Review of models for carbon accounting in harvested wood products

Jasinevičius, Gediminas; Lindner, Marcus; Pingoud, Kim; Tykkyläinen, Markku

doi:10.1080/20426445.2015.1104078

Cited by 20 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…This was because of their longer lifespan [33,[58][59][60]. Thus, the increase in carbon stock of sawn wood has positive impacts on climate change mitigation in addition to substitution benefits, which has also been found in previous studies [42,61,62]. This occurred in our study, although we did not consider recycling or reuse of wood products in our analysis which could have extended the lifespan of the products and benefitted the climate through carbon storing [63].…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 46%

Climate Change Mitigation Potential in Boreal Forests: Impacts of Management, Harvest Intensity and Use of Forest Biomass to Substitute Fossil Resources

Baul

Alam

Ikonen

et al. 2017

Forests

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Abstract:The impacts of alternative forest management scenarios and harvest intensities on climate change mitigation potential of forest biomass production, utilization and economic profitability of biomass production were studied in three boreal sub-regions in Finland over a 40-year period. Ecosystem modelling and life cycle assessment tools were used to calculate the mitigation potential in substituting fossil materials and energy, expressed as the net CO 2 exchange. Currently recommended management targeting to timber production acted as a baseline management. Alternative management included maintaining 20% higher or lower stocking in forests and final felling made at lower breast height diameter than used in the baseline. In alternative management scenarios, logging residues and logging residues with coarse roots and stumps were harvested in final felling in addition to timber. The net CO 2 exchange in the southern and eastern sub-regions was higher compared to the western one due to higher net ecosystem CO 2 exchange (NEE) over the study period. Maintaining higher stocking with earlier final felling and intensified biomass harvest appeared to be the best option to increase both climate benefits and economic returns. Trade-offs between the highest net CO 2 exchange and economic profitability of biomass production existed. The use of alternative displacement factors largely affected the mitigation potential of forest biomass.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 46%

Climate Change Mitigation Potential in Boreal Forests: Impacts of Management, Harvest Intensity and Use of Forest Biomass to Substitute Fossil Resources

Baul

Alam

Ikonen

et al. 2017

Forests

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“…Using the data flow analysis (comparable to the Tier 3 method), it is possible to follow wood (carbon) in the forest sector [23,24]. Wood flow analysis is an important element in assessing existing carbon HWP flows, which is often ignored due to lack of data [25].…”

Section: Characteristics Tier 2 Tiermentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Effects of Accounting Methods for Carbon Storage in Harvested Wood Products on the National Carbon Budget of Lithuania

Aleinikovas

Jasinevičius

Škėma

et al. 2018

Forests

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Forests and the forest-based sector play important roles in mitigating climate change through carbon sequestration and storage in living biomass and soil. In Europe, the forest sector is the only sector that positively affects atmospheric carbon balance. After the forest harvest, a large share of carbon is removed together with the wood. This wood carbon might be stored for centuries if in the form of long-lived wood products. In 2011, the United Nations decided that countries should account for and report carbon balance not only in forests but also in harvested wood products (HWP), followed by very general guidelines on methods for carbon accounting in HWP. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) proposed three methodological levels called tiers for estimating carbon stock and its changes in HWP. The first reporting period revealed that countries applied different carbon accounting methods (tiers), therefore comparing the carbon budgets of HWP and the effect of climate change mitigation among different countries is difficult. In order to test the differences between carbon accounting methods proposed by the IPCC guidelines, we applied two carbon accounting methods and used different data sources in the case of Lithuania. The methods applied were the IPCC Tier 2 method (data on HWP from statistics or the literature, default half-life values, and default HWP categories) and material flow analysis, which is compatible with the IPCC Tier 3 method (material flow data on HWP, country-specific half-life values, and country-specific HWP categories). Depending on the availability of historical data from different sources for the purpose of this study, three study periods were defined: 1992–2015 Food and Agriculture Organization Corporate Statistical Database (FAOSTAT) data, 1960–1991 data from the literature, and 1940–1991 data from national statistics. The study findings show that carbon stock in HWP significantly differed when different data sources and methods were applied. The highest carbon stock in HWP (19.5 Mt) at the end of the study period was observed when FAOSTAT data from 1992–2015 were used and the Tier 3 method was applied. The lowest carbon stock in HWP (11.2 Mt) at the end of the study period was observed when data from national statistics from 1940–1991 were used and the Tier 2 method was applied. The carbon inflow into the pool of HWP in all cases was estimated to be 40% higher when material flow analysis was applied compared to the IPCC default (Tier 2) method. These findings suggest that in general it is more reasonable to apply the Tier 3 method for carbon accounting of HWP in Lithuania.

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“…Tracking of material flows through the built environment is a challenge, but assumes greater importance as the desire to understand the true environmental impacts (and potential mitigation activities) associated with the built environment increases. The potential of using HWPs in the built environment as a climate change mitigation strategy has received much attention in the scientific literature (e.g., Jasinevičius et al, 2015;Pilli et al, 2015;Brunet-Navarro et al, 2016). Brunet-Navarro et al (2016) stated that there was a lack of reliable data on the utilization and lifetimes of HWPs to accurately estimate the carbon stocks and fluxes.…”

Section: The Use Of Timber In Constructionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Environmental Consequences Concerning the Use of Timber in the Built Environment

Hill¹

2019

Front. Built Environ.

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The use of timber in the built environment provides environmental benefits which arise dues to the substitution of higher impact materials, the storage of sequestered atmospheric carbon in long-life products and the recovery of inherent energy in the material at the end of life. This manuscript explores the issues that determine how embodied energy and global warming potential are calculated and reported. The article discusses the literature which compares the use of timber in the built environment and other materials in life cycle assessment studies. The issue of how sequestered carbon should be dealt with is also discussed. End of life considerations are also addressed.

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Review of models for carbon accounting in harvested wood products

Cited by 20 publications

References 36 publications

Climate Change Mitigation Potential in Boreal Forests: Impacts of Management, Harvest Intensity and Use of Forest Biomass to Substitute Fossil Resources

Climate Change Mitigation Potential in Boreal Forests: Impacts of Management, Harvest Intensity and Use of Forest Biomass to Substitute Fossil Resources

Assessing the Effects of Accounting Methods for Carbon Storage in Harvested Wood Products on the National Carbon Budget of Lithuania

The Environmental Consequences Concerning the Use of Timber in the Built Environment

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