MULTIFUNCTIONAL MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL ORIGIN SOUTHERN PINE TO IMPROVE ECOSYSTEM SERVICES

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: COMPLETE
• Funding Source: NRI COMPETITIVE GRANT
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 0217666
• Grant No.: 2009-35103-05356
• Cumulative Award Amt.: $384,240.00
• Proposal No.: 2008-00726
• Project Start Date: Jun 15, 2009
• Project End Date: Jun 14, 2014
• Grant Year: 2009
• Program Code: [23.1]- Managed Ecosystems

Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS
(N/A)
FAYETTEVILLE,AR 72703

Performing Department
Forestry And Natural Resources

Non Technical Summary
Using intensive management techniques in loblolly pine plantations can produce more wood on shorter rotations than stands of natural origin. While managed stands of natural origin are profitable, the income potential of short rotation plantations is much greater. This has fostered the widespread conversion of natural origin pine stands during the last half-century and has altered the nature of southern forested landscapes. In effect, these major changes have negatively affected Southern forests' ability to provide multifunctional ecosystem services, as much of the landscape is now focused almost exclusively on fiber production. This trend has been driven by economic evaluations that consider only the cash value of traditional wood products (e.g., pulpwood, sawtimber), rather than the ecosystem services (including commodity production) that could be provided. This change has largely occurred on industrially owned timberlands, with lesser inroads into the lands controlled by private individuals. There is growing interest in using highly productive southern forests for both large-scale carbon sequestration and mass production of cellulosic biofuels. Natural origin forests offer unique opportunities to incorporate these new markets with traditional commodities and their concurrent ecosystem services now lacking from intensively managed pine plantations (e.g., wildlife). The objective of the proposed research is to compare natural and artificial systems of even-aged and uneven-aged loblolly pine management for the Upper Gulf Coastal Plain in the context of multiple forest functions, with the ultimate goals of broadening the silvicultural options for small private landowners and ensuring the sustainability of loblolly pine forests in the South.

Animal Health Component

100%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

(N/A)

Applied

100%

Developmental

(N/A)

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
123	0611	1070	80%
605	0611	2090	20%

Knowledge Area
605 - Natural Resource and Environmental Economics; 123 - Management and Sustainability of Forest Resources;

Subject Of Investigation
0611 - Conifer forests of the South;

Field Of Science
2090 - Statistics, econometrics, and biometrics; 1070 - Ecology;

Keywords

silviculture

naturally regenerated

loblolly pine

pinus taeda

carbon credits

carbon sequestration

biofuel

Goals / Objectives
STUDY OBJECTIVES Our proposed research will compare the efficacy, economic viability, and sustainability of natural and artificial systems of loblolly pine silviculture in the Upper Gulf Coastal Plain (UGCP) in the context of multiple forest functions including timber products, biofuels, carbon sequestration, and wildlife resources. To achieve this, we intend to: 1) compare timber growth and economic patterns across forest management strategies (natural even-aged, natural uneven-aged, artificial even-aged) for conventional forest commodities using actual long-term measurements, not model simulations; 2) compare marketable carbon credits among forest management strategies; 3) compare biofuel product quantity and quality among these forest management strategies; 4) evaluate wildlife habitat and potential among these forest management strategies; 5) determine comprehensive economic values and sustainability of the multitude of alternative forest functions by management approach; and 6) recommend a strategic policy for landowners based on their ultimate objectives through a dedicated knowledge transfer program, including educating the public as to the trade-offs between different management approaches.

