Short Rotation Forestry (SRF)

Short rotation forestry is a silvicultural system that is being explored as a method of producing biomass for energy. The principle objective of this system is to plant a species of tree (both poplars and eucalypts are considered appropriate in some circumstances) that will establish on the site quickly and produce timber of a dimension and characteristic that is easy to handle and process into an optimum form for fuel.

Much more widely spaced than short rotation coppice, these trees usually reach the optimum size (considered to be between 10cm and 20cm in diameter when measured at 1.3m from the ground) after a relatively short rotation of between 8 and 20 years. This compares with a 3 to 5 year rotation for short rotation coppice, and typically a 60+ year rotation for conventional forestry crops.

After harvesting, a short rotation forestry site would be replanted whereas a short rotation coppice crop would regenerate as new growth emerges from the original stools (stumps).

A report by LTS International (Feb 2006) on the potential impacts of SRF can be found here.