scholarly journals Long-Term Soil Fertility and Site Productivity in Stem-Only and Whole-Tree Harvested Stands in Boreal Forest of Quebec (Canada)

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 583
Author(s):  
Rock Ouimet ◽  
Louis Duchesne ◽  
Stéphane Tremblay
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Soil Depth ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Forest Biomass ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Site Productivity ◽  
Productivity Indicators ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Whole Tree

Using residual biomass from forest harvesting to produce energy is viewed increasingly as a means to reduce fossil fuel consumption. However, the impact such practices on soil and future site productivity remains a major concern. We revisited 196 forest plots that were subject to either whole-tree (WTH) or stem-only (SOH) harvesting 30 years ago in the boreal forest in Quebec, Canada. Plots were stratified by four soil regions grouped by so-called ‘soil provinces’. Soil analyses indicated that after 30 years, the forest floor of WTH sites had smaller pools of N (−8%), exchangeable Ca (−6%) and exchangeable Mn (−21%) and a higher C/N ratio (+12%) than that of SOH sites. Mineral soil responses to the two harvesting intensities differed among soil provinces. In the two coarse-textured granitic soil provinces, organic matter, organic carbon, and nitrogen pools over the whole solum (0–60 cm soil depth) were at least 28% smaller after WTH than after SOH. Site productivity indicators followed differences between soils and were lower after WTH than after SOH in the two granitic soil provinces. The study shows that soil characteristics greatly influence a soil’s sensitivity to increased forest biomass harvesting in the long term.

Intensive biomass removals and site productivity in Canada: A review of relevant issues

2010 ◽  
Vol 86 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evelyne Thiffault ◽  
David Paré ◽  
Suzanne Brais ◽  
Brian D. Titus
Keyword(s):  
Forest Biomass ◽  
Field Trials ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Process Models ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Soil Productivity ◽  
Site Productivity ◽  
Biomass Removal ◽  
The World ◽  
The Impact

A renewed interest in the intensive harvesting of forest biomass as a source of bioenergy in North America raises concerns about the impacts that this practice may have on the maintenance of forest soil productivity. In Canada, such concerns were first voiced in the 1970s, and studies were launched to investigate and predict the impact of intensive forest biomass removal on site productivity. Most of these studies focused on static nutrient budgets. In Canada and around the world, more detailed process models were also developed to study carbon, nitrogen and base cation cycles under different forest harvesting intensities. However, the validity of modelling results is still constrained by our lack of knowledge on the capacity of ecosystems to supply nutrients. A few sets of field trials have been established in Canada to gather empirical data on the impact of biomass removal on soil nutrient reserves as well as on tree nutrition and growth. Although still fairly recent, these field trials, along with the older ones established in other countries with similar site conditions and climates, provide opportunities to refine our understanding of the resilience of ecosystem processes and of the impacts of intensive biomass removal on ecosystem functions. Although numerous knowledge gaps and questions remain, some jurisdictions around the world have nevertheless issued policy directives and developed guidelines for biomass harvesting. As described by the concept of adaptive forest management, ecological monitoring of harvesting operations, scientific field testing and modelling can all interact to produce better knowledge that could then help improve policy directives. Key words: bioenergy, biomass, intensive harvesting, environmental sustainability

Soil acidification and the carbon cycle in a cropping soil of north-eastern Victoria

Soil Research ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 273 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. J. Slattery ◽  
D. G. Edwards ◽  
L. C. Bell ◽  
D. R. Coventry ◽  
K. R. Helyar
Keyword(s):  
Soil Depth ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Soil Layers ◽  
Soil C ◽  
Soil Zone ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Soil Buffering ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Total Organic C