Project Methods
Three stands each of naturally regenerated and even-aged; naturally regenerated and uneven-aged; and intensively managed plantations will be compared by documenting and valuing both traditional commodity production outputs as well as non-traditional outputs such as bioenergy feedstocks, C storage credits, and ecosystem services. For merchandizing traditional forest products, only sawtimber and pulpwood product categories will be used. Production will be calculated over a 60-year time period, which translates roughly to 2 cutting cycles in pine plantations, one cutting cycle in even-aged natural stands, and 10 to 12 harvests in uneven-aged natural stands. Carbon storage has become an increasingly important consideration in the management of southern pine forests. The long-term datasets associated with each stand will permit accounting over the entire rotation and then extrapolated beyond that in order to accurately project the amount of C sequestered. Post-consumer residency of the products generated under each system and root decomposition will also be accounted for during this 60-year period using time-based discounting techniques. Biofuels are another promising avenue for southern timber owners. Samples of the three different loblolly pine stand permutations will be collected, processed, and then shipped to the USDA Forest Service laboratory in Pineville, Louisiana, for processing in a Biomax 25 gasification unit. Thermal value of the biomass samples will also be analyzed in the wet chemistry laboratory with a Parr 6100 bomb calorimeter. Once biofuel yield from the different wood type permutations is determined, we will use our inventory data to convert this to the potential production of each silvicultural system. Pine plantations are simple in their composition, structure, and age. But these attributes may come at the expense of certain types of biodiversity. We intend to examine already published literature to index functional diversity for as many of the species groups of vertebrates as have been studied for the three loblolly pine-dominated forest types. Valuation of commodity, biofuel feedstock, and C offsets from each scenario will be calculated. Traditional wood product values will be determined for each scenario. There is no well-established market price to value biomass for biofuel feedstock. However, biofuel feedstock prices will likely range from a low nominal price of $1 per green ton and up to current pulpwood prices. In the case of valuing C offsets, market prices do currently exist from the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX). However, it is likely that C credit and stumpage prices will be volatile. Sensitivity analysis to various price cases and allowable C stocks will be necessary to determine the impact for each forest management scenario. The primary output of this work will be theses, technical guides, and scientific publications in peer-reviewed outlets. The University of Arkansas and USFS collaborators will produce and release bulletins on the lessons learned by this research program. An internet-based clearinghouse will also be developed to distribute all forms of information derived from this research project.

