Management for Timber Production and Carbon Sequestration

Forest management can be divided into two basic strategies: uneven-aged and even-aged management. Uneven-aged management combines cutting removal through selective cutting from above with natural regeneration and ingrowth of seedlings. Uneven-aged management excludes the specific rotation and stand-based forest structure of landscapes. This is contrast to even-aged management based on sites with tree stands, using thinning from below or above. In even-aged management, reforestation is mainly based on clear-cutting and seeding/planting or through natural regeneration using shelterwood or seed tree cuttings. Both even- and uneven-aged management seem to generate similar mean growth, carbon stocks, and timber yield under the currently recommended management patterns. Using even-aged management, carbon sequestration is sensitive to the thinning intensity in removal of trees and extension of rotation time. A moderate decrease of thinning intensity and extension of rotation length increase the capacity and duration of carbon retention in forest ecosystems. Concurrently, the changes in soil carbon stocks in response to thinning and extension of rotation are delayed and less sensitive than the changes of carbon stocks in trees. Varying combinations of different management operations affect given timber yield and climate benefits due to the complex interaction between management and the retention of carbon in forest ecosystems.