DOCSLIB.ORG

Restoring Ecosystem Health in Ponderosa Pine Forests of the Southwest

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Restoring Ecosystem Health in Ponderosa Pine Forests of the Southwest By W. Wallace Covington, Peter Z. Fule, Margaret M. Moore, Stephen C. Hart, Thomas E. Kolb,Joy N. Mast, Stephen S. Sackett, and Michael R.Wagner Restoring Ecosystem Health in Ponderosa Pine Forests of the Southwest major stumbling ment, heavy livestock grazing, fire sup- A block to ecosys- pression, logging disturbances, and cli- tem management is the matic events favored dense ponderosa lack of healthy ecosys- pine regeneration, and the open park- tems to serve as points lands closed. of comparison. Aldo Various authors (Covington and Leopold (1934) recog- Moore 1994a, 1994b; Kolb et al. nized this problem and 1994) have described unhealthy char- suggested using ecolog- acteristics of the postsettlement pon- ical restoration tech- derosa pine ecosystems, including in- niques to reconstruct creases in tree density, forest floor reasonable approxima- depth, and fuel loading, with the fol- tions of naturally func- lowing consequences: (1) decreases in tioning ecosystems soil moisture and nutrient availability, (Callicott and Flader (2) decreases in growth and diversityof 1992). We have initi- both herbaceous and woody plants, (3) ated an integrated set increases in mortality in the oldest age of research projects de- class of trees, (4) decreases in stream signed to accomplish and spring flows, and (5) increases in this goal and in the fire severity and size. process determine eco- Our research was guided by the fol- system health attrib- lowing general hypotheses: utes for a southwest- that both restoration of ecosystem ern ponderosa pine structure and reintroduction of fire are ecosystem. necessary for restoring rates of decom- Previous research position, nutrient cycling, and net pri- has established that mary production to natural, presettle- forests of ponderosa ment levels; and pine (Pinusponderosa) that the rates of these processes in the Southwest were will be higher in an ecosystem that ap- much more open be- proximates the natural structure and fore Euro-American disturbance regime. A controlled burn was set by researchers settlement (Cooper 1960; Covington Specifically, we hypothesized that in thinned stands of southwestern and Moore 1994b). Until the 1870s, reestablishing presettlement stand ponderosa pine to reconstruct the light surface fires every two to five structure alone (thinning a majority of open, parklike landscape that once years, along with grass competition the postsettlement trees) would result characterized the ecosystem. and regular drought, maintained an in lower rates of decomposition, nutri- open and parklike landscape domi- ent cycling, and net primary produc- nated by grasses, forbs, and shrubs tion compared with thinning, forest with scattered groups of ponderosa floor fuel manipulation, and pre- pine trees. After Euro-American settle- scribed burning in combination; but Reprinted from the Journal of Forestry,Vol. 95, No. 4, April 1997. Not for further reproduction. 23 that both treatments would result in storage changed over the past century The time has come for higher rates of these processes com- of fire exclusion in a ponderosa pared with controls. We further hy- pine-bunchgrass ecosystem? science to busy itself pothesized that without periodic burn- 2. What are the implications of ing to hold them in check, pine these changes for net primary pro- with the earth itself. seedling irruptions would recur on the duction, decomposition, nutrient cy- The first step is to thin-only treatment area. We addressed cling, and other important ecosystem three specific questions: characteristics? reconstruct a sample 1. How have ecosystem structure 3. Does partial restoration (restor- (by biomass component) and nutrient ing tree structure alone by thinning of what we had to postsettlement trees) differ from complete begin with. restoration (the same --Aldo Leopold, 1934 thinning, plus forest floor removal, loading with herbaceous fuels, inches dbh are available at five-year in- and prescribed burn- tervals from 1920 to the present (Avery ing) in its effects on et al. 1976; and unpublished data). ecosystem structure The area is gentle in topography and function? (slopes less than 5 percent) with a southwest aspect. Elevation is 7,200 to The Study 7,400 feet. The climate is cool and Our study area is a subhumid with early summer drought. virgin stand of pon- Mean annual precipitation is 22.3 derosa pine