Progress 06/15/09 to 06/14/14

Outputs
Target Audience: Project updates and initial results were presented at several professional meetings (e.g., Soil Science Society of America, Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conference, Arkansas Academy of Science). Audiences included members of the Soil Science Society of America, forest practitioners and scientists, Arkansas Academy of Science participants. Research results were presented in May 2014 as the central component of the Crossett Experimental Forest (USDA Forest Service, Crossett, AR) Forestry Field Day. At this meeting, high-school students, landowners, and natural resource professionals each had a 1/2 day session of field and classroom presentations highlighting the results of the reseach project. More than 150 people attended this field day. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? The Crossett Experimental Forest Forestry Field Day, held, May 11-12, 2014, was attended by more than 150 students, landowners, and foresters. At this event the results of the project were discussed through seminars, field trips to research sites, and interactive activities. The project results have also been disseminated through professional meetings, papers, seminars, and poster presentations. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? The Crossett Forestry Field Day specifically reached out to 4 area high schools who sent more than 100 science students to attend the field day. During the field day, the students had hands-on interactive time with the researchers on project sites and discussing the many economic and ecological benefits of pine forests in the Upper Gulf Coastal Plain. These students were also recruited by the University of Arkansas and MonticelloSchool of Forest Resources and the UAM Math and Sciences program. Most students do not connect forestry, wildlife, and natural resource management as a STEM field and this was a major focal point of our presentations -- to present the engineering, chemistry, statistics, and biological science that is the underpinning of all natural resource management. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The impact of our project has been to define many new and potentially marketable benefits from loblolly pine forests in the Upper Gulf Coastal Plain. We have learned that a wide variety of natural and planted loblolly pine systems can produce valuable products and services to sustain local communities and have a global impact on environmental issues such as climate change. We found that properly implemented systems of natural pine regeneration can lead to forests that produce sustainable timber in amounts and values equivalent to planted pine forests. And that under current and proposed carbon markets, substantial increases in forest land value and economic returns are attainable while at the same time reducing the carbon footprint of our national economy in a cost effective manner. Loblolly pine systems will play an important role in bio-fuel and bio-energy production, primarily in terms of wood pellet productino over the next 10 years, and afterwardsfor cellulosic-based liquid fuels. Loblolly pine forests, particularly uneven-aged pine forests, play a crucial role in providing wildlife habitat for several bird and amphibian species as well as enhancing water quantity and quality in the Upper Gulf Coastal Plain. PelkkiandChaudhari determined that economic returns from unven-agednatural pine stands and pine plantations had the highest timber returns and that timber values justified bare-land values of $1500 perhectare in the UGLP. Natural even-aged stands had much lower bare-land values of only $1070 per hectare because of much longer economic production cycles. However, when a carbon market exists, uneven-aged stands sequester much less carbon on a long-term basis as measured by increases in live standing biomass. It is necessary from a policy standpoint to include carbon stored off-forest, in long-lived wood products, tomaintain economic returns in uneven-aged management systems that will compare favorably with plantations. In direct terms, if carbon markets only include sequestrationadditions in above-ground live trees, uneven-aged pine forests might be converted to plantations in order to produce the most increases in carbon stored in living trees. Bragg and Schuler found that naturally regenerated pine forests are more structurally and species diverse than plantations but natural stands produce only 50-90% of the biomass that plantations do. However, for family forest landowners, which control 70% of southern forests, a combination of wildlife production, carbon sequestration, water quality, and biological diversity is an attractive alternative to simple commodity production if incentive programs can make up some of the financial difference. Objective 1 of the grant was to compare timber growth and economic patterns across forest management strategies (natural even-aged, natural uneven-aged, artificial even-aged) for conventional forest commodities using actual long-term measurements. To do this we used historic data from multiple cycles of harvesting on uneven-aged stands in the Crossett Experimental Forest (CEF), a 50 year history of naturally regenerated even-aged pine management at the CEF, and thirty years of pine plantation management from the University of Arkansas at Monticello Forest. We converted the historic growth and yield from these stands into conventional wood products and analyzed the financial returns. Timber returns from the uneven-aged stands at CEF and the UAM pine plantation stand data justified land values of $1,498 and $1,495 per hectare, respectively, while the natural even-aged pine stands from CEF provided economic returns that justified land values of $1,070 per hectare. Objective 2 was to compare marketable carbon credits among the three major management approaches for loblolly pine. Here it was found that intensive pine plantation management was most likely to provide the maximum carbon returns as these stands sequestered as much as 14 Mg/ha/yr compared to even-aged natural pine stands at 8 Mg/ha/yr. The uneven-aged stands sequestered only 0.75 Mg/ha/yr of carbon over time periods that were set at a minimum of 15 years. Only in a scenario where wood product carbon storage (off-forest carbon storage) was considered salable would a carbon market provide economic benefits for uneven-aged pine forests. Objective three was to compare biofuel product quantity and quality among these forest management strategies. Biofuel products such as biochar and wood pellets from small diameter pine trees in uneven-aged forests were evaluated. Small diameter pine biomass may be able to increase the amount of bioenergy and economic returns derived from uneven-aged and naturally regenerated even-aged pine forests, but will have much less of an impact on pine plantations. Objective four evaluated wildlife habitat and potential among these forest management strategies. In this case, a literature review confirmed that wildlife diversity of habitat value is greatest in natural even-aged pine forests as well as uneven-aged pine forests. Objective five was to determine comprehensive economic values and sustainability of the multitude of alternative forest functions by management approach. Even under favorable ecosystem service markets, pine plantations will continue to deliver the maximum economic returns to landowners in the Upper West Gulf Coastal Plain. At present, the economic returns for pine plantation management are some $400-500 greater per hectare than from natural even-aged or uneven-aged management schemes. However, under favorable conditions for carbon, water, and biological diversity, longer-rotation even-aged pine management and uneven-aged pine management can overcome this difference to the extent that landowners not driven solely by financial returns may adopt these alternative management strategies. Finally, objective six was to recommend a strategic policy for landowners based on their ultimate objectives through a dedicated knowledge transfer program, including educating the public as to the trade-offs between different management approaches. This was accomplished by highlighting our results at the 2014 Crossett Experimental Forest “Forestry Field Day” on May 11-12, 2014. More than 150 high-school students, landowners, and professional foresters attended the event and received hands-on training in pine management as well as various technical seminars and interactive programs on wildlife, bioenergy, and water and air quality services from pine forests.

