Combining GIS and forest modelling in estimating regional supply of harvest residues in Norway
Rørstad P. K., Trømborg E., Bergseng E., Solberg B. (2010). Combining GIS and forest modelling in estimating regional supply of harvest residues in Norway. Silva Fennica vol. 44 no. 3 article id 141. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.141
Abstract
New and ambitious targets for renewable energy production put attention to increased supply of biomass. Harvest residues are only to a limited extent demanded by the traditional forest industries and represent an unutilized resource for increased production of renewable energy in Norway. The overall objective of this paper is to study how GIS and forest modelling can be combined to improve estimates of the supply of harvest residues, taking different environmental and economic constraints into consideration. The analyses are based on a case study of a forest area of more than 40 000 ha in Southern Norway divided into about 500 private forest properties. The study was carried out by computations of timber harvest using the forestry scenario model SGIS based on extensive forest inventory data at stand level. In the studied area energy utilization of harvest residues is not profitable below an energy price of about EUR 3.2/GJ (NOK 0.10 /kWh) when the distance from roadside to industry is 20 km. Above this level supply increases rapidly over a rather narrow price range and is nearly inelastic above EUR 4.1/GJ (NOK 0.12/kWh). We did not find significant negative shifts in the residues supply caused by changes in location of roundwood harvest over time. Exclusion of collection from stands with a site index (H40) below 14 reduced the potential supply of residues by 16–27%. The optimisation method combined selection of exogenous variables in order to map observed harvesting level and is probably the best approach to map future harvest.
Keywords
bioenergy;
forestry;
SGIS;
supply functions
Received 15 October 2009 Accepted 25 May 2010 Published 31 December 2010
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