Forest Management

By Dr. Connor, Dr. Clarkey, Dr. Alex, and Fez

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General Information30%Foresters manage forests through forestry. Boreal forests are everywhere!

Value Forests (they’re feeling underappreciated)

Ecologically valuedNiches SoilRunoffChemicals

Economically valuedEveryone likes wood, even Canadians.33%

DeforestationAlters landscapes, destroys families.Carbon Dioxide emissions.Tropical ones too!

Canada and the U.S…growing!Trees were eliminated on the eastern side of

the continent.Second growth trees are abundant.

Developing nations, developing deforestation!Faster resultsNo restrictionsGives short term benefits

Fear of “Timber Famine” spurred establishment of national forests

Today, the National Forest System consists of 191 million acres.

The US Forest Service was established in 1905 to manage the National Forest System and make sure trees are planted when they are harvested.

Timber is taken from both private and public lands at first. By 2001, though, almost all timber was being extracted from private lands, and tree regrowth “outpaced tree removal on these lands by nearly 12 to 1”

Plantation forestry has grown. EVEN-AGED VS UNEVEN-AGED

Lumber Harvesting Methods

Various Approaches…Clear cuttingSets in motion an artificially driven process of

successionSeed-tree

Small number of vigorous seed-producing are left standing so that they can reseed the area

ShelterwoodProduces even aged forest

Selection System/High GradingAllows un-even aged stand management

Strip-cuttingA linear clear-cut created to encourage

regeneration of trees along the edge of the cut

Recreation/EcosystemMultiples use

Recreation, wildlife habitat, mineral extractionNational Forest Management Act

Passed by Congress in 1976Mandated that plans for renewable resource

management be drawn up for every national forest

Consider both economic and environmental factors, permit increases in harvest levels only if sustainable, provide for diversity

“New Forestry”Approach that calls for timber cuts that come

closer to mimicking natural disturbances

Forest FiresSurface Fires

Burn rapidly through an area, burning branches on or near the ground

Crown FiresOccur in forests during periods of

drought when surface or ground fires ignite lower branches of standing trees and tree crowns become engulfed in flames and fire spreads to nearby trees.

Ground FiresLike Crown Fires, Occur during periods of drought when fire creeps slowly through layers of organic matter

Fire PolicyPrevention

Prescribed/Controlled burns—Burning areas of forest under carefully controlled conditions

Presuppression and Suppression—Act of preventing/diminishing the spread of future or present fires through natural forests

Healthy Forests Restoration ActSalvage Logging—Removal of dead trees, or

snags, following a natural disturbance

CriticismMany environmental advocates argue that the

act increases commercial logging in national forests while doing little to reduce catastrophic fires near populated areas

http://www.history.com/video.do?name=axmen&bcpid=1452197366&bclid=1431919014&bctid=60442597001

Sustainable Forestry is Gaining GroundSustainable forestry certification - A form of ecolabeling that identifies timber products that have been produced using sustainable methods. Several organizations issue such certification.Inernational Organization for

Strandardization (ISO), The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) program, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)

Alternative to cutting trees for paper“Tree-Free Fibers”

Kenaf – Native to southern Asia is a form of cannabis that is extremely moldable therefore is used to make textiles and paper without using the wood from the tree.

Hemp – Another form of cannabis that is usually used to make textiles, paper, biodegradable plastics, construction, health food, and fuel. Only the sativa hemp is suitable for industrial paper making.

Resource Management Managers have tried to achieve

maximum sustainable yield, as opposed to trying to reach optimum sustainable yield.

Today many managers seek to have ecosystem-based management, so that when they do cut down trees they don’t completely destroy the environment they’re cutting the trees from

Adaptive management evolves and improves – Involves systematically testing different management approaches to make forestry more sustainable by improving the methods they harvest the trees.