within the inches and mean annual temperature is Fort Valley Experi- 45.5°F. Approximately half the precip- mental Forest approxi- itation falls as snow. The average frost- mately seven miles free growing season is 94 days. Soils at northwest of Flagstaff, the study site are derived from basalt Arizona. Stand struc- and volcanic cinders and are a fine ture is an uneven-aged montmorillonitic complex of frigid forest with trees in Typic Argiborolls and Argiboralfs. small, uneven-aged The understory consists primarily groups (fig.1), typical of Arizona fescue (Festuca arizonica), of ponderosa pine in mountain muhly (Muhlenbergia mon- the Southwest (Cooper tana), mutton bluegrass (Poa fendleri- 1960; Schubert 1974; ana), pine dropseed (Blepharoneuron White 1985). Pole- tricholepis),bottlebrush squirreltail (Si- sized trees, approxi- tanion hysterix),and a variety of forbs. mately 4 to 14.5 inches Buckbrush (Ceanothus fendleri) is the dbh, are the predomi- only common shrub. nant size class, with The site has never been harvested; scattered groups of pre- the only major disturbances have been settlement trees 14.5 to livestock grazing between 1876 and 41 inches dbh and 1910 and fire exclusion since 1876. dense “doghair” thick- Dieterich (1980) determined that the Figure 1. Canopy maps of the study area within the ets of saplings up to 3.9 last natural fire in the vicinity occurred FortValley Experimental Forest, near Flagstaff, Arizona. inches dbh. The treat- in 1876, before that, fires occurred at Scatteredgroups of southwestern ponderosa pine ment plots are in an an average interval of about two years. predominated in the late 19th century (top), eight-acreportion of the before settlement suppressed natural wildfires.This G.A. Pearson Natural Rationale forTreatments suppression caused a far greater profusion of Area, which was decom- A fundamental issue is what treat- vegetation in dense“doghair” thickets of pine saplings missioned in 1987. In- ment or combination of treatments (middle). Researchers are now attempting, through dividual tree growth and will rapidly achieve some facsimile of a prescribed burnsand manualthinning,to restore the mortality records for all healthy ponderosa pine ecosystem.The ecosystemto itsoriginal condition (bottom). trees greater than six two leading candidates for ecological 24 April 1997 restoration of ponderosa pine ecosys- tems are prescribed burning and thin- ning from below (Covington and Moore 1994b; Arno et al. 1995). Previous research near our study area had shown that although pre- scribed burning alone (without thin- ning or manual fuel removal) could reduce surface fuel loads, stimulate ni- trogen availability,and increase herba- ceous productivity, it caused high mortality of the presettlement trees (60 percent mortality over a 20-year period) and lethal soil temperatures under presettlement tree canopies (Covington and Sackett 1984, 1990, 1992; Harrington and Sackett 1990; Sackett et al. 1993). Although some thinning of postsettlement ponderosa pine trees was accomplished by pre- scribed burning (Harrington and Sackett 1990), results were localized, unpredictable, and difficult to con- trol. Furthermore, even under very conservative prescriptions (low air temperatures and low windspeed), re- burning can produce dangerous fires (Covington and Sackett, pers. observ., 1984-95) because the continuing high density of postsettlement trees provides a continuous fuel ladder and thus a high crown-fire potential. Clearly, research shows that prescribed burning in today’s unnatural structure will not restore natural conditions in ponderosa pine-bunchgrass ecosys- tems. Thus, some combination of thinning, manual fuel removal, and prescribed burning will be necessary to quickly restore these systems to nat- ural conditions. Design and Sampling The study area was divided into 15 plots, five each in the completerestora- ment and potentially presettlement determined. A random 5 percent sub- tion (3.5acres), partial restoration (3.3 trees-those with diameter at breast sample of postsettlement trees was also acres), and control (3.8 acres) treat- height >14.8 inches or yellowed bark cored and aged. ments. Permanently marked photo (White 1985)-were cored and cross- Herbaceous and fuel variables were points were established. All plots were dated (Stokes and Smiley 1968) to de- measured on 55 replicated circular completely stem-mapped in 1992, in- termine age. Cross-sections or incre- subplots (16.4 feet in diameter) located cluding all living and dead trees and ment cores were taken from all pon- within four overstory strata: (1) preset- large downed logs. Species, condition derosa pine snags, stumps, and tlement patches, (2) postsettlement class, and diameter at breast height downed trees that were potentially of patches to be thinned with some trees (4.5 feet) were recorded for all trees, presettlement age. Samples were cross- retained, (3) postsettlement patches to and all retained and control plot trees dated and, when possible, death date, be converted to openings,and (4) rem- were permanently tagged. All presettle- pith date, and diameter in 1876 were nant natural grassy
