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CAN INTENSIVE MANAGEMENT INCREASE CARBON STORAGE IN FORESTS?
Citation:
Schroeder, P. CAN INTENSIVE MANAGEMENT INCREASE CARBON STORAGE IN FORESTS? U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/J-91/260 (NTIS PB92113224), 1991.
Description:
A possible response to increasing atmospheric CO2 concentration is to attempt to increase the amount of carbon stored in terrestrial vegetation. ne approach to increasing the size of the terrestrial carbon sink is to increase the growth of forests by utilizing intensive forest management practices. his paper uses data from the literature and from forest growth and yield models to analyze the impact of three management practices on carbon storage: thinning, fertilization, and control of competing vegetation. sing Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) as example species, results showed that thinning generally does not increase carbon storage, and may actually cause a decrease. he exception is thinning of very dense young stands. ertilization generally increases carbon storage although the response can be quite variable. he largest gains in carbon storage are likely to come from fertilizing lower quality sites and from fertilizing thinned or less dense stands. orest usually show increased growth in response to fertilization over a wide range of ages. ontrolling competing vegetation at an early age helps to maximize stand growth and carbon storage.
