Carbon sequestration and the optimal forest harvest decision: A dynamic programming approach considering biomass and dead organic matter
- 1 January 2011
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Now Publishers in Journal of Forest Economics
- Vol. 17 (1), 3-17
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfe.2010.07.001
Abstract
Carbon sequestration in forests is being considered as a mechanism to slow or reverse the trend of increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. We present results from a dynamic programming model used to determine the optimal harvest decision for a forest stand in the boreal forest of western Canada that provides both timber harvest volume and carbon sequestration services. The state of the system at any point in time is described by stand age and the amount of carbon in the dead organic matter pool. Merchantable timber volume and biomass are predicted as a function of stand age. Carbon stocks in the dead organic matter pool changes as a result of decomposition and litterfall. The results of the study indicate that while optimal harvest age is relatively insensitive to carbon stocks in dead organic matter, initial carbon stock levels significantly affect economic returns to carbon management. (C) 2010 Department of Forest Economics, SLU Umea, Sweden. Published by Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.Keywords
This publication has 13 references indexed in Scilit:
- Joint production of timber, carbon, and wildlife habitat in the Canadian boreal plainsCanadian Journal of Forest Research, 2008
- Carbon sequestration and the optimal management of New Hampshire timber standsEcological Economics, 2007
- Determination of optimal rotation period under stochastic wood and carbon pricesForest Policy and Economics, 2007
- Optimal management of a flammable forest providing timber and carbon sequestration benefits: an Australian case study*Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, 2005
- Managing carbon sinks by changing rotation length in European forestsEnvironmental Science & Policy, 2004
- Effect of timber harvest on soil carbon storage at Blodgett Experimental Forest, CaliforniaCanadian Journal of Forest Research, 1995
- Changes in Forest Floor Organic Matter and Nutrient Content Following Clear Cutting in Northern HardwoodsEcology, 1981
- Predicting the effects of different harvesting regimes on forest floor dynamics in northern hardwoodsCanadian Journal of Forest Research, 1978
- ECONOMICS OF FORESTRY IN AN EVOLVING SOCIETYEconomic Inquiry, 1976
- THE HARVESTING DECISION WHENA STANDING FOREST HAS VALUEAEconomic Inquiry, 1976