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Chapter 5: Human Dimensions of Agroforestry Systems. In
    Chapter 5 Human Dimensions of Agroforestry Systems Kate MacFarland Kate MacFarland is an assistant agroforester, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, USDA National Agroforestry Center. Contributors: Craig Elevitch, J.B. Friday, Kathleen Friday, Frank K. Lake, and Diomy Zamora Craig Elevitch is the director of Agroforestry Net; J.B. Friday is the extension forester, University of Hawaii at Manoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources Cooperative Extension Service; Kathleen Friday is the Forest Legacy/Stewardship program manager—Hawai’i and Pacific Islands, USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region, State and Private Forestry;Frank K. Lake is a research ecologist, USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station;Diomy Zamora is an extension professor of forestry, University of Minnesota Extension. The success of agroforestry in adapting and mitigating climate regarding other types of conservation practices. This research change depends on many human dimensions surrounding agro- suggests diverse and complex motivators and factors for conser- forestry. This chapter reviews research on the adoption of new vation decisionmaking, reflecting the diversity of landowners practices by landowners and examines cultural perspectives on and land managers, land management practices, and ecosystems agroforestry. Diverse and complex motivators for conservation involved (e.g., Baumgart-Getz et al. 2012, Knowler and Bradshaw decisionmaking reflect the diversity of landowners, land 2007, Napier et al. 2000, Pannell et al. 2006, Prokopy et al. 2008). management practices, and ecosystems and provide a variety of The decision to adopt and implement conservation practices is opportunities to encourage agroforestry adoption. made by land managers for economic and cultural objectives and is influenced by knowledge from other practitioners and The chapter also reviews tribal and indigenous systems as models available technical guidance.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of Old-Growth Forests in Frequent-Fire Landscapes
    Copyright © 2007 by the author(s). Published here under license by the Resilience Alliance. Binkley, D., T. Sisk, C. Chambers, J. Springer, and W. Block. 2007. The role of old-growth forests in frequent-fire landscapes. Ecology and Society 12(2): 18. [online] URL: http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol12/ iss2/art18/ Synthesis, part of a Special Feature on The Conservation and Restoration of Old Growth in Frequent-fire Forests of the American West The Role of Old-growth Forests in Frequent-fire Landscapes Daniel Binkley 1, Tom Sisk 2,3, Carol Chambers 4, Judy Springer 5, and William Block 6 ABSTRACT. Classic ecological concepts and forestry language regarding old growth are not well suited to frequent-fire landscapes. In frequent-fire, old-growth landscapes, there is a symbiotic relationship between the trees, the understory graminoids, and fire that results in a healthy ecosystem. Patches of old growth interspersed with younger growth and open, grassy areas provide a wide variety of habitats for animals, and have a higher level of biodiversity. Fire suppression is detrimental to these forests, and eventually destroys all old growth. The reintroduction of fire into degraded frequent-fire, old-growth forests, accompanied by appropriate thinning, can restore a balance to these ecosystems. Several areas require further research and study: 1) the ability of the understory to respond to restoration treatments, 2) the rate of ecosystem recovery following wildfires whose level of severity is beyond the historic or natural range of variation, 3) the effects of climate change, and 4) the role of the microbial community. In addition, it is important to recognize that much of our knowledge about these old-growth systems comes from a few frequent-fire forest types.