Publications

• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2011 Citation: Bragg, D.C. 2011. Modeling loblolly pine aboveground live biomass in a mature pine-hardwood stand: a cautionary tale. Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science 65:31-38.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2012 Citation: Bragg, D.C. 2012. Developing contemporary and historical live tree biomass estimates for old pine-hardwood stands of the Midsouth, U.S.A. Forest Ecology and Management 281:32-40.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Bragg, D.C. and K.M. McElligott. 2013. Comparing aboveground biomass predictions for an uneven-aged pine-dominated stand using local, regional, and national models. Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science 67:34-41.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: DC Bragg, JL Schuler, MH Pelkki, DA Scott, JM Guldin. More than just timber: silvicultural options and ecosystem services from managed southern pine stands. 17th Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conference. In Press.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2015 Citation: Jackson, M.A., T.L. Eberhardt, A.A. Boateng, C.A. Mullen, and L.H. Groom. In Press. Evaluation of biochars by temperature programmed oxidation/mass spectrometry. BioResources.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: Bragg, D.C., J.L. Schuler, M.H. Pelkki, D.A. Scott, and J.M. Guldin. In press. More than just timber: silvicultural options and ecosystem services from managed southern pine stands. 17th BSSRC Proceedings.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2014 Citation: McElligott, K.M., D.C. Bragg, and J.L. Schuler. In press. Predicting small-diameter loblolly pine aboveground biomass in naturally regenerated stands. 17th BSSRC Proceedings.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2015 Citation: Bragg, D.C. and D.A. Scott. In press. A preliminary aboveground live biomass model for small understory hardwoods from Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. Central Hardwoods Conference Proceedings.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Other Year Published: 2015 Citation: Bragg, D.C. In preparation. An improved approach for estimating tree biomass from certain historic records.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2015 Citation: Bragg, D.C. In preparation. An extension of the Crossett Experimental Forest's board foot and cubic foot volume and biomass tables. USDA Forest Service publication.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Submitted Year Published: 2015 Citation: Schuler JL, DC Bragg, and K. McElligott. Comparison of Biomass Components between Planted and Natural Origin Loblolly Pine Stems. Submission to Biomass and Bioenergy.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Submitted Year Published: 2015 Citation: Mandalika A, D Bragg, J Schuler, D Baker, T Elder, L Groom. Chemical analysis of loblolly pine fractions from a bioenergy perspective. Submitted to Journal of Wood and Fiber Science.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2014 Citation: Pelkki, M.H. and U. Chaudhari. 2014. Using Long-Lived Wood Product Carbon Additionality to Define Benefits in Even-Aged Forests. A poster presentation to the 2014 Soc. Amer. For. National Convention. October 8-11, 2014, Salt Lake City, UT.
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: www.SoPineBenefits.com
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2012 Citation: Chaudhari, U. 2011. Evaluating Loblolly Pine Management Scenarios Considering Carbon Markets. MS Thesis. University of Arkansas at Monticello. 161 p.

