wood fiber to evaluate its use as potential presspaper insulation in power transformer. The sample of EFB paper was produced through kraft pulping and laboratory handsheet process. The performance of EFB and kraft paper was evaluated by impulse breakdown test. The study is focused on the performance of insulating paper that were aged with the transformer oil at 90 °C for 30 days. In order to investigate the impulse breakdown voltage of the insulating paper, multistage impulse generator was used. As the aging temperature increases,the breakdown voltage will decrease.The thickness of insulating paper also has an effect to the breakdown strength as the thicker the insulating paper, the higher the breakdown voltage will be. For no aging sample, kraft fibres dominate the breakdown strength at 28.11 kV/mm, while for sample aged at 90 °C, EFB fibres dominate the breakdown strength at 3.62 kV/mm higher than the average of kraft fibres due to an effect of fibres arrangement between fibre-to-fibre bonding after the aging.

Temporally-differentiated biogenic carbon accounting of wood building product life cycles

Although standards have identified temporary carbon storage as an important element to consider in wood product LCAs, there has been no consensus on a methodology for its accounting. This work aims to improve the accounting of carbon storage and fluxes in long-life wood products in LCA. Biogenic carbon from harvested roundwood logs were tracked using the Carbon Budget Model Framework for Harvested Wood Products (CBMF-HWP). Carbon flows through wood product manufacturing, building life and end-of-life phases, and carbon stocks and fluxes from harvest to the atmosphere were estimated. To cover the products commonly used in the Canadian building industry, a range of softwood products types, provinces and territories and building lifetimes were considered. In addition, policy scenarios were considered in order to model the effects of dynamic parameters through time as a policy target is reached. Most wood products have similar emissions profiles, though cross-laminated timber has higher sawmill emissions and oriented-strand board has higher initial post-demolition emissions. The region of construction is also predictive of the initial post-demolition emissions. Higher recycling rates shift materials from landfills into subsequent product systems, thus avoiding landfill emissions. Landfill decay rates are affected by climate and results in a large range of landfill emissions. The degree of postponement of end-of-life emissions is highly dependent upon the wood product type, region and building lifespan parameters. This work develops biogenic carbon profiles that allows for modelling dynamic cradle-to-grave LCAs of Canadian wood products.

Forestry carbon budget models to improve biogenic carbon accounting in life cycle assessment

Currently, wood and wood construction materials have limitations in how carbon fluxes are accounted for in life cycle assessments. The biogenic carbon balance of wood is often considered to be neutral, meaning that the carbon sequestered by biomass through photosynthesis is considered equal to the carbon feedstock in wood that is eventually released throughout its life cycle. Several publications have recently shown that this assumption could lead to accounting errors. This research work aims to improve the biogenic carbon accounting of the forestry phase of the life cycle of softwood products. This involved specifically modelling carbon fluxes as a function of tree species, growing conditions and forest management practices, from Canadian managed forests. A baseline natural forest scenario was run for 1000 years until the carbon stocks were assumed to reach an approximate steady-state, followed immediately by a harvest scenario that was simulated for another 100 years. The ecosystem carbon costs of the harvest activity were calculated for 117 species and region forest landscapes across Canada and expressed per cubic meter of harvested wood. Most landscapes showed net sequestration after 100 years of harvest history. Exceptions to this included outlier landscapes characterized by low average annual temperatures and precipitation where slightly positive values (net emissions) were found. The mean time to ecosystem cost neutrality for each species ranged from 16 to 60 years. Knowing the time since forest management has started on a particular forest landscape now enables managers to obtain an estimate of ecosystem carbon cost per cubic meter of wood harvested for most of Canada's forests and commercial tree species. These ecosystem carbon costs can be used to generate regionalized cradle-to-gate life cycle inventories for harvested wood products across Canada.