    [Show full text]
  • Restoring Historical Forest Conditions in a Diverse Inland Pacific
    Restoring historical forest conditions in a diverse inland Pacific Northwest landscape 1, 1 2 1 JAMES D. JOHNSTON, CHRISTOPHER J. DUNN, MICHAEL J. VERNON, JOHN D. BAILEY, 1 3 BRETT A. MORRISSETTE, AND KAT E. MORICI 1College of Forestry, Oregon State University, 140 Peavy Hall, 3100 SW Jefferson Way, Corvallis, Oregon 97333 USA 2Department of Forestry and Wildland Resources, Humboldt State University, 1 Harpst Street, Arcata, California 95521 USA 3Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship, Colorado Forest Restoration Institute, Colorado State University, 1472 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523 USA Citation: Johnston, J. D., C. J. Dunn, M. J. Vernon, J. D. Bailey, B. A. Morrissette, and K. E. Morici. 2018. Restoring historical forest conditions in a diverse inland Pacific Northwest landscape. Ecosphere 9(8):e02400. 10.1002/ecs2.2400 Abstract. A major goal of managers in fire-prone forests is restoring historical structure and composition to promote resilience to future drought and disturbance. To accomplish this goal, managers require infor- mation about reference conditions in different forest types, as well as tools to determine which individual trees to retain or remove to approximate those reference conditions. We used dendroecological reconstruc- tions and General Land Office records to quantify historical forest structure and composition within a 13,600 ha study area in eastern Oregon where the USDA Forest Service is planning restoration treatments. Our analysis demonstrates that all forest types present in the study area, ranging from dry ponderosa pine-dominated forests to moist mixed conifer forests, are considerably denser (273–316% increase) and have much higher basal area (60–176% increase) today than at the end of the 19th century.
    [Show full text]
  • Implementing Sustainable Forest Management Using Six Concepts In
    Journal of Sustainable Forestry, 29:79–108, 2010 Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 1054-9811 print/1540-756X online DOI: 10.1080/10549810903463494 WJSF1054-98111540-756XJournalImplementing of Sustainable Forestry,Forestry Vol. 29, No. 1, January-March 2009: pp. 0–0 Sustainable Forest Management Using Six Concepts in an Adaptive Management Framework ForestB. C. Foster in an etAdaptive al. Management Framework BRYAN C. FOSTER1, DEANE WANG1, WILLIAM S. KEETON1, and MARK S. ASHTON2 1Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, USA 2School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA Certification and principles, criteria and indicators (PCI) describe desired ends for sustainable forest management (SFM) but do not address potential means to achieve those ends. As a result, forest owners and managers participating in certification and employing PCI as tools to achieving SFM may be doing so inefficiently: achiev- ing results by trial-and-error rather than by targeted management practices; dispersing resources away from priority objectives; and passively monitoring outcomes rather than actively establishing quantitative goals. In this literature review, we propose six con- cepts to guide SFM implementation. These concepts include: Best Management Practices (BMPs)/Reduced Impact Logging (RIL), biodiversity conservation, forest protection, multi-scale planning, participatory forestry, and sustained forest production. We place Downloaded By: [Keeton, W. S.] At: 16:17 8 March 2010 these concepts within an iterative decision-making framework of planning, implementation, and assessment, and provide brief definitions of and practices delimited by each concept. A case study describing SFM in the neo-tropics illustrates a potential application of our six concepts.
    [Show full text]
  • Accelerating the Development of Old-Growth Characteristics in Second-Growth Northern Hardwoods
    United States Department of Agriculture Accelerating the Development of Old-growth Characteristics in Second-growth Northern Hardwoods Karin S. Fassnacht, Dustin R. Bronson, Brian J. Palik, Anthony W. D’Amato, Craig G. Lorimer, Karl J. Martin Forest Northern General Technical Service Research Station Report NRS-144 February 2015 Abstract Active management techniques that emulate natural forest disturbance and stand development processes have the potential to enhance species diversity, structural complexity, and spatial heterogeneity in managed forests, helping to meet goals related to biodiversity, ecosystem health, and forest resilience in the face of uncertain future conditions. There are a number of steps to complete before, during, and after deciding to use active management for this purpose. These steps include specifying objectives and identifying initial targets, recognizing and addressing contemporary stressors that may hinder the ability to meet those objectives and targets, conducting a pretreatment evaluation, developing and implementing treatments, and evaluating treatments for success of implementation and for effectiveness after application. In this report we discuss these steps as they may be applied to second-growth northern hardwood forests in the northern Lake States region, using our experience with the ongoing managed old-growth silvicultural study (MOSS) as an example. We provide additional examples from other applicable studies across the region. Quality Assurance This publication conforms to the Northern Research Station’s Quality Assurance Implementation Plan which requires technical and policy review for all scientific publications produced or funded by the Station. The process included a blind technical review by at least two reviewers, who were selected by the Assistant Director for Research and unknown to the author.
