Economic impacts of partial harvesting: Mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaks

Natural disturbances such as pest outbreaks have a significant impact on forest dynamics and services, including the loss of mature stands. From a wood production perspective, these disturbances can lead to long-lasting imbalances in the overall age-class structure of the forest, potentially resulti...

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Main Authors: Torben Jensen, Jean-Martin Lussier
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Canadian Institute of Forestry 2021-09-01
Series:The Forestry Chronicle
Subjects:
Online Access:https://pubs.cif-ifc.org/doi/10.5558/tfc2021-030
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author Torben Jensen
Jean-Martin Lussier
author_facet Torben Jensen
Jean-Martin Lussier
author_sort Torben Jensen
collection DOAJ
description Natural disturbances such as pest outbreaks have a significant impact on forest dynamics and services, including the loss of mature stands. From a wood production perspective, these disturbances can lead to long-lasting imbalances in the overall age-class structure of the forest, potentially resulting in a shortage of mature harvestable stands. Researchers from Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) Canadian Forest Service (CFS) have made a timber supply analysis of the Dunière forest located in the centre of the Gaspé Peninsula (Québec). This region suffers from an age-class structure imbalance caused by an eastern spruce budworm (ESB) outbreak that ended in 1984, and is consequently facing a reduced annual allowable cut, leading to long- term implications for the regional forest sector. The authors suggest that partial harvesting – the removal of a proportion of timber in a mature stand several years before a final cut is carried out – is a promising opportunity in the ESB-affected area for mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages by smoothing the fibre supply over time.
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spelling doaj-art-d6b11197cce643f289b7615d287777782025-08-20T02:56:34ZengCanadian Institute of ForestryThe Forestry Chronicle0015-75461499-93152021-09-0197327127610.5558/tfc2021-030Economic impacts of partial harvesting: Mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaksTorben Jensen0Jean-Martin Lussier1Canadian Forest Service, 580 Booth St., Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0E4, CanadaLaurentian Forestry Centre, 1055 Rue du Peps, Quebec City, QC, G1V 4C7, CanadaNatural disturbances such as pest outbreaks have a significant impact on forest dynamics and services, including the loss of mature stands. From a wood production perspective, these disturbances can lead to long-lasting imbalances in the overall age-class structure of the forest, potentially resulting in a shortage of mature harvestable stands. Researchers from Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) Canadian Forest Service (CFS) have made a timber supply analysis of the Dunière forest located in the centre of the Gaspé Peninsula (Québec). This region suffers from an age-class structure imbalance caused by an eastern spruce budworm (ESB) outbreak that ended in 1984, and is consequently facing a reduced annual allowable cut, leading to long- term implications for the regional forest sector. The authors suggest that partial harvesting – the removal of a proportion of timber in a mature stand several years before a final cut is carried out – is a promising opportunity in the ESB-affected area for mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages by smoothing the fibre supply over time.https://pubs.cif-ifc.org/doi/10.5558/tfc2021-030age-class structureeastern spruce budwormDunière forestGaspé Penninsuladistribution des classes d’âgetordeuse des bourgeons de l’épinette
spellingShingle Torben Jensen
Jean-Martin Lussier
Economic impacts of partial harvesting: Mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaks
The Forestry Chronicle
age-class structure
eastern spruce budworm
Dunière forest
Gaspé Penninsula
distribution des classes d’âge
tordeuse des bourgeons de l’épinette
title Economic impacts of partial harvesting: Mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaks
title_full Economic impacts of partial harvesting: Mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaks
title_fullStr Economic impacts of partial harvesting: Mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaks
title_full_unstemmed Economic impacts of partial harvesting: Mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaks
title_short Economic impacts of partial harvesting: Mitigating mid-term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaks
title_sort economic impacts of partial harvesting mitigating mid term timber supply shortages as a result of pest outbreaks
topic age-class structure
eastern spruce budworm
Dunière forest
Gaspé Penninsula
distribution des classes d’âge
tordeuse des bourgeons de l’épinette
url https://pubs.cif-ifc.org/doi/10.5558/tfc2021-030
work_keys_str_mv AT torbenjensen economicimpactsofpartialharvestingmitigatingmidtermtimbersupplyshortagesasaresultofpestoutbreaks
AT jeanmartinlussier economicimpactsofpartialharvestingmitigatingmidtermtimbersupplyshortagesasaresultofpestoutbreaks