Progress 06/15/12 to 06/14/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Natural resource professionals, scientists, andtechnical expertsare the primary target audience for this reporting period. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Presentations on research findings were made at the following conferences: SWST 56th International Convention, June 9, 2013, Austin, TX 66th International Forest Products Society Meeting, June 3-5, 2012. Washington, DC, USA. Southern Forest Historical Society. October 25, 2013. Longleaf Pine, LA. 9th North American Forest Ecology Workshop, June 16-20, 2013, Bloomington, IN. Arkansas Academy of Science Annual Meeting, April 5-6, 2013, Little Rock, AR. 17th Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conference, March 5-7, 2013, Shreveport, LA. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? TheFour-State Forestry Conferenceheld on April 26-27, 2013 inTexarkana, TX, provided an opportunity for dissemination of research findings to more than 400 private landowners in Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? In 2014, we plan on engaging in several more workshops and landowner-focused presentations to disseminate the information to our community of interest.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Results of the carbon markets research work done by Umesh Chaudhari's 2012 MS Thesis are being written into manuscripts that will be submitted for publication in early 2014. During 2013, Don Bragg and Kristin McElligott completed the development of small-diameter biomass models for loblolly pine and used these models in comparison with established regional and national models for predicting uneven-aged loblolly pine biomass. Carbon sequestration patterns over a 75-year history of uneven-aged management was documented and reported, and historical records where used to improve biomass predictions. Les Groom finished the analysis on the thermal and energy properties of loblolly pine from natural even-aged, uneven-aged, and plantation orginated stands. Gassification results analyzed and initial findings reported at several scientific conferences. Dr. Philip Tappe completed the literaturereview on wildlife habitat potential among varying strategies for management of loblolly pine.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: McElligott, K.M., D.C. Bragg, and J.L. Schuler. 2013. Predicting small-diameter loblolly pine aboveground biomass in naturally regenerated stands. Oral presentation to the 17th Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conference, March 5-7, 2013, Shreveport, LA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Bragg, D.C., J.L. Schuler, M.H. Pelkki, D.A. Scott, and J.M. Guldin. 2013. More than just timber: silvicultural options and ecosystem services from managed southern pine stands. Oral presentation to the 17th Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conference, March 5-7, 2013, Shreveport, LA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Groom, L., Elder, T., Bragg, D., Mandalika, A. and Baker D. 2013. Thermal Properties of Loblolly Pine from Naturally Regenerated Stands. Abstracts of the SWST 56th International Convention, June 9, 2013, Austin, TX
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Groom, L.H., Gupta, M., Sharma, P., Sharma, A., Spivey, J.J. and Elder, T. 2012. Pilot-Scale Gasification of Woody Biomass and Production of Liquid Transportation Fuel. 66th International Forest Products Society Meeting. June 3-5, 2012. Washington, DC, USA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Groom, L., T. Elder, A. Mandalika, D. Bragg. 2013. Evolution of Southern Pine Biomass Conversion Technologies. Presentation to the Southern Forest Historical Society. October 25, 2013. Longleaf Pine, LA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Elder, T. and Groom, L.H. 2012. Gasification of Woody Biomass as a Route to Energy and Fuels. 2012 International Wood Composites Symposium. April 11-13, 2012. Seattle, WA, USA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Elder, T, Groom, L.H., Labb�, N., and Bhattacharya P. 2013. Gasification of Southern Forest Resources. Proceedings from Sun Grant National Conference: Science for Biomass Feedstock Production and Utilization, New Orleans, LA
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Bragg, D.C., J.M. Guldin, and K. McElligott. 2013. Carbon sequestration patterns and forest product yield of two southern pine stands over 75 years of uneven-aged management. Oral presentation to the 98th Ecological Society of America annual meeting, August 4-9, 2013, Minneapolis, MN.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Bragg, D.C. 2013. An improved approach for estimating tree biomass from certain historic records. Oral presentation to the 9th North American Forest Ecology Workshop, June 16-20, 2013, Bloomington, IN.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Bragg, D.C. 2013. Natural pine yields and returns or multifunctional management for the ultimate ecosystem service. Invited oral presentation to the Four-State Forestry Conference, April 26-27, 2013, Texarkana, TX.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Bragg, D.C. and K.M. McElligott. 2013. Comparing aboveground biomass predictions for an uneven-aged pine-dominated stand using local, regional, and national models. Oral presentation to the Arkansas Academy of Science Annual Meeting, April 5-6, 2013, Little Rock, AR.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: McElligott, K.M. and D.C. Bragg. 2013. Deriving biomass models for small-diameter loblolly pine on the Crossett Experimental Forest. Oral presentation to the Arkansas Academy of Science Annual Meeting, April 5-6, 2013, Little Rock, AR.

