"Ecotrust's analysis demonstrates one of the many important public benefits provided by the state's forests," said Nancy Hirsch, chief of the Oregon Department of Forestry's State Forests Division.
Paul Henson, state supervisor for the Oregon Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, agreed. "Climate change could have profound impacts on everything from owl habitat to seasonal water flows. Studies like this help us better understand the important role that Pacific Northwest forests could play in mitigating for those disruptions."
Ecotrust modeled forest growth, timber yield, and carbon storage for three proposed management plans under consideration by state and regulatory agencies. Each of the plans would meet the legal requirements of both the Oregon Forest Practices Act and the Endangered Species Act while allowing different timber harvest levels of 30, 35, or 40 million board feet (such timber harvest levels have been reached in four years since 1996).
The analysis of carbon storage potential was initiated by the Oregon Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The Oregon Departments of Forestry, and State Lands collaborated with Ecotrust on the study. It is the first of its kind to compare the carbon benefits of management options on state-managed lands. The Oregon Global Warming Commission has recommended a full carbon inventory of the State's forestlands.
In addition to the proposed management plans, Ecotrust evaluated alternative scenarios that included a maximum carbon storage scenario, in which no timber was harvested on the Elliott, and a minimum carbon storage scenario, in which all Elliott lands were assumed to be managed primarily for timber production. Results indicate that if no harvests occurred on the Elliott, the total amount of its carbon storage by 2050 would be equivalent to nearly 70% of Oregon's total annual greenhouse gas emissions for 2007, the most recent year for which data are available.
The Department of Forestry manages the Elliott under contract with the Department of State Lands. The forest consists primarily of forestland granted to Oregon at statehood, with a mandate to provide revenue for public schools.
The full report, "Carbon Analysis of Proposed Forest Management Regimes on the Elliott State Forest," is available on the Ecotrust website.
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