WASHINGTON, D.C.—Are you looking for a quick reference to the latest Forest Service research and innovations on urgent natural resources topics? Seek no further: A new series of short factsheets breaks down the details behind the most current research taking place on the most critical land management challenges. Each two-page factsheet describes what Forest Service scientists and partners are doing to develop innovative solutions to the complex issues facing our nation’s forests and grasslands.

Wood Innovations for a Sustainable Future—Forest Service scientists are working to harness wood’s unique and versatile properties to make everyday products and structural materials. Innovations like wood-based nanocellulose will increase demand for wood, open nonconventional markets, incentivize forest management and restoration, stimulate economies, and provide natural solutions to climate change.

Postfire Stabilization and Recovery—Increased frequency and severity of wildfires requires land managers to have immediate access to a variety of tools for forest recovery. Forest Service scientists and colleagues are developing tools for postfire stabilization, reseeding and replanting, restoration, and salvage logging to help protect wildlife habitat and soil and water resources and promote forest resilience.

Forest Carbon Estimation & Monitoring—Natural storage of carbon dioxide by plants has great potential to reduce the national greenhouse gas footprint. However, measuring this carbon and how much it changes over time at such a large scale requires complex calculations by the Forest Service Forest Inventory & Analysis program. Now there’s new research to improve estimates of forest carbon stocks, and changes in U.S. forests and carbon stored in harvested wood products.

Forest Carbon Status & Trends—By storing carbon, U.S. forests have the capacity to offset carbon dioxide emissions by 10 to 15%, but this number fluctuates with disturbance and changes in land use. Forest Service Forest Inventory & Analysis quantifies carbon storage in U.S. forests, fluctuations in these carbon stores, and planning for future forest carbon using 50-year projections.

These “hot topic” factsheets can be found on the Forest Service Research and Development webpage.

Look for more factsheets coming up, including Treating Hazardous Fuels at a Scale that Makes a Difference.