Progress 06/15/11 to 06/14/12

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Don Bragg, Jamie Schuler and Kristin McElligott (with USFS staff) excavated an additional 62 small-diameter trees from natural stands in the Crossett Experimental Forest (CEF). These samples were divided into biomass components. This work was coordinated with Plum Creek Timber Co. to obtain access and permission to harvest plantation grown pine to compare allocation patterns between planted and natural systems. 38 loblolly pine trees were excavated from from nearby bedded and flat-planted stands and divided into biomass components. 577 hardwood and pine understory species were also excavated from CEF and aboveground components were collected, dried, and weighed. Additional biofuel sample materials from uneven-aged pine stands were made available for biofuel estimation. We prepared two abstracts that were accepted for the BSSRC in Shreveport. Matthewe Pelkki's graduate student, Umesh Chaudhari, completed his MS thesis on the potential financial impacts of carbon markets on loblolly pine management regimes. The following oral presentations were made by project team members. Pelkki, M.H. and U. Chaudhari. 2011. Financial impacts of carbon markets on southern pine enterprise. Oral presentation to the 2011 Society of American Foresters National Convention, November 2-6, 2011, Honolulu, HI. Bragg, D.C. 2011. Arboreal composition and biomass of unmanaged pine-dominated natural areas in southern Arkansas. Oral presentation to the 2011 Natural Areas Conference, November 1-4, 2011, Tallahassee, FL. Bragg, D.C. 2011. Using Hoerl's Special Function to extend the Crossett Experimental Forest's local cubic foot volume equation. Oral presentation to the 2011 Southern Mensurationists Annual Meeting, October 24-25, 2011, Memphis, TN. Bragg, D.C. 2011. Expanding our options: multifunctional ecosystem management in southern pine-dominated forests of natural origin. Invited oral presentation to the 7th Forest Summit, October 13-14, 2011, Holyoke, MA. Both the publications and presentations were partially or completely supported by grant funds. We also hired two summer student interns this last summer to help with data collection, and of course Kristin McElligott's half-time salary support came from this grant as well. PARTICIPANTS: PI: Matthew Pelkki (replacing Jamie Schuler) - coordinating activities, serving on graduate student committees. Co-PI: Jamie Schuler (now at West Virginia University) - collating data from the study sites, collecting biomass and root samples. Co-PI: Don Bragg-Coordinating USFS activities, collating data from the study sites, collecting biomass and root samples. Along with the forest supervisor at Crosett Experimental Forest, he supervised three summer workers (Chris Rea, Travis Rushing, Russell Pack) and one technician (Kirby Sneed) that assisted with root and soil C sample collection and processing. Co-PI: Les Groom- coordinated gasiifer activities, including chip processing and the operation of gasifier. Under Dr. Groom's direction, Tom Elder, Chi So and Akshya Sharma performed in-kind work on this project. Co-PI: Andy Scott-assessed carbon stocks associated with several of the management regimes. This activity was conducted with the assistance of Richard H. Stagg, Forester, and Morris A. Smith, Jr., forestry technician. Graduate students: Umesh Chaudhari and Chris Rea. TARGET AUDIENCES: Project updates and initial results were presented at several professional meetings (e.g., Soil Science Society of America, Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conference, Arkansas Academy of Science). Audiences included members of the Soil Science Society of America, forest practitioners and scientists, Arkansas Academy of Science participants. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
No measurable outcomes were indicated through June 2011. We expect several outcomes during this up-coming year.

Publications

• Chaudhari, U. 2011. Evaluating Loblolly Pine Management Scenarios Considering Carbon Markets. MS Thesis. University of Arkansas at Monticello. 161 p.
• Bragg, D.C. 2012. Developing contemporary and historical live tree biomass estimates for old pine-hardwood stands of the Midsouth, U.S.A. Forest Ecology and Management 281:32-40.
• Bragg, D.C. 2011. Modeling loblolly pine aboveground live biomass in a mature pine-hardwood stand: a cautionary tale. Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science 65:31-38.