Changes in soil organic matter were determined for a long-term (1975–95) experiment at the Rutherglen Research Institute in north-eastern Victoria. The crop rotations in this experiment were continuous lupins (LL) and continuous wheat (WW). The soil at this site was a solodic or Yellow Dermosol with a soil pH of 6·08 (pH in 0·01 М CaCl2 1 : 5) in 1975 in the surface 10 cm, which had declined by 0·8 and 1·5 pH units for WW and LL, respectively, in the 0–20 cm soil zone by 1992. Acidification rates decreased with increasing soil depth. The acidification rate in the 0–60 cm soil zone was 12·5 kmol(H+)/ha·year for the LL rotation and 4·6 kmol(H+)/ha·year for the WW rotation. The amount of CaCO3 required to neutralise the acidification of wheat-lupin rotations as calculated in this paper was up to 3·8 t/ha ·10 years for a WLWL rotation or 3 ·3 t/ha ·10 years for a WWL rotation; these amounts are significantly higher than previously reported rates. In this paper, we calculate the impact of changes in soil carbon (C) status over time, and therefore soil buffering, on the rates of acidification in incremental soil layers to a depth of 60 cm. Total organic C for these rotations in 1992 was 1·12% for WW and 1·17% for LL in the 0–10 cm soil zone. An investigation of the humic and fulvic acid fractions of these 2 rotations to a depth of 60 cm showed that the LL rotation had significantly higher (P < 0·05) C at depth than the WW rotation. Acidification due to the net decrease in soil C over the 15-year study period plus acidification due to the alkali removed in the seed was calculated to be –4·88 kmol(H+)/ha·year for the LL rotation and –6·52 kmol(H+)/ha·year for the WW rotation.

Effect of whole-tree and conventional forest harvest on soil microarthropods

1986 ◽  
Vol 64 (9) ◽  
pp. 1986-1993 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. A. Bird ◽  
L. Chatarpaul
Keyword(s):  
Soil Fauna ◽  
Soil Formation ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Major Effect ◽  
Hardwood Forest ◽  
Mixed Conifer ◽  
Soil Microarthropods ◽  
Harvest Plot ◽  
Whole Tree

The effect of whole-tree and conventional harvest on soil microarthropods, Collembola and Acari, was investigated in a mixed conifer–hardwood forest on the Canadian Shield. Harvesting had a major effect on their populations which declined to 56 and 68% of those on the uncut plot for the whole-tree and conventional harvest plots, respectively. Species composition was unaffected by harvesting although there were shifts in dominance. Total numbers of microarthropods and numbers of Oribatei, Prostigmata, and Mesostigmata found on the uncut plot were significantly greater (P < 0.05) than on harvested plots. Slightly higher (P > 0.05) numbers of Collembola were recorded from the conventional harvest plot than the uncut plot. Oribatei, Prostigmata, and Collembola were more abundant (P < 0.01) on the conventional harvest plot than the whole-tree harvest plot. Of the two forest harvesting methods, conventional harvest had a lesser impact on soil microarthropods. Because the forest soil fauna is intimately involved in decomposition, nutrient cycling, and soil formation, our findings suggest that long-term site productivity will be greater following conventional harvest than whole-tree harvest.

scholarly journals Quantifying the Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions of a Mechanized Shelterwood Harvest Producing Both Sawtimber and Woodchips

Forests ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 70
Author(s):  
Joshua P. Weyrens ◽  
Obste Therasme ◽  
René H. Germain
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Carbon Storage ◽  
Pulp Mill ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Wood Products ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Carbon Neutral ◽  
The Impact

Forests are used to mitigate anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through carbon offset programs, and forest management is generally accepted as “carbon neutral”. However, forest harvesting operations depend heavily on fossil fuels, so it would be remiss to broadly paint all forms of management as carbon neutral without empirical verification of this claim. Biomass feedstock, as a means to supplant fossil fuel consumption, has received the bulk of investigative efforts, as the carbon benefit of biomass is one of the most contentious among wood products, because it does not create long-term carbon storage. A life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted on a winter shelterwood harvest occurring in the Adirondacks of upstate New York. Primary data were collected daily throughout the operation and used to model the impact attributed to producing clean chips and logs for delivery to a pulp mill and sawmill, respectively. This harvest produced 4894 Mg of clean chips and 527 Mg of sawtimber. We calculated that 39.77 and 25.16 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent were emitted per Mg of clean chips and sawtimber, respectively, with a total observed flow of GHG into the atmosphere between 206 and 210 thousand kilograms. The results contribute to our understanding of the global warming potential of implementing a forest harvest to produce raw materials for medium- and long-term carbon storage products such as paper and dimensional hardwood lumber.

