Historical, ecological, and governance aspects of intensive forest biomass harvesting in Denmark

Abstract

Intensive forest harvesting has increased in Fennoscandia over the last few decades. Similar developments may follow throughout Europe as renewable energy replaces fossil fuels. The international literature suggests that intensive harvesting could increase ecological risks to yield, carbon stores, soil fertility, and biodiversity, but geographically specific knowledge is sparse in many countries, and results do not extend beyond 5-30 years after harvesting. We use Denmark as a case for discussing future directions. Forest history is described, and research on ecological effects and their inclusion in governance is reviewed. Denmark was almost completely deforested by the early 1800s, but centuries of afforestation have resulted in a current forest cover of 14.3%. Research commonly uses stemonly harvesting as a reference against which to compare intensive harvesting impacts, but pristine forests would be a more useful reference for ecological processes and biodiversity. However, pristine forests are almost non-existent in Europe, and non-intervention, self-regulating forests provide an alternative. Governance and positions of non-governmental organizations in Denmark focus more on general forest management impacts and conservation of light-demanding biodiversity associated with historic coppicing and grazing than on intensive harvesting. The energy sector drives the development of new governance to verify forest biomass sustainability, but the national knowledge base for such verification is limited. As part of a larger solution, we suggest establishing a network of nonintervention, self-regulating forests that can serve as a reference for long-term research and monitoring of intensive harvesting impacts. This would support the application of adaptive management strategies, and continuous improvements of best management practice guidelines.

Conceptual framework for increasing legitimacy and trust of sustainability governance

“…Following a long period of nearly total fossil fuel dependency after World War II, countries turned to bioenergy as a renewable energy source in response to the oil crisis of 1973 [ 7 ]. Some Nordic countries and Austria, for example, began to rely on forest and agriculture-based bioenergy as an alternative to oil in domestic heat and electricity production [ 8 – 10 ]. Brazil responded similarly to the oil crisis with the government implementing supportive policies to establish sugarcane-based bioethanol as a substitute for fossil fuels in the transportation sector [ 11 ].…”

“…For example, leading NGOs, including Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth (FoE) and especially the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) played a decisive role in the formation of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) in the early 1990s in cohorts with governments and timber companies [ 50 ]. As an example related to bioenergy from the temperate and boreal zone, some of the Nordic countries also issued national forest biomass harvesting guidelines in 1980s and 1990s to meet concerns over soil fertility and biodiversity due to intensified whole-tree and residue harvesting in forests [ 8 , 51 ]. Stakeholders were involved in processes to define these guidelines and some level of agreement was found on what is acceptable, which allowed intensified forest harvesting practices to continue in conditions that were assessed to have low risk of undesirable impacts.…”

Lithuanian forest biomass resources: legal, economic and ecological aspects of their use and potential

“…The last chapter, analysis of ecological risks and their regulation is based only on Lithuanian regulations and scientific findings of local studies. Though other countries face similar challenges [17,18], this case study only deals with environmental issues covered by Lithuanian legislation and other documents with related information on forest biomass use for energy.…”

Exploring the Impact of Thinning Operations on Forest Ecosystems in Tropical and Temperate Regions Worldwide: A Comprehensive Review

“…Though developing longer and longitudinal studies is difficult, the resulting data allows avoidance of conclusions based on temporary responses and provides long-term and threshold information (Schreiber et al, 2004). Numerous traditional thinning experiments were initially designed to study growth and yield principles but nowadays provide a significant source of information to satisfy the present demand for knowledge about aspects such as the effect of thinning on structural diversity, carbon sequestration, and growth response to extreme droughts (Berndes et al, 2016; Stupak and Raulund-Rasmussen, 2016).…”