Harvesting Carbon from Eastern US Forests: Opportunities and Impacts of an Expanding Bioenergy Industry

نویسندگان

  • Sarah C. Davis
  • Michael Dietze
  • Evan DeLucia
  • Steven P. Hamburg
  • Scott Loarie
  • Matthew Potts
  • Benjamin Ramage
  • Dan Wang
  • Heather Youngs
  • Stephen P. Long
چکیده

Eastern forests of the US are valued both as a carbon sink and a wood resource. The amount of biomass that can be harvested sustainably from this biome for bioenergy without compromising the carbon sink is uncertain. Using past literature and previously validated models, we assessed four scenarios of biomass harvest in the eastern US: partial harvests of mixed hardwood forests, pine plantation management, short-rotation woody cropping systems, and forest residue removal. We also estimated the amount and location of abandoned agricultural lands in the eastern US that could be used for biomass production. Greater carbon storage was estimated to result from partial harvests and OPEN ACCESS

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تاریخ انتشار 2012