A typical pine plantation in the southeastern U.S. under low-intensity management, meaning no fertilization, herbicides, controlled burns, or bedding (a site preparation method for wet or flood-prone soils), grows about 4 green tons/acre/year (1.7 dry tons/acre/year) of merchantable wood, not including the bark, branches, or leaves (based on the slash pine growth and yield model by Pienaar and Rheney 1995). As one dry ton of wood = 17 million Btu, this is equivalent to 29 million Btu per year. This value varies with different types of management and forest type; the value can be lower with less intensive plantation management or almost twice as high with more intensive management. This FAQ was adapted from Wood to Energy and used with permission.

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