Some studies suggest that the carbon intensity of electricity generated in the United Kingdom by using imported wood pellets from the southern United States is higher than that of coal-based electricity, whereas other studies suggest that the use of wood pellet-based electricity reduces carbon emissions significantly, relative to coal-based electricity. We developed the Forest Bioenergy Carbon Accounting Model (ForBioCAM 1.0) to analyze factors that influence the carbon intensity of wood pellet-based electricity, using a common set of assumptions and the same system boundary. We show that widely differing assessments of the carbon intensity of wood pellet-based electricity depend on the choice of forest management perspectives (landscape or stand), baselines (no harvest, or harvesting for the manufacture of traditional finished wood products), feedstocks (whole trees, pulpwood, or logging residues), forest management practices (change in rotation age), and the duration of the analysis itself. Unlike with a stand perspective, we demonstrate conditions under which a landscape perspective results in carbon savings net of avoided emissions from coal-based electricity. Our results also suggest that the two perspectives of forest management converge in their assessment of the positive carbon effects of various feedstock types used to manufacture wood pellets relative to a no-harvest baseline, and that the use of whole trees for wood pellets results in net carbon savings after a break-even period of about three years relative to a no-harvest scenario. The results of this study can guide future policy deliberations on the use of wood pellets as a renewable energy source worldwide.

We developed a case study for estimating carbon stock (stored and annually sequestered) in aboveground and belowground portions of all the live trees located on the main campus of the University of Georgia. We recorded species, diameter at breast height, and height of trees located between East Broad Street and Carlton Street (north–south direction) and East Campus Road and Lumpkin Street (east–west direction) covering an area of 94.1 hectares. We used i-Tree Eco V6 for estimating carbon stock. There are 6,915 trees in the study area, out of which 73.0 percent (5,049 trees), 32.3 percent (2,236 trees), and 0.7 percent (50 trees) are native, understory, and invasive, respectively. The total carbon stored in trees is 3,450.4 t (SD = 65), and the annual sequestration rate is about 65 t. The University of Georgia should adopt a multifaceted approach for offsetting or reducing the overall carbon emissions, as annual sequestered carbon in measured trees is only 0.11 percent of the total carbon emitted by the university in 2018. This study highlights the role of trees in meeting the carbon reduction challenges faced by colleges and universities across the United States and beyond, and contextualizes the role of green spaces in general, and trees, in particular toward the ongoing movement of sustainable universities and campuses worldwide. Study Implications: Across the United States and beyond, universities and colleges are actively exploring ways to reduce their overall environmental footprint for achieving sustainable development goals. Trees located on the campuses of universities and colleges provide various ecosystem services, including carbon storage and annual sequestration. We advise that universities and colleges should explore other options to reduce or offset their annual carbon emissions, as the quantity of carbon annually sequestered in trees located on the main campuses could be small relative to their overall annual carbon emissions.

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In 2000, the United Nations adopted the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), a set of eight global development goals to be achieved between 2000 and 2015. We estimated the Lorenz Curve and Gini Index for determining any changes in inequality at the global level with countries as a unit of analysis for eight development indicators (proportion of population undernourished, school enrollment rates, the percentage of women in parliament, infant mortality rates, maternal mortality rates, HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) rates, access to improved water sources, and access to a cellular device), representing one MDG each. All of the selected indicators improved on average between 2000 and 2015. An average improvement in an indicator does not necessarily imply a decrease in inequality. For instance, the average infant mortality rate decreased from 39.17 deaths per 1000 births in 2000 to 23.40 in 2015, but the Gini Index remained almost stable over the same period, suggesting no reduction in inequality among countries. For other indicators, inequality among countries decreased at varying rates. A significant data gap existed across countries. For example, only 91 countries had data on primary school enrollment rates in 2000 and 2015. We emphasize developing a global data collection and analysis protocol for measuring the impacts of global development programs, especially in reducing inequality across social, economic, and environmental indicators. This study will feed into currently enacted Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for ensuring more inclusive and equitable growth worldwide.