Evaluating the Effectiveness of National Woody Biomass Utilization Efforts on National Forest Lands

Abstract

The USDA Forest Service is currently conducting hazardous fuel reduction projects on national forest lands to reduce wildfire risk through the United States. A byproduct of these treatments is woody biomass, which can be used to achieve renewable energy goals, as well as to enhance forest health. Significant amounts of time and financial resources have been invested by the Federal Government to achieve these goals. However, to date, there is little evidence on the A) amount of biomass used to achieve renewable energy goals, or B) the effectiveness of agency efforts to enhance biomass utilization. Making an analysis of this data requires that information entered into forest databases Timber Information Manager (TIM) and National Fire Plan Operations and Reporting System (NFPORS) be broken apart and re-aggregated to identify and measure biomass data.