第1報告 佐藤林業の林業経営(国産材生産・素材流通・製材加工の現状と課題,2008年度東日本林業経済研究会シンポジウム)

第1報告 佐藤林業の林業経営(国産材生産・素材流通・製材加工の現状と課題,2008年度東日本林業経済研究会シンポジウム)

第2報告 大規模国産材製材工場の展開と地域林業構造（国産材生産・素材流通・製材加工の現状と課題 2008年度東日本林業経済研究会シンポジウム）

第2報告 大規模国産材製材工場の展開と地域林業構造（国産材生産・素材流通・製材加工の現状と課題 2008年度東日本林業経済研究会シンポジウム）

第3報告 木材価格に影響する要因に関する考察（国産材生産・素材流通・製材加工の現状と課題 2008年度東日本林業経済研究会シンポジウム）

第3報告 木材価格に影響する要因に関する考察（国産材生産・素材流通・製材加工の現状と課題 2008年度東日本林業経済研究会シンポジウム）

Transversal mechanical properties of surface-densified and hydrothermally modified needle fir wood

Hydrothermal–mechanical (HTM) treatment is a combined action of temperature, moisture, and mechanical loads. Various kinds of HTM processes have been developed to produce eco-friendly modified wood products. Among these modification technologies, a combination of surface densification and hydrothermal post-treatment is a promising option that can be used to enhance plantation wood properties and generate value-added softwood products. This paper aimed to investigate the transversal dynamic transversal modulus of elasticity (dtMOE) profile and transversal density profile of surface-densified and hydrothermally post-treated needle fir (Abies nephrolepis) wood, and provide a practical guide for the processing optimization of surface-densified and thermally treated low-grade plantation softwood. Needle fir lumbers were surface-densified in an open hot-pressing system, at a compression ratio of 16.1% and two hot-pressing temperatures (160 and 180 °C) for a pressure holding duration of 10 min with a subsequent hydrothermal post-treatment at two temperatures (180 and 200 °C) for 60 min. The transversal dtMOE profiles for six types of specimens (moisture-saturated, conditioned control, and four types of surface-densified specimens) were measured and analyzed by a dynamic thermo-mechanical analysis (DMA) apparatus. A dtMOE gradient variable (G M) was defined herein to quantitatively formulate the dtMOE distribution of the surface-densified and hydrothermally post-treated wood specimens. Upon hot pressing, compressed cell tissues were observed within a 1.0- to 2.0-mm layer beneath the surface of the densified wood. The density peaks of compressed sections were increased to 650–800 kg/m3, compared with the average density of the control specimens being at 350 kg/m3. The dtMOEs of the compressed sections were increased from 650 MPa of the control specimens, to 750–900 MPa, achieving the objective of surface densification. As the temperature of hydrothermal post-treatment increased from 180 to 200 °C, the differences of the dtMOEs between the compressed surface sections and their inner adjacent ones decreased significantly, indicating the effective fixation of the compression deformations. Based on the test results obtained herein, it was concluded that the impact of the hot-pressing temperature and thermal post-treatment temperature over the dtMOE was insignificant. Nevertheless, it was also found that the hydrothermal treatment temperature showed significant influences over the dtMOE difference between the densified surface and its adjacent layer; the possible explanations for these complicated behaviors were also proposed herein.

Temporal Trend in Wood Dust Exposure During the Production of Wood Pellets.

Wood dust data collected in the production of wood pellets during 2001 to 2013 were evaluated to study a temporal trend in inhalation exposure. A linear mixed effects model of natural ln-transformed data was used to express the relative annual difference in inhalation wood dust exposure. There was an annual decrease of -20.5% of the geometric mean wood dust exposure during 2001 until 2013. The results were based on 617 inhalable dust samples collected at 14 different production units. The exposure to wood dust at the industrial premises investigated has decreased from a relatively high level of 6.4 mg m-3 in 2001 to 1.0 mg-3 in 2013. The Swedish Occupational Exposure Limit (SOEL) of 2 mg m-3 may still be exceeded. Analysis of the temporal trend in soft wood production units revealed declines in exposure of 20.5% per annum. It is important that precautions are taken to protect workers from a hazardous exposure to wood dust at the premises as the SOEL of 2 mg m-3 at some occasions is still exceeded. Additional measurements of wood dust exposure should be carried out on a regular basis in wood pellet production units in Sweden as well in other countries.

