Research initiative paves the way for increased logging residue extraction. The extraction of residue in the forest may increase. But uncertainty about how large volumes can actually be extracted and the impact on land and production hinder development. Skogforsk will try to rectify this.
Photo: Raul Fernandez Lacruz
The current geopolitical situation and the phasing out of fossil fuels have increased the demand for domestic forest fuels in Sweden. According to SKA 22 (the Swedish Forest Agency’s and SLU’s latest forest impact assessment), there is potential to increase the extraction of logging residue from about 9 TWh to 24 TWh. Other thresholds are that there is insufficient knowledge about how the carbon balance and the long-term production capacity of the soil are affected by the extraction of logging residues from the forest.
To overcome these obstacles, the Forestry Research Institute of Sweden has initiated three projects in the area, all of which are funded by the Swedish Energy Agency through the BIO+ programme.
Better tools are developed
One involves further developing a tool for forecasting logging residue volumes with harvester data, conducting regional estimates of potential logging residues and developing a decision support system for safer tract selection.
“The goal is to create conditions for better planning and management of the supply chain and to reduce carbon footprint and land damage. This, in turn, will increase security of supply and make the production of forest fuel more profitable, competitive and sustainable,” says Raul Fernandez Lacruz, project manager at the Forestry Research Institute of Sweden.
Several suppliers (Holmen Skog, Mellanskog, Stora Enso, Sveaskog and Södra) and energy companies (Jämtkraft and Vattenfall) are involved, ensuring the dissemination and utilisation of the research results.
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The impact on carbon storage is investigated…
The second project investigates how the carbon storage in soil and biomass is affected by soil preparation and logging in fourteen ten-year-old stands.
“Both soil preparation and logging can help to counteract climate change. But then it is necessary that the measures do not lead to significant losses of the soil’s carbon storage, which is a common concern. Later soil preparation studies at individual sites show small effects on this carbon storage. Now we will find out if it can be generalised,” says project manager Monika Strömgren at the Forestry Research Institute.
… and the impact on soil production capacity
The third project investigates how harvest intensity affects the long-term production capacity of forest soils, and whether any form of nutrient compensation is needed to produce high and lasting biomass.
The research project is carried out in three long-term trials where the 40-year effect on trunk growth and carbon storage is compared between whole tree harvesting, i.e. harvesting of logging residues, and stem harvesting, where the logging residue is left behind. They also look at the impact of compensatory nutrient supply. The trials will then be completed and re-established in order to be able to repeat the treatments and follow the effects also during the next rotation period.
“The research project will contribute with knowledge about harvesting of different intensities and whether any form of nutrient compensation is required. Learning more about this is important in order to determine whether intensive harvesting of bio-based raw materials from the forest is sustainable in the long term,” says Felicia Dahlgren Lidman at the Forestry Research Institute of Sweden, who is leading the project.
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