Forest Sciences Commons^™

A Case Study Approach For Assessing Operational And Silvicultural Performance Of Whole-Tree Biomass Harvesting In Maine, Charles E. Coup

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the Northeastern United States, re-emerging markets for renewable energy are driving interest in increasing the harvest of underutilized biomass material from Maine’s forest. These markets may offer opportunities for forest managers to implement silvicultural treatments that have previously been foregone due to their high cost. However, many operational challenges arise in using current harvesting systems to harvest biomass material profitably while simultaneously achieving silvicultrual objectives. This research uses a case study approach to analyzing some of the possibilities and obstacles in implementing biomass harvesting in Maine. The first three studies investigate a factorial silvicultural and operational case study involving …