Le Douglas, nouvelle ressource nationale

As a result of the reforestation campaigns undertaken with the help of the national Forestry Fund, the Douglas pine now covers more than 400000 ha, positioning France as the foremost European producer. In spite of the young age of these trees (with median age category being between 30 and 40 years), output has been increasing since the middle of the 1990s and has now reached (2012) 2 millions cubic metres of workable timber. In the last decade, the sawmill industry has gradually increased its demand for this new resource, which on a national scale caters for nearly 800000 cubic metres of sawing timber, i.e. 12% of overall softwood production. This supply has now acquired a stable position on the domestic market, particularly for construction purposes where the technical properties of Douglas pine, both in terms of mechanical performance and natural durability, make it a much sought-after building material. This success is in part attributable to the efforts undertaken by the France Douglas Association, which was set up at the end of 1993, that led to the acceptance of Douglas pine into national and European standards and to the support it provided to professionals in structuring national supply. The implications deriving from this emerging sector are considerable since at the end of the decade 2030-2040, national production should reach 2 to 2.5 millions cubic metres of sawing timber, making the Douglas pine one of the main forest productions in France. France, the leading producer of Douglas pine outside of its natural area of distribution, will then possess a key asset for the economy of the forestry and forest-based industry in general both on the national scale and locally where the resource has been developed.

Integration of Gum and Wood Naval Stores in Bio-Turpentine Refineries

The paper provides information on the production methods used in the pine turpentine industry, the availability of the pine turpentine on the world market and an estimate on the capacity for production growth. This estimate is based on the existing figures for softwood production around the world and does not take into account the tremendous capacity for expansion, if the pine turpentine finds its market place as a transport fuel. Next, the paper provides an overview of the main concepts for development of bio-refineries, focussing on the bio-oil and bio-char concepts. The concept of bio-turpentine refinery that is introduced in this paper applies the basic organising principles of the bio refineries to the needs of the pine turpentine industry. The final part of the paper is a discussion on the technical, economic and ethical advantages of the pine turpentine as a transport fuel over an important contestant on the bio-fuel market – the biodiesel

A Comparison of the Primary and Secondary Wood Products Sectors in Louisiana

As part of an ongoing research program, the Louisiana forest products industry is surveyed every five years to identify salient issues, challenges, and opportunities. In this paper, we compare results from two studies conducted on the primary and secondary sectors in Louisiana. In the past, we generated two manuscripts based on research results, one for the primary and one for the secondary sector. However, this paper compares results for common questions asked in both surveys. Louisiana’s forests represent an important resource for the state, both in terms of income to landowners and as inputs to the forest products industry. Both primary and secondary respondents indicate an interest in increasing their workforce in the next five years. The issues that drive company expansion fall into four areas: the overall attractiveness of the business climate of the community and state, labor productivity, costs and supply, and financing. Introduction “Lumber industry hit hard” was the caption in The Baton Rouge Advocate, daily newspaper (Calder 2008). It was referring to the housing slump that saw the lowest number of new housing starts since 1959 (US Census Bureau 2008). Housing is a major driving force of wood markets where 70 percent of wood building materials, primarily softwood lumber and structural panels, are used in residential construction including both new construction and remodeling (UNECE/FAO 2008). With such a downturn in the housing industry, production and prices of wood building materials have collapsed. According to Random Lengths (2009), overall softwood production was down 27 percent in 2008 compared to 2005, and prices for framing lumber were down 38 percent from their 2004 peak. Panel production suffered similar market turns, dropping 25 percent from 2005 and composite structural panel prices plunged 37 percent from 2004 (Random Lengths 2009). As of early 2009, prices have been even weaker and many mills are curtailing production and/or downsizing (IBIS World 2009, Wood Digest 2008). In August 2005, two Category 5 hurricanes hit the Gulf Coast of the United States. Hurricane Katrina made landfall with a direct hit to New Orleans causing catastrophic levee failure and widespread flooding. One month later, Hurricane Rita hit the West Louisiana/East Texas border. Combined, they damaged over 4.4 billion board feet of standing timber and wiped out the equivalent of more than two years’ worth of pine sawtimber harvest and more than 11 years’ worth of hardwood sawtimber harvest for the entire state (Chang 2006). The closest timber loss Louisiana faced, up to then, was the southern pine beetle outbreaks of 1985-86, with a loss of 1.1 billion board feet (Mistretta and Bylin 1987). In this paper, we present a brief history of the forest sector in Louisiana and then discuss results of a study which offers a perspective on the state of the forest products industry in Louisiana three years after the hurricanes hit the state. Louisiana’s forest products industry The development of the lumber industry in Louisiana began in the period following the Civil War. There was a great demand for lumber to rebuild the war-torn areas of the South as well as to supply the industrial revolution taking place in the North (Maxwell 1973, Quarterman and Keever 1962, Foster 1912). Longleaf yellow pine was abundant throughout the state. The chief demand for lumber was for construction, telegraph poles, railroad ties, and furniture manufacturing (Maxwell 1973). In addition to pine, Louisiana sawmills also cut oak, ash, gum, and cypress as well as many other woods. The milling of cypress had significant economic importance to the southeastern region of the state where it was used principally for manufacturing of shingles and cisterns (Kellogg 1909).

