Potential Environmental Impacts of Bioenergy Harvesting on Biodiversity

Aspect

Potential Issues

Contributing Activity

Examples of mitigating practices

Landscapes and ecosystems

Decrease in habitat characteristics and diversity at landscape levels

Decrease in overall forest health: increased susceptibility to insects and disease

Decrease in habitat connectivity at both the landscape and stand levels (e.g., forest patches, migration corridors, connected networks of downed woody debris)

Inadequate protected areas

Land use/ecosystem changes

Reduction in ecosystem functions and services

Off-site impacts of forest operations and plantations

Demand for energy feedstock: excessive deforestation

Multiple interventions during the rotation: mechanical damage to residual trees

Expanded road networks

Unsustainable harvesting of dead and downed wood

Design, location and effectiveness of protected areas

Land use changes leading to loss of structurally diverse and productive ecosystems

Afforestation of farmland

Use landscape analysis techniques to assess landscape-level features of the site (e.g., patch size and shape, connectivity)

Ensure habitat quality and connectivity through: patch design; attention to species requirements; incorporation of corridors

Create buffer zones around habitats of threatened or endangered species

Habitats

Loss of downed woody debris and dead wood needed for the survival of some species of mosses, fungi, saproxylic insects, amphibians, small mammals and cavity nesting birds

Overall reduction in area, diversity, and quality of forest and adjacent aquatic habitats

Increased thinning with removal

Unsustainable downed woody debris removal

Unsustainable biomass production systems and absence of appropriate management planning

Manage stands for structural diversity (e.g., structural retention at the time of harvest; long rotation periods)

Create suitable habitat (e.g., nest boxes)

Species

Loss of forest cover and associated habitat

Proliferation of invasive species and species that prefer disturbance landscapes

Excessive disturbance of wildlife during critical seasons (e.g., breeding, nesting, calving)

Species loss and inadequate maintenance of trophic levels

Encouragement of native or invasive weeds

Unsustainable biomass production systems and absence of appropriate management planning

New roads and increasing traffic into forests

Manage weeds appropriately

Maintain adequate buffer zones for species requiring “interior” forest habitat

Genes

Maintenance of critical breeding populations of all organisms

Unsustainable biomass production systems and absence of appropriate management planning

Incorporate wildlife management guidelines into biomass production systems