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A review of the suitability of eucalypts for short rotation forestry for energy in the UK

Authors:
Andrew Dunbar Leslie at Forest Research - Forestry Commission UK
Andrew Dunbar Leslie
Maurizio Mencuccini at Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies
Maurizio Mencuccini
M. P. Perks
M. P. Perks
M. P. Perks
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Edward R. Wilson at Silviculture Research International
Edward R. Wilson
  • Silviculture Research International
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Abstract and Figures

Eucalyptus has been identified as a genus with potential for short rotation forestry in the UK. This article assesses the suitability of Eucalyptus for biomass production. The first part of the article compares Eucalyptus nitens and Eucalyptus gunnii against short rotation forestry (SRF) species proposed by Hardcastle (A review of the impacts of short-rotation forestry, LTS International, Edinburgh, 2006), while the second part discusses limitations to the growing of eucalypts in the UK and how they may be overcome. Eucalypts compare favourably with other tree species in the UK in terms of rapid growth (up to 30 m³ ha⁻¹ y⁻¹) over short rotations of 10–15 years. The only genus that is potentially as productive in the UK is Nothofagus. Furthermore, most species will readily coppice, enabling regeneration after damage and avoiding the costs of replanting. The wood characteristics compare positively with other SRF species, exhibiting a moderate wood density, but limitations are a relatively high moisture and chlorine content. Many of the SRF species listed in Hardcastle (2006) are now damaged or under threat from damage by exotic pests or diseases. Eucalypts are currently relatively free from such damage. It is cold temperatures that most limits the use of eucalypts in the UK. Eucalypts, particularly when young are vulnerable to damage from cold weather events, particularly when temperatures drop rapidly. However, the risk can be reduced by planting appropriate species and provenances, facilitating rapid growth as smaller trees are more vulnerable and by focusing on species that coppice following damage.
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Vol.:(0123456789)
New Forests (2020) 51:1–19
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-019-09717-w
1 3
REVIEW
A review ofthesuitability ofeucalypts forshortrotation
forestry forenergy intheUK
A.D.Leslie1 · M.Mencuccini2· M.P.Perks3· E.R.Wilson4
Received: 29 May 2018 / Accepted: 26 March 2019 / Published online: 1 April 2019
© Springer Nature B.V. 2019
Abstract
Eucalyptus has been identified as a genus with potential for short rotation forestry in the
UK. This article assesses the suitability of Eucalyptus for biomass production. The first
part of the article compares Eucalyptus nitens and Eucalyptus gunnii against short rota-
tion forestry (SRF) species proposed by Hardcastle (A review of the impacts of short-
rotation forestry, LTS International, Edinburgh, 2006), while the second part discusses
limitations to the growing of eucalypts in the UK and how they may be overcome. Euca-
lypts compare favourably with other tree species in the UK in terms of rapid growth (up to
30m3ha−1y−1) over short rotations of 10–15years. The only genus that is potentially as
productive in the UK is Nothofagus. Furthermore, most species will readily coppice, ena-
bling regeneration after damage and avoiding the costs of replanting. The wood character-
istics compare positively with other SRF species, exhibiting a moderate wood density, but
limitations are a relatively high moisture and chlorine content. Many of the SRF species
listed in Hardcastle (2006) are now damaged or under threat from damage by exotic pests
or diseases. Eucalypts are currently relatively free from such damage. It is cold tempera-
tures that most limits the use of eucalypts in the UK. Eucalypts, particularly when young
are vulnerable to damage from cold weather events, particularly when temperatures drop
rapidly. However, the risk can be reduced by planting appropriate species and provenances,
facilitating rapid growth as smaller trees are more vulnerable and by focusing on species
that coppice following damage.
Keywords Eucalyptus· United Kingdom· Short rotation forestry· Biomass
* A. D. Leslie
Andrew.leslie@cumbria.ac.uk
1 National School ofForestry, University ofCumbria, Ambleside Campus, Rydal Road,
AmblesideLA229BB, UK
2 CREAF, University Autonomous Barcelona, Campus de Bellaterra, Edifici C,
08193CerdanyolaDelVallès, Barcelona, Spain
3 Centre forForestry andClimate Change, Forest Research, Northern Research Station,
Roslin,MidlothianEH259SY, UK
4 Walsh Fellow inSilviculture, University College Dublin Forestry, Belfield,Dublin4, Ireland
Content courtesy of Springer Nature, terms of use apply. Rights reserved.
... For reducing the use of fossil fuels, the use of green energies is the leading alternative for Global Warming mitigation. In the framework of renewable energies, biomass from forest crops show advantages over other crops since it requires low inputs of fertilizers and pesticides, and can be developed over marginal soils that are not favorable for growing grain crops [1,2]. On the other hand, biomass from planted forests has a higher impact on regional economies than other alternative energy sources (i.e., photovoltaic power, wind power and natural gas) [3]. ...
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... Alternatively, many farmers allow the plantation to naturally regenerate, a process referred to as coppicing. Coppice regeneration is notably more cost-effective to establish compared to growing seedlings or clones and can potentially reduce production costs by up to 50% (Atkinson, 2009;Crous and Burger, 2015;Leslie et al., 2020;Ramantswana et al., 2020). Coppice stands also exhibit superior growth performance in comparison to seedlings and clones, particularly in the initial stages, owing to their carbohydrate reserves (Rodrigues et al., 2021) and well-developed root systems that facilitate enhanced access to water and nutrients (Attipoe et al., 2023;White, 2019). ...
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... Eucalyptus has the possibility for great output over short rotations since it tolerates a wide variety of soils and generally demonstrates a straight stem form in species used in production forestry [32]. Moreover, unlike many trees, Fig. 1 Tree species providing wood used as a fuel for household combustion, which were included in this study [33,37,38] eucalyptus does not have a true dormant phase and is evergreen, allowing development to continue throughout the warm winter months [33]. ...
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... The second example of a FEM problem is a fast-growing plantation under a shortrotation coppice regime that produces biomass or pulpwood [73,74]. We call it the Plantation-Coppice example. ...
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... The second FEMDSS example is a fast-growing plantation under a short-rotation coppice regime to produce biomass or pulp wood [61,62]. We call it the Plantation-Coppice Example. ...
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  • Jan 2016
In this paper, static bending (modulus of rupture, MOR, and modulus of elasticity, MOE) and compression strength parallel to grain (σcǀǀ) of black alder wood (Alnus glutinosa Gaertn.) were investigated. For experimental testing, we used black alder wood from two different areas: Crni Jarci, Croatia, and Malá Bystřice, Czech Republic. Experimental tests were carried out according to the Czech national standards: ČSN 49 0115 and ČSN 49 0116 for static bending and ČSN 49 0110 for compression strength. The samples from Malá Bystřice showed lower values of MOR (~14%), MOE (~30%), and σcǀǀ (~4%), when compared to the samples from Crni Jarci. The relationship between density and strength was investigated. The difference between the studied groups at the 0.05 significance level was confirmed. The average linear correlation was found between density and the observed mechanical properties (for σcǀǀ). The average density was 549 kg m–3 for samples from Crni Jarci and 469 kg m–3 for samples from Malá Bystřice. The results were compared with values indicated in similar studies.
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