GOOD LUCK ON EXAMS!
- RNR Holiday Party: Everyone is invited. Friday, 13 December, 1:30pm in the RNR Lobby. Come celebrate the end of exams, and the Holiday Season. Bring a covered dish, if you can. See you all there!
Alum wins an Emmy--
Congratulations to Michael Campbell, 2008 BS Fisheries Alumnus, for his Emmy! The Emmy was in the category "Best Technical Achievement" for the onboard film and data collection recorded by the cameras and instruments sunk with the USS Mohawk last year. See the photo of his Emmy, and a description of the project that won the Award on our Alumni Page.
Workshop Focuses on Wood-Based Bioenergy
HAMMOND, La. – The U.S. forestry industry has migrated from the Pacific Northwest to the South over the past two decades, providing additional opportunities for Southern forest landowners, an LSU AgCenter business development expert told an audience at a workshop on forest-based bioenergy.
Emerging biomass-to-energy markets have been driven by increasing interest in renewable energy sources, said Rich Vlosky, director of the Louisiana Forest Products Development Center in the LSU AgCenter.
“Government mandates and economic trends determine what new markets will look like,” Vlosky said. “Alternative uses of wood products require a shift in thinking.”
Short-rotation woody crops and “energy thinnings” can provide good sources of energy, but markets are needed to give growers incentive to invest in producing trees for biofuels, he said.
Worldwide, 17 percent of energy comes from renewable sources, and U.S. renewable energy has been inching up for decades to about 8 percent, half of which comes from wood, Vlosky said. Globally, 4.6 million tons of wood pellets are used to produce energy, mostly in Europe. Of that, 36 percent comes from the United States, with Sweden responsible for 20 percent of worldwide use.
“The wood sector for alternatives is going to grow – but slowly,” Vlosky said. “Forest landowners are in the best position possible. It’s a no-lose proposition unless the crop is mismanaged. Cheap natural gas, however, has been a game changer.”
The workshop was one in a series that mark the culmination of two three-year studies funded by federal grants. The projects focused on developing marketing strategies for expanding bioenergy opportunities for the forest sector, Vlosky said.
The AgCenter joined with the Louisiana Business and Technology Center at LSU to deliver workshops across the state. In addition to Vlosky’s presentation on wood-based bioenergy markets and potential opportunities for Louisiana, Matthew Wiggins with the LBTC showed attendees how to develop a viable business plan using wood for energy, Vlosky said.
“We’re using the LBTC mobile classroom for these pilot workshops,” he said.
Richard C. Bogren, ABC
Professor, Science Writer
LSU AgCenter
Phone 225-578-5839
rbogren@agcenter.lsu.edu
www.LSUAgCenter.com
Stouffer Lab Brings Good News From the Rainforest
Some good news out of the Amazon rainforest: given enough time, deforested land can rebound enough to host bird species that had previously deserted the area, according to a recent study in The Auk.
Between 1992 and 2011, a team led by Philip Stouffer of Louisiana State University tracked the movements of birds through fragmented rainforest in the Brazilian Amazon. Using soft nylon stretches called mist nets, they snagged nearly 4,000 birds at the margins between old growth forests and tracts of between old growth rainforest and forest recovering after being abandoned by cattle ranchers.
As the so-called secondary forest regenerated, birds crossed the borders more frequently, the team found. These areas of regrowth become more habitable to birds with time, although the results suggest that it can take at least a decade or two for species to return.
RNR Faculty Published in Techniques Book
RNR faculty extensively contributed and are featured in the newly published Wetland Techniques Volumes 2 and 3 by The Society of Wetland Scientists and Springer. Drs. Mike Kaller and Bill Kelso co-wrote the fish sampling chapter with Dr. Joel Trexler; Dr. Andy Nyman co-wrote the management of wetlands for wildlife chapter with a number of other researchers. The books are intended as general references and textbooks for undergraduate and graduate students interested in conservation, management, and restoration of wetlands and the plants and animals living in wetlands.
-- Quick News --
- The Student Chapter of Society of American Foresters (SAF) has a new way to keep you informed, share their news and events, and keep in touch: They now have a Facebook page. LIKE their page, and keep up with all the latest! Support your local (student) Foresters!
- What's new in the School of School of Renewable Natural Resources? Want to learn more about our Program? Check out the "Message from the Director"
- 3rd Quarter 2013 Timber Tales is now available. The details and a link to the newsletter are available on our Extensions page
- The Fall 2013 RNR Seminar Schedule has been posted. It is on the Seminar page. A link to a PDF list is also available for download.
- The Publications page has been updated with revised lists of Thesis and Disserations from 1992 through 2013 (May). The lists now contains direct links to the Electronic Dissertation/Thesis page and pdf for each publiction, where available.
- Arborist Workshops 2013: The new additions to the early 2013 schedule are posted and registrations are open. For more information, see our Workshops page.
- Attention, Forestry Majors: SAF has released a new "Guide to Forestry and Natural Resources Programs" that is designed to help those interested in a forestry career learn about SAF-accredited forestry programs and assist them in choosing the right one. Get the link to the guide on our Student News page.
- The Summer 2012 edition of Research Matters is available for download on our Newsletters page. This issue higlights ongoing research efforts in Foresty, Wildlife, Fisheries, and Forest Products, as well as profiles of several of our Faculty and graduate students and their research interests.
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Looking for Jobs, Internships, Graduate Assistantships?
Recently, the School of Renewable Natural Resources created a Google Group to make job, graduate assistantship, and internship opportunities available. The board will list a diversity of positions available in government, industry, and non-profit agencies of interest to you. Be sure to note the closing date for applications, if one is provided.
Check back often for updates. The link to the group is located under "Current Students > Job Announcements". Or, check the QUICK LINKS section on the right sidebar (in green) for "Jobs, Graduate Assistantships, Internships".