Discussions (The Current State and Issues of Domestic Softwood Production, Log Distribution and Sawmills, 2008 Symposium of East Japanese Forest Economic Research Society)

Discussions (The Current State and Issues of Domestic Softwood Production, Log Distribution and Sawmills, 2008 Symposium of East Japanese Forest Economic Research Society)

Iron, Steel and Timber: A Transient Heritage

This paper provides an overview of the Australian sawmilling industry from 1788 to the present, against which its heritage stories can be told. Mechanised sawmilling became firmly established from the 1850s. It looked to exports where it could and competed with imported softwoods. Before WWI it was largely an industry of small steam-powered sawmills located in the forests and some metropolitan mills owned by timber merchants. It started to up-grade its technology between the wars. The booming timber market immediately after WWII led to a temporary surge in the number of small mills. The industry changed from the 1970s as small, family-owned forest mills closed or were taken over by large companies, and as softwood production from pine plantations has replaced hardwood production from native forests. The transient nature of the industry has meant that much of its heritage has been lost.

Countering the Broadleaf Invasion: Financial and Carbon Consequences of Removing Hardwoods during Longleaf Pine Savanna Restoration

Abstract The once widespread Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris)–dominated ecosystems of the southeastern coastal plain of the United States have been greatly reduced in extent, and many of the remaining stands are being degraded by hardwood invasion due to fire suppression. The first step toward pine savanna restoration is often hardwood removal, a costly process due to their large volumes and low market values. Despite these problems, by marketing a wide range of hard‐ and softwood products, the costs of 13 restoration projects in northern Florida were substantially reduced. Ten different products were sold to 19 different buyers. Fuel chips represented 71–100% of all biomass removed (8.2–81.1 Mg/ha). Although landowners were charged modest amounts for removing biomass harvested as fuel chips, other marketed products yielded revenues. Overall, four projects earned net profits of $29–$383/ha, and four projects generated sufficient revenue to pay 17–99% of the cost of hardwood removal as fuel chips. A carbon accounting of a second set of projects demonstrated that carbon harvested as fuel chips far exceeded that consumed in harvest and transport, yielding net carbon offsets of 451–1,320 Mg C/project (3.3–13.9 Mg C/ha). Using fuel consumption results of this second set of projects, carbon offsets for the 13 restoration projects were estimated as 89–1,524 Mg (3.8–37.9 Mg C/ha). Restorationists should monitor traditional forest product markets as well as developing carbon markets for price fluctuations that could provide significant revenues to restoration projects.

