Environmental Sustainability and Sustainable Forest Management

Environmental Sustainability

One of the challenges facing modern forest management is producing forest products, including bioenergy and bio-based products, from southern forests in a sustainable manner (Guldin and Kaiser 2004). Defining sustainability and sustainable forest management has been difficult because of complexity in relevant scientific concepts and the state of current technical progress that might have practical application for land managers. And, as stated by Shifley (2006), we need to improve the ability of the natural resource community to interpret a variety of performance indicator measurements with regard to sustainability. Definitions related to sustainability have also eluded precise clarity and consensus because of the highly politically charged atmosphere that characterizes ongoing debates about forest management practices and land tenure involving landowners, forest industry, environmental conservation organizations, aboriginal peoples, the general public, and public agencies at local to national and international levels. The discussions and debates over what sustainability means precisely are still vigorously continuing as of 2006 (Floyd 2002, Shifley 2006).

In spite of our collective difficulty in agreeing on precise definitions of sustainability and sustainable forest management, there has been very rapid progress in several important ways since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. Examples of recent progress can be seen in the following three examples. First, The Dictionary of Forestry (Helms 1998) now includes definitions of sustainability and sustainable forest management and related concepts; and in the context of forests, sustainability has been defined as "...the capacity of forests, ranging from stands to ecoregions, to maintain their health, productivity, diversity, and overall integrity, in the long-run, in the context of human activity and use."

A second example of progress during the last decade is seen in international programs in which nations are voluntarily agreeing to document and report progress towards measurable sustainability goals. The United States participates in one such international program called the Montreal Process in which national trends are measured over time according to criteria and indicators (C&I) of sustainable forest management. The most recent national report, titled National Report on Sustainable Forests - 2003 (Guldin and Kaiser 2004), provides an analysis of data describing the condition of U.S. forests according to the Montreal Process C&I, and proposes alternatives for continued progress.

A third example is characterized by the development of certification schemes, such as the Forest Stewardship Council, that are designed to guarantee that specific performance standards related to sustainable forest management are achieved by forest managers. Certification programs vary with respect to regional applicability and standards to be achieved, but all require third-party audit, and therefore provide the general public and consumers the basis for objective, independent assessment and verification that management systems will achieve the principles of sustainability.

These examples provide evidence that sustainability concepts are emerging from theory to practice. They demonstrate that national policy and legislation are evolving and informed by a science-based understanding of sustainability. They clearly show that industry and the market place have incorporated concepts of sustainability into regular business practice. It is important to recognize that all parties engaged in development of the conceptual framework for sustainable forest management implicitly accept that, with proper forest management, it is possible to achieve sustainable forest management in practice. All parties should enter into negotiations leading to related international agreements with that in mind. Those involved in the business of financially supporting certification systems must have market-driven incentives to achieve sustainable forest management. In effect, all parties are committed to the principle that it is possible to maintain and enhance the site productivity, water quality, and biodiversity of forests managed with varying intensities over the long-term at stand and ecoregion levels of resolution by applying management systems that consider environmental, economic, and social criteria (Angelstam and others 2002; Burger 2002; Neary 2002; Shepard 2006; Environmental Benefits of Biomass, Forest Management and Silviculture for Bioenergy Production, and Carbon Displacement).

The primary purpose of this section on Environmental Sustainability is to introduce the concept of sustainable forest management; to develop an understanding of the scientific basis defining the sustainability of forest ecosystems from perspectives of soils, water, and biodiversity; and to summarize the policy framework and certification programs which enable forest landowners and managers to develop sustainable practice and maintain market access for both traditional forest products, as well as emerging bioenergy and bio-based products. This section will discuss the main issues affecting the sustainability of resources associated with forest ecosystems which require careful consideration and conservation, and which are considered valuable goods and services provided by forests, namely forest soils, water quality and quantity, and biodiversity; and provides guidance for designing low-impact, sustainable forest operations to protect and conserve soil, water, and biodiversity resources. Although most of the material in this section has been necessarily drawn from broad, national and international perspectives, specific information relevant to Southern conditions is provided wherever possible. Readers should be aware that concepts defining sustainable forest management are applicable to management systems designed to produce a wide array of good and services, including traditional forest products, wildlife, water, aesthetics, as well as biomass for renewable energy and bio-based products. Where necessary, special attention will be given to ways in which sustainability is differentially affected when forests are managed for bioenergy or new bio-based product feedstocks. Specific subsections include:

• Framework for Achieving Sustainable Forest Management
• Soil Values
• Hydrologic Values
• Biodiversity Values
• Designing Low-Impact Operations

Topics covered in this section of the Encyclopedia of Southern Bioenergy are complementary to topics covered from different perspectives in other sections of this encyclopedia titled Forest Management and Silviculture for Bioenergy Production, Introduction to Harvesting, Processing, Storage, and Delivery, and Economics.

Forest health and vitality and global carbon cycles are considered important criterion of sustainable forest management. However, scientific concepts and management practices related to these two Montreal Process criteria will not be covered in any depth by this section of the Encyclopedia. Topics related to insects, diseases, risk of wildfire, and invasive species will be covered where active management of Southern forests for bioenergy and bio-based products will reduce risk of decline or improve the health of Southern forests. Readers interested in issues related to Southern U.S. forest health are directed to summary documents by Hoffard and others (1995), Rauscher and Johnson (2004) and relevant materials found in other parts of the Forest Encyclopedia Network, such as Forest Environmental Threats and the Encyclopedia of Southern Pine Beetle. Readers interested in the relevance of bioenergy and bio-based products to global carbon cycles are directed to the section of the Encyclopedia titled Environmental Benefits of Biomass and associated resources. The Soil Values and Designing Low-Impact Operations sections of this Encyclopedia provide guidance for ways in which carbon sequestration benefits of forest management can be enhanced through practices which conserve soil and ecosystem organic matter.