Financial feasibility of increasing carbon sequestration in harvested wood products in Mississippi

Longer forest rotation ages can potentially increase accumulation of carbon in harvested wood products due to a larger proportion of sawlogs that can be used for manufacturing durable wood products such as lumber and plywood. This study quantified amounts of carbon accumulated in wood products harvested from loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) stands grown in Mississippi by extending rotation ages traditionally used to manage these stands for timber. The financial viability of this approach was examined based on carbon payments received by landowners for sequestering carbon in standing trees and harvested wood products. Results indicated a potential to increase carbon accumulated in wood products by 16.11 metric tons (t) of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) per hectare (ha) for a rotation increase of 5 years and 67.07 tCO2e/ha for a rotation increase of 65 years. Carbon prices of $50/tCO2e and $110/tCO2e would be required to provide a sufficient incentive to forest landowners to extend rotations by 5 and 10 years, respectively. With 2.8 million ha of loblolly pine stands in Mississippi, this translates to a possible increase in wood products carbon of 45 million tCO2e and 80 million tCO2e for harvest ages increased by 5 and 10 years, respectively. Higher carbon prices lengthened rotation ages modestly due to low present values of carbon accumulated with long rotations.

► We examined financial viability of increasing carbon in wood products.
► 16 rotation ages of Loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) stands were evaluated.
► Extending rotations by 5 to 65 years increased wood products carbon by 16 to 67 tCO2e/ha.
► Carbon prices of $50/tCO2e and above were needed to extend rotations greater than 5 years.