Integration of bioenergy strategies into forest management scenarios for Crown land in New Brunswick, Canada
About 70% (110 PJ) of energy used in New Brunswick is sourced from fossil fuels, and its high cost and uncertain long-term supply have renewed interest in bioenergy production. To evaluate opportunities for sourcing bioenergy from the forest, we integrated bioenergy and timber production into a forest estate model and evaluated joint production scenarios for 3.3 million hectares of Crown land in New Brunswick over a 100-year horizon. Scenarios included maximizing timber or bioenergy production under three timing preferences (expressed as discount rates) and various combinations of harvest residues, pulpwood biomass, and willow ( Salix spp.) plantations. Under scenarios that allocated 66% of harvest residues and 30% of pulpwood to bioenergy production, maximizing discounted (8%) timber or bioenergy, respectively, generated average timber harvests of 6.51 and 6.26 Mm3·year–1 and bioenergy outputs equivalent to 30% and 32% of provincial fossil fuel consumption. Introducing 40 000 ha of willow plantations under the maximize bioenergy scenario yielded bioenergy equivalent to 41% of provincial fossil fuel consumption while maintaining the timber harvest at 6.21 Mm3·year–1. Our study demonstrates a framework for integrating bioenergy and timber production in forest management design and quantifies the significant potential for obtaining both bioenergy and timber from the forest.