Carbon Footprint of Forest Operations under Different Management Regimes

Abstract

Different forest management regimes have different carbon footprints due to alternative operational strategies and options. Data concerning CO2 emissions (kg m–3) in felling, extraction, comminution and transport operations, performed under two different forest management regime (close-to-nature and plantation), were collected through a systematic literature review involving 162 scientific papers and compiled into a database. Results show that, within limits, forest operations in plantations produce lower emissions due to easier operational conditions, while transportation in both close-to-nature and plantation based forest operations reported the highest levels of emissions. Literature came from a variety of sources and often differed in context due to factors such as technology, work technique, operator skill and environmental conditions. These factors have been shown to highly affect the results obtained from the studies. Nevertheless, it has been possible to summarize most of the information gathered and to highlight the most representative driving factors in CO2 emissions throughout different forest management regimes.