Progress 06/15/10 to 06/14/11

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Don Bragg and Jamie Schuler (with graduate student Chris Rea) began an experiment looking at differences in loblolly pine tap root biomass in natural stands at the Crossett Experimental Forest. Over twenty stumps with tap roots were extracted. Also, biomass samples from mature trees (bole and crown) were harvested and processed for biofuel assessment. Bragg presented a paper at the Arkansas Academy of Science meeting that highlighted some of the inconsistancies in commonly used biomass models. Les groom has collected and run three different samples in the gasification unit and has completed a full complement of thermochemical analyses. These data are part of a database that will allow us to determine the effect of raw woody biomass material as a bioenergy feedstock. Andy Scott presented a poster at the Soil Science Society of America meetings, Nov. 1-3, 2010, Long Beach, CA. The poster was cited as: Scott, D.A., D. Bragg, J.M. Guldin, J. Schuler. 2010. Spatial patterns of soil carbon storage in unharvested and frequently harvested southern pine stands. This poster won a best poster award at the meeting. The material is being updated with more accurate spatial information and additional site data before submitting as a journal article. Matthew Pelkki made four presentations: (1) Pelkki, M.H. Decisions! Decisions! Carbon, Biofuels, or Wood: What should Arkansas landowners be producing for the future. Arkansas Forestry Association Annual Meeting. October 5-6, 2010, Little Rock, Arkansas. (2) Pelkki, M.H. Carbon, biofuels, and Traditional Wood Products - what's the best fit for Arkansas's Landowners Caddo Chapter of Arkansas State Society of American Foresters, 18 February, 2010, Arkadelphia, AR. (3) Chaudhari, U. and M. Pelkki. Financial Return and Landowner Choices in Loblolly Pine Mangemet Under Carbon Markets. 16th Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conference (BSSRC), February 15-17, 2011. Charleston, South Carolina. (4) Chaudhari, U. and M. Pelkki. Evaluating Loblolly Pine Management Scenarios Considering Carbon Markets. Poster presentation at the SOUTHERN FOREST ECONOMICS WORKERS (SOFEW) 2011 ANNUAL MEETING March 20-22, 2011, Little Rock, AR. He also participated in a radio show discussing "Biomass, Carbon, or Wood" What should Arkansas Forests Produce during the Timber Talk radio show (30 minutes) sponsored by Reynolds Forestry Consulting, Magnolia, AR. 2 November 2010. PARTICIPANTS: PI: Jamie Schuler- coordinating activities, serving on graduate student committees, collating data from the study sites, collecting biomass and root samples. Co-PI: Don Bragg-Coordinating USFS activities, collating data from the study sites, collecting biomass and root samples. Along with the forest supervisor at Crosett Experimental Forest, he supervised three summer workers (Chris Rea, Travis Rushing, Russell Pack) and one technician (Kirby Sneed) that assisted with root and soil C sample collection and processing. Co-PI: Les Groom- coordinated gasiifer activities, including chip processing and the operation of gasifier. Under Dr. Groom's direction, Tom Elder, Chi So and Akshya Sharma performed in-kind work on this project. Co-PI: Matthew Pelkki- supervised one graduate student studying carbon valuation. A draft of his thesis was completed. A final version is expected in the Fall 2011. Co-PI: Andy Scott-assessed carbon stocks associated with several of the management regimes. This activity was conducted with the assistance of Richard H. Stagg, Forester, and Morris A. Smith, Jr., forestry technician. Graduate students: Umesh Chaudhari and Chris Rea. TARGET AUDIENCES: Project updates and initial results were presented at several professional meetings (e.g., Soil Science Socity of America, Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conference, Arkansas Academy of Science). Audiences included members of the Soil Science Society of America, forest practitioners and scientists, Arkansas Academy of Science participants. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
No measurable outcomes were indicated through June 2011. We expect several outcomes during this up-coming year.

Publications

• Bragg, D.C. 2011. Different aboveground live biomass models yield increasingly disparate estimates as tree diameter increases. Arkansas Academy of Science. Pending.

Progress 06/15/09 to 06/14/10

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Pelkki, M.H. Carbon market impacts on Arkansas's pine forests. Arkansas Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting. April 9-10, 2010, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Little Rock, AR. Pelkki, M.H. Carbon, biofuels, and Traditional Wood Products - what's the best fit for Arkansas's Landowners Caddo Chapter of Arkansas State Society of American Foresters, 18 February, 2010, Arkadelphia, AR. Pelkki also conducted a Timber Talk radio interview that reaches a wide audience in Arkansas. One graduate student was involved with the project during 2010. His thesis is expected to be completed in 2011. The results of his initial analysis were the source of the information presented above. Jamie Schuler provided chip samples that were delivered to the gasification facility near Pineville, LA. The USFS scientists (L. Groom) and staff have conducted several sample runs in 2010. Andy Scott collected soil samples to assess soil carbon levels in managed pine stands. Don Bragg collected and measured several pine tap roots that will be used to validate belowground biomass models. PARTICIPANTS: PI: Jamie Schuler- Coordinating activities, serving on graduate committee, collating data from the study sites, collecting biomass and root samples. Co-PI: Don Bragg- Coordinating US Forest Service activities, collating data from the study sites, and collecting biomass and root samples. He also supervised two summer workers (Chris Rea, John Rushing)that assisted with root sample collection and preparation. Co-PI: Les Groom- Coordinated gasifier activities, including processing of chip samples and the actual operation of the gasifier. Co-PI: Matthew Pelkki- supervised one graduate student studying carbon valuation. Co-PI: Andrew Scott- Sampled several pine stands to assess soil carbon stocks associated with different management schemes. TARGET AUDIENCES: Project updates and initial results were presented at several professional meetings. Audiences included Arkansas Forestry Association, Arkansas Academy of Science, Arkansas State Society of American Foresters, and one radio interview. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
Since this was the first year, we have no measurable outcomes.

Publications

• No publications reported this period