North American wood supply and demand : is there enough?

• Main Author: Pearson, Alexander Svend
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: Timberlands; Bioenergy; Wood Pellets; Mountain Pine Beetle; Supply & Demand; Harvesting; Lumber; Panels; On-Demand Energy; Pulp; Energy Generation; Forest Certification,; Conservation; Carbon Credits; Renewable Energy; United States; Canada; North America; Torrefaction; Economic Impact; Biofuels; Forestry
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/16124

The North American forest industry has long been an important part of North America’s economy. The industry has traditionally been the only industrial demand on timberland creating a long established balance between the supply (timberland) and the demand (manufacturing). Recently the forest industry has been troubled due to the collapse of the solid wood products largest market, housing, and a global recession. These troubled times have lead many operation in the industry to curtail operations. Since the industry curtailed, high oil prices and increasing environmental concern have advocated the investment in renewable energy sources. As a renewable energy source, biomass holds great potential for satisfying a portion of our continental energy demands. This increased demand for timberland products could be very profitable to the timberland owners but also holds many concerns to the extent of additional supply that can be harvested from our timberlands. Further complicating the balance of supply and demand are the large global and domestic effects that are reducing the total amount of timberland and increasing the demand for the remaining timberlands. The supply and demand changes have the potential to make the forest industry evermore important part of the North American economy but care must be taken to not over extend our resources.