Article
 

Modeling the effects of forest management on in situ and ex situ longleaf pine forest carbon stocks

Public Deposited

Downloadable Content

Download PDF
https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/concern/articles/g445cg08v

Descriptions

Attribute NameValues
Creator
Abstract
  • Assessment of forest carbon storage dynamics requires a variety of techniques including simulation models. We developed a hybrid model to assess the effects of silvicultural management systems on carbon (C) budgets in longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) plantations in the southeastern U.S. To simulate in situ C pools, the model integrates a growth and yield model with species-specific allometric and biometric equations and explicitly accounts for the impacts of both thinning and prescribed fire. To estimate the ex situ C pool, the model used the outputs of merchantable products from the growth and yield model with current values of forest product conversion efficiencies and forest product decay rates. The model also accounts for C emissions due to transportation and silvicultural activities. Site productivity (site quality) was the major factor controlling stand C density followed by rotation length. Thinning reduced C sequestration, as the slow growth rate of longleaf pine reduced the potential of C sequestration in forest products. Prescribed burning reduced average C stock by about 16–19%, with the majority of the reduction in the forest floor. In a comparison of longleaf pine C dynamics with slash pine (Pinus elliottii Engelm.), both species reached a similar average C stock at age 75 years, but when averaged across the whole rotation, slash pine sequestered more C. Nevertheless, for medium quality sites, C sequestration was similar between thinned 75-year rotation longleaf pine and unthinned 25-year rotation slash pine. This longleaf pine plantation C sequestration model, based on empirical and biological relationships, provides an important new tool for developing testable research hypotheses, estimating C stocks for regional assessments or C credit verification, and for guiding future longleaf pine management.
  • Keywords: Prescribed burning, Carbon stock modeling, Pinus palustris plantations, Silviculture, Biomass
Resource Type
DOI
Date Available
Date Issued
Citation
  • Gonzalez-Benecke, C. A., Samuelson, L. J., Martin, T. A., Cropper, W. P., Johnsen, K. H., Stokes, T. A., ... & Anderson, P. H. (2015). Modeling the effects of forest management on in situ and ex situ longleaf pine forest carbon stocks. Forest Ecology and Management, 355, 24-36. doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2015.02.029
Journal Title
Journal Volume
  • 355
Journal Issue/Number
  • Special Issue
Academic Affiliation
Rights Statement
Funding Statement (additional comments about funding)
  • This research was supported by the U.S. Department of Defense through the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) and the USDA Forest Service Grant No. 11330123-147.
Publisher
Peer Reviewed
Language
Replaces

Relationships

Parents:

This work has no parents.

Items

Thumbnail Title Date Uploaded Visibility Actions
file details Gonzalez-BeneckeCForestResEnginMgmtModelingEffectsForest.pdf 2017-07-26 Public Download