Remote Sensing of the forest biomass available for energy productionin central Ontario

As part of Ontario’s Climate Change Action Plan, Ontario Power Generation seeks to increase

the supply of renewable energy, including wind, solar, and biomass. It is estimated that 7.6-9.5

million metric tons of unused wood is available to produce bioenergy in Ontario, above that

which is currently harvested for wood products. Yet, the exact magnitude and spatial distribution

of this untapped resource is not well known. In central Ontario, a considerable amount of

unmerchantable wood (including small trees, large branches, diseased trees, and undesirable tree

species) is left behind after harvesting. But much of this unmerchantable wood is not inventoried

because traditional ground-based inventory methods are not designed to quantify this new

resource. The objective of this project is to test the feasibility of using a remote sensing

technology called Light Detecting and Ranging (LiDAR) to measure the amount unmerchantable

wood in hardwood forests of central Ontario.

Faculty Supervisor:

John Caspersen

Student:

Partner:

Ontario Power Generation (Toronto, ON)

Discipline:

Earth science

Sector:

Utilities

University:

University of Toronto

Program:

Accelerate

Current openings

Find the perfect opportunity to put your academic skills and knowledge into practice!

Government

International

Load More

International

Load More