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The soil gets depleted when biomass is consistently taken away. It might be possible to avoid it but that's cost center.


Carbon comes from the atmosphere in this scenario.

Crops can be rotated.

Trees can be non-clear cut when harvested.

None of this changes the definition of renewable.


In practice we want forest soil not eroded away after clear cut logging, but also not depleted nutrients like phosphorus, nor prone to wildfires[note], nor trees damaged by acid rain etc. Definition of "sustainable" in the law alone is not sufficient to cover all this and never will be, some discretion and responsibility is required.

[note] depends on the biome, part of said discretion




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