Changes in soil sulfur constituents in a forested watershed 8 years after whole-tree harvesting

1999 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 356-364 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yimin Zhang ◽  
M J Mitchell ◽  
C T Driscoll ◽  
G E Likens
Keyword(s):  
Stream Water ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest ◽  
Soil Solutions ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Soil Sulfur ◽  
Whole Tree Harvesting ◽  
Whole Tree ◽  
Tree Harvesting

Soil S constituents were evaluated before and after the whole-tree harvesting of Watershed 5 (W5) at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire. Soil solution and stream water concentrations of SO42-, NO3-, and H+ were compared between W5 and W6 (reference watershed). Whole-tree harvesting increased phosphate-extractable SO42- (PSO4) in the E horizon, from 2 mg S·kg-1 soil in pre-harvest to 9 and 10 mg S·kg-1 soil 3 and 8 years post-harvest, respectively. Harvesting increased PSO4 in the Bh horizon from 11 mg S·kg-1 soil prior to harvesting to 20 and 25 mg S·kg-1 soil 3 and 8 years after harvesting, respectively. Temporal patterns in soil chemistry were also reflected in stream SO42-, NO3-, and H+ concentrations. Eight years after harvesting, PSO4 concentrations in the mineral soil increased with elevation. This elevational pattern was likely due to the higher concentrations of SO42- and H+ in soil solutions that enhanced SO42- adsorption at the higher elevations. The high H+ concentrations were attributed to enhanced nitrification and differences in vegetation at upper elevations. The importance of these factors were discussed with respect to the effects of forest harvesting and changes in atmospheric S deposition.

Effects Of Very Intensive Forest Biomass Harvesting On Short And Long Term Site Productivity

2008 ◽  
pp. 29-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karsten Raulund-Rasmussen ◽  
Inge Stupak ◽  
Nicholas Clarke ◽  
Ingeborg Callesen ◽  
Heljä-Sisko Helmisaari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Forest Biomass ◽  
Site Productivity ◽  
Biomass Harvesting ◽  
Short And Long Term

Évolution des stocks de carbone organique dans le solaprès coupe dans la sapinière à bouleau jaune de l'est du Québec

2000 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 507-514 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvain St-Laurent ◽  
Rock Ouimet ◽  
Sylvie Tremblay ◽  
Louis Archambault
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Design ◽  
Forest Floor ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Yellow Birch ◽  
Organic C ◽  
Mature Stands ◽  
Whole Tree

Following the Rio and Kyoto protocols, forest sequestration of organic C (Corg) appears to be among the measures to reduce atmospheric C. In this context, we assessed the evolution of soils' reserves of Corg after complete whole-tree forest harvesting in the balsam fir–yellow birch forest of eastern Quebec. The experimental design consisted of eight plots in mature stands, and 10 plots in 7-, 12-, and 22-yr-old clearcuts in the "Seigneurie du Lac Métis", located 80 km south-east of Rimouski, Quebec, Canada. The soil type was an Orthic Humo-ferric Podzol. Major Corg losses occured in the forest floor of the 7-, 12- and 22-yr-old harvested plots compared with mature stands. The FH horizon of harvested plots showed a loss of 44% (−30.5 t ha−1) in dry weight and 13.5% (−62.1 g kg–1) in Corg content between 7 and 22-yr-old harvested plots. More than half the Corg content of the forest floor was lost in that time (−52% or −16.6 t ha−1). The Corg stock of the L horizon were lowered only for the 7-yr-old treatment (2.5 t ha−1) compared with mature stands (4.9 t ha−1). No significant differences in the Corg stocked in the first 30 m of the mineral soil were found between treatments. It appears that the forest floor of balsam fir–yellow birch stands has become a source of Corg for at least 22 yr after forest harvesting. Key words: Forest harvesting, soil, organic carbon, forest floor

Soil carbon dynamics under different cropping and pasture management in temperate Australia: Results of three long-term experiments

Soil Research ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 320 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Y. Chan ◽  
M. K. Conyers ◽  
G. D. Li ◽  
K. R. Helyar ◽  
G. Poile ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Agricultural Soils ◽  
Soil Depth ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Wagga Wagga ◽  
Continuous Cropping ◽  
Pasture Management ◽  
The Impact