Dynamique et estimation du rendement des strates de retour après coupe totale dans la sapinière à bouleau jaune

A total of 48 plots originating from clearcuts were studied in the balsam fir-yellow birch ecological domain of the province of Quebec, Canada, using dendrochronology. The aim of the study was to assess the effect of pre-cut stand type, structure and abundance of regeneration after logging, and soil type on stand dynamics. Results indicate a relationship between pre-cut stand type and the composition of second-growth stands. Ecological characteristics must be taken into account in order to estimate the abundance of advance regeneration and predict the evolution of stocking. Results also show that the structure of regeneration, described by a diameter index, can help in predicting yield at age 38. Devastation by the spruce budworm played a major role in second-growth stand dynamics making it difficult to predict balsam fir yield. The study has also shown an increase in intolerant hardwoods and a low softwood production on rich sites. Black spruce stands came back to black spruce.Key words: mixedwoods, succession, regeneration survey, yield, Choristoneura fumiferana

The Law of One Price in the North American Softwood Lumber Markets

Abstract The existence of the Law of One Price (LOP) in the North American (10 regional) markets for aggregate softwood lumber and homogeneous softwood lumber products is tested using the Johansen co-integration test and monthly price data for the Softwood Lumber Agreement (SLA) (1996–2001) period and the post-SLA (2001–2004) period. For the aggregate softwood lumber market, the LOP exists neither in the North American aggregate market nor in any combination of one regional market of Canada and all the five regional markets of the United States, nor in one regional market of the United States and all five regional markets of Canada; however, some of the regional markets are co-integrated. The regional markets of homogeneous softwood products in the two countries are co-integrated during both the SLA and post-SLA period. Further studies are essential to understand the difference between the aggregated and homogeneous softwood products market co-integration and to develop a comprehensive and comparative perspective of the Canadian and the US softwood lumber markets.

Softwood Lumber Products in the United States: Substitutes, Complements, or Unrelated?

Abstract This study addresses an important dimension concerning the softwood lumber trade dispute between United States and Canada–substitutability among imported and domestically produced species. We employ the restricted translog subcost function approach to study this issue based on the monthly data of US softwood products consumption and prices between Jan. 1989 and July 2001. The results show that the spruce-pine-fir lumber species group, mainly imported from Canada, is largely unrelated to domestically produced treated southern yellow pine, Douglas-fir, and other species groups, but is a substitute to untreated southern yellow pine and engineered wood products. Furthermore, untreated southern yellow pine is facing more severe competition from structural panels rather than from the imported Canadian spruce-pine-fir group. FOR. SCI. 50(4):416–426.

International market prospects and the changing structure of the Australian plantation industry

Summary Australia is located in a region experiencing substantial change in the production and consumption of forest products. Australia's own plantation sector is modern and dynamic. It has expanded rapidly (in both hardwood and softwood) in recent decades and has witnessed substantial investment by international forest corporations. With the exception of woodchips, Australia does not export a large volume of forest products. Australia is a major supplier of hardwood and softwood woodchips to Japan. The volume of hardwood pulpwood which is due to come on-line towards the end of the decade means that Australia has the potential to double current exports of woodchips. Given that an increasing volume of hardwood pulpwood from other countries is also due to come on-line around the same time, there will be increased competition to sell hardwood pulpwood in the Asia-Pacific region. China's need for fibre to meet rapidly growing demand for pulp and paper is commonly suggested as a possible new market for Australian woodchips. URS Forestry believes, however, that China's capacity to import woodchips will be limited by the need for domestic pulp mills to compete in open competitive markets with imported pulp. China's growing imports of pulp, and the potential surplus of hardwood pulpwood in Australia, provide an opportunity to develop a bleached hardwood kraft pulp (BHKP) mill in Australia. If Australia does establish a large new pulp processing capacity, its major competitor will be Brazil, which is already home to the most competitive pulp mills in the world. Softwood sawlogs are the other major plantation product of which available volumes will increase substantially in Australia over the next ten years. Australia has traditionally used a large proportion of its plantation pine domestically and, as such, has had little reason to pursue export markets. However, the threat of competition, particularly from New Zealand, and the possible pursuit of export markets, also ensure that cost reduction is an imperative for Australian softwood sawmills. The potential markets for Australia's softwood include China (growing consumption of sawn timber and logs), Japan (change to importing processed softwood products) and USA (growing demand for imported softwood sawn timber). The outlook for the Australian plantation industry is therefore strong, with opportunity to build on the large new investments that have been made in recent years.