Linking federal forest restoration with wood utilization: Modeling biomass prices and analyzing forest restoration costs in the Northern Sierra Nevada

Abstract

Over half of California’s forestland is managed by the US Forest Service, and the agency has identified a need to scale up forest restoration treatments in the state to one million acres per year by 2025. However, the high costs of mechanical fuel reduction and lack of markets for biomass pose significant barriers to accomplishing this target. The objectives of this case study were: (1) to identify costs of forest restoration treatments on federally-managed land in the Northern Sierra under a variety of harvesting scenarios and haul distances to biomass facilities, and (2) to understand what market prices for biomass must be offered to support such efforts. We modeled silvicultural prescription and harvesting options, machine productivity and costs, and transportation costs to assess economic thresholds. Biomass harvest, chip, and haul costs ranged from $55/bone dry ton to $118/bone dry ton, depending on the harvesting system scenario and distance from the biomass disposal site. Results suggest that the cost of forest restoration far exceeds current market prices for biomass, and additional investment is needed to adequately pay for federal forest restoration in California. Additional takeaways include that biomass outlets closer to supply sources can reduce both haul costs and production costs, and local wood utilization campuses can play a key role in supporting forest restoration.