HomeMy WebLinkAbout10. Galena Forest Inventory and Management Plan ReportGalena Forest Inventory and
Management Plan Report
Submitted to:
March Runner, Tribal Administrator
Louden Tribal Council
P.O. Box 244
Galena, Alaska 99741
By:
Geographic Resource Solutions
Ken Stumpf, Professional Forester
Professional Forester
1125 16th Street, Suite 213
Arcata, CA 95521
1
Executive Summary
The city of Galena is located along the Yukon River in interior Alaska. Galena is off the
Alaska power grid and dependent on outside sources of petroleum-based fuels for the
production of heating and electricity. Because of the rising costs of their energy source, a
consortium of Galena community leaders obtained a grant from the Alaska Energy
Authority in 2011 to evaluate and define the nature and extent of the biomass resource in
the Galena area. In early 2012 Geographic Resource Solutions (GRS) was chosen to
conduct a biomass resource study within a 25-mile radius of Galena (Galena Vicinity),
develop a biomass inventory, and provide a sustainable management plan to potentially
utilize that biomass for local energy production.
GRS initially conducted a literature review and acquired as much currently available
ancillary geographic, cultural, and natural resource information thought pertinent to this
study. This information was all compiled in GRS’s geographic information system (GIS).
GRS then reviewed vegetation inventory data available for the Galena area and
determined that data collected on the two nearby wildlife refuges by Ducks Unlimited (DU)
in the late 1990’s-early 2000’s would be the best available resource information to use as a
foundation for inventory efforts. GRS then stratified the Galena Vicinity and visited field
data sites at which they collected detailed resource information that was used to verify,
refine, update, and replace portions of the DU data set. The updated data set was then
applied to recent Landsat 5 satellite imagery using GRS’s Discrete Classification
methodology to generate classification maps. These maps were then aggregated to
produce a site-specific Stand Inventory map data set of Viereck types and associated
species-specific biomass estimates for all lands in the Galena Vicinity. The total biomass
inventory estimated to be in the 25-mile radius of Galena is 5,050,297 Cft3 and 7,820,609
dry tons.
This Stand Inventory was associated with different landscape and cultural characteristics
of the Galena Vicinity and evaluated to develop an estimate of Available Biomass
Inventory. A site-specific Harvest Unit map data set was developed and five harvest plans
(Options) were generated using GRS’s application harvestBiomass to project long-term
sustained yield levels for the Galena Vicinity. All five alternative plans met the maximum
stated target of 20,000 tons per year for the projection period (2013-2110), however the
different alternatives reflect different levels of annual biomass procurement cost that range
from approximately $1.56 million to $1.92 million per year. The major cost component of
these management plans is Transportation Costs, which ranged from 59% to 70% of the
total biomass procurement costs. The estimated cost/ton of harvested biomass ranges
from just under $78/ton to over $94/ton depending on the management option.
The different plans represent different levels of harvest intensity near Galena and the
Yukon River; acreage harvested and reforested; winter and summer season
transportation; transportation system development; and environmental impact. Options
can be ranked by cost, but non-market values may play a significant role in which option
best fits the community. Ultimately, the choice of how to proceed with future biomass
procurement efforts in the Galena Vicinity rests with the path that the community of Galena
chooses to follow through the options that are available.
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Table of Contents
Executive Summary ........................................................................................................ 1
Table of Contents ............................................................................................................ 2
Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 3
Project Methodology ........................................................................................................ 4
Data/Information Review .............................................................................................. 6
Data Sources ............................................................................................................... 6
Landscape Information ............................................................................................. 6
Satellite Imagery ....................................................................................................... 7
Existing Field Data .................................................................................................... 7
New/Current Field Data Sampling Locations ............................................................ 8
Ground-Truth/Field Data Collection ........................................................................ 11
Image Classification ................................................................................................... 14
Training Data Set Development .............................................................................. 14
Discrete Classification ............................................................................................ 15
Aggregation ................................................................................................................ 15
Stand Formation ..................................................................................................... 15
Harvest Unit Formation ........................................................................................... 17
Biomass Inventory Results ............................................................................................ 22
Biomass Inventory By Viereck Vegetation Type Class .............................................. 25
Biomass Inventory By Land Ownership ..................................................................... 29
Biomass Inventory By Land Administration ................................................................ 33
Biomass Inventory By Distance from Galena ............................................................. 38
Biomass Inventory By Access Class .......................................................................... 42
Biomass Inventory By Transportation Cost Projections ............................................. 44
Availability of the Biomass Inventory .......................................................................... 50
Harvest Projections ....................................................................................................... 54
Inventory Projection ................................................................................................... 54
Growth Projection ...................................................................................................... 54
Cost Projections ......................................................................................................... 56
Selection Priorities ..................................................................................................... 57
The harvestBiomass Application ................................................................................ 58
Harvest Alternatives ................................................................................................... 58
Harvest Projection Results ......................................................................................... 61
Biomass and Acreage ............................................................................................. 61
Biomass Procurement Cost Estimates ................................................................... 68
Harvest Projection Warning(s) ................................................................................... 83
Recommendations ........................................................................................................ 83
Deliverables .................................................................................................................. 84
Acknowledgment ........................................................................................................... 85
Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 85