In addition to its important influence on soil quality and therefore crop productivity, soil organic carbon (SOC) has also been identified as a possible C sink for sequestering atmospheric carbon dioxide. Limited data are available on the impact of management practices on the rate of SOC change in agricultural soils in Australia. In this paper, results of three long-term trials (13–25 years) located near Wagga Wagga in temperate Australia were used to assess C dynamics under different tillage and stubble management practices, and under cropping intensities in pasture/crop rotations. Experimental results confirm the importance of management practices and pasture in determining first the steady-state SOC concentrations that are characteristic of given rotations and crop management systems, and second the rates of change of SOC concentrations as they approach steady-state concentrations in agricultural soils of this agro-ecological zone. A long-term crop/pasture experiment at a site with initial high SOC showed that the rate of SOC change in different treatments ranged from –278 to +257 kg C/ha.year over 0–0.3 m soil depth. Under continuous cropping, even under conservation agriculture practices of no-tillage, stubble retention, and crop rotation, the high initial SOC stock (0–0.3 m) present after a long-term pasture phase was, at best, maintained but tended to decrease with increased tillage or stubble burning practices. The effect of tillage was greater than that of stubble management. Increases in SOC were observed only in rotations incorporating a pasture phase. Our results suggest that improved soil nutrient and grazing management of permanent pasture can lead to an increase of 500–700 kg C/ha.year where the initial SOC concentrations are well below steady-state concentrations that could be expected after long periods of improved management. No difference was found between perennial pasture and annual pasture to the depth measured (0–0.3 m). Our results suggest that pasture holds the key to maintaining, and even increasing, SOC under crop/pasture in this environment.

Soil compaction induced by careful logging in the claybelt region of northwestern Quebec (Canada)

1998 ◽  
Vol 78 (1) ◽  
pp. 197-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Brais ◽  
C. Camiré
Keyword(s):  
Key Words ◽  
Bulk Density ◽  
Soil Compaction ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Soil Bulk Density ◽  
Soil Strength ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Site Productivity ◽  
Wheel Track

Soil compaction induced by forest harvesting operations can reduce site productivity. Intensity, extent and persistence of soil compaction were assessed on fine- to medium- and coarse-textured soils. Severe compaction took place in the wheel track section of the skid trails. On fine- to medium-textured soils, half of the effects on the 0- to 10-cm and 10- to 20-cm mineral soil bulk densities (+11 and +8%) and half of the changes in the 10-cm depth soil strength (+69%) occurred in the course of the first two skidding cycles (cycle of half impact). On coarse soils, half of the effect on the 0- to 10-cm bulk density (+11%) occurred during the first three passes. Cycles of half impact for soil strength were 9, 14, 7 and 6 for the 2.5-, 5-, 10-, and 20-cm depths and corresponded to increases of 235, 402, 157 and 103% respectively. Compaction was more limited between track sections of trails. Six to twelve years following clearcutting on fine- to medium-textured soils, 0- to 10-cm soil bulk density was less in the skid trails than on the undisturbed sections of cutovers. Careful logging on moist, fine- to medium-textured soils is the safest way to limit the extent of soil compaction. On coarse-textured soils, spreading the traffic remains a valid option. Key words: Soil compaction, bulk density, soil strength, forest harvesting, careful logging

Nitrogen cycling in undisturbed and manipulated boreal forest

1982 ◽  
Vol 296 (1082) ◽  
pp. 419-425 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Boreal Forest ◽  
Boreal Forests ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Managed Forests ◽  
Available N ◽  
Humus Layer

Like most forests and several other natural terrestrial ecosystems, the boreal forest accumulates N in biomass and soil organic matter, even although measured rates of biological N 2 fixation are normally low. The accumulation of N is disrupted if the forest canopy is removed by natural causes (fire, wind-felling or insect outbreaks) or by cutting. During the period after such a ‘catastrophe’ (in fact a common event in boreal forests, considered in a long-term perspective), the accumulation is discontinued or even changed into a loss of N from the site. Some losses are caused directly by fire or, in managed forests, by removal of biomass. These losses are usually small, except with whole-tree utilization. Nitrogen losses associated with nitrification processes (both leaching and denitrification) may be more serious on a cleared area, where uptake by vegetation is inconsiderable for some period. Nitrate formation may then take place both in the humus layer (the mor) and in the mineral soil, although the pH may be well below 4.5 in the mor layer. Scarcity of available N in the soil is a common cause of slow growth. Effects of fertilization on ecosystem functions are discussed.

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