    [Show full text]
  • Ranking Forestry Journals Using the H-Index
    Ranking forestry journals using the h-index Journal of Informetrics, in press Jerome K Vanclay Southern Cross University PO Box 157, Lismore NSW 2480, Australia [email protected] Abstract An expert ranking of forestry journals was compared with journal impact factors and h -indices computed from the ISI Web of Science and internet-based data. Citations reported by Google Scholar offer an efficient way to rank all journals objectively, in a manner consistent with other indicators. This h-index exhibited a high correlation with the journal impact factor (r=0.92), but is not confined to journals selected by any particular commercial provider. A ranking of 180 forestry journals is presented, on the basis of this index. Keywords : Hirsch index, Research quality framework, Journal impact factor, journal ranking, forestry Introduction The Thomson Scientific (TS) Journal Impact Factor (JIF; Garfield, 1955) has been the dominant measure of journal impact, and is often used to rank journals and gauge relative importance, despite several recognised limitations (Hecht et al., 1998; Moed et al., 1999; van Leeuwen et al., 1999; Saha et al., 2003; Dong et al., 2005; Moed, 2005; Dellavalle et al., 2007). Other providers offer alternative journal rankings (e.g., Lim et al., 2007), but most deal with a small subset of the literature in any discipline. Hirsch’s h-index (Hirsch, 2005; van Raan, 2006; Bornmann & Daniel, 2007a) has been suggested as an alternative that is reliable, robust and easily computed (Braun et al., 2006; Chapron and Husté, 2006; Olden, 2007; Rousseau, 2007; Schubert and Glänzel, 2007; Vanclay, 2007; 2008).
    [Show full text]
  • A Special Issue of the Journal of Forestry
    Forest Inventory and Analysis: A Special Issue of the Journal of Forestry Forest Inventory and Analysis: Moving to an Annual National System Accurate and timely assessments of forest ecosystems are critical needs of modern forestry. The US forest inventory system, which provides the information for these tasks, is moving from a periodic to an annual basis, as mandated by the Farm Bill of 1998 and advocated by much of the forestry profession. The challenges of this mandate are considerable. The Forest Service’s Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program is the primary focus of these changes. In December 1999, the Journal of Forestry published a special issue on the FIA program and the move to an annual inventory approach. The issue covers the history of forest survey sampling, current work taking place in specific regions, and user perspectives on the adoption of an annual inventory system. Articles discuss the need for reevaluation of analytical approaches; techniques for integrating auxiliary information into forest inventory; combining current with archival data; and the role of remote sensing technologies. With permission of the Society of American Foresters, the FIA program has reproduced herein the contents of the December 1999 issue of the Journal of Forestry (vol. 97, no. 12; now out of print). Viewers have permission to download specific articles or the collection of articles for personal use. Permission to reproduce multiple copies for distribution at a conference or for use in course packs must be granted from the publisher via the Copyright Clearance Center. Permission to republish material (including figures and article excerpts) may also be obtained from the Copyright Clearance Center.
    [Show full text]
  • W Hole-Tree Clearcutting in New England
    United States Department of Agriculture W hole-tree Clearcutting in Forest Service New England: Manager's Northeastern Forest Experiment Station Guide to Impacts on Soils, General Technical Report NE-172 Streams, and Regeneration Robert S. Pierce James W. Hornbeck C. Wayne Martin Louise M. Tritton C. Tattersall Smith C. Anthony Federer Abstract Intensively harvested forests in New England have shifted partially from conventional stem-only clearcutting using chainsaws and skidders to whole-tree clearcutting using harvesting machines. We have studied the impacts of whole- tree clearcutting on soil, water, and revegetation in spruce-fir, northern hardwood, and central hardwood forest types. This report summarizes the relevance of our findings to forest management and suggests various management considerations, guidelines, and further readings. The intended audience consists of practicing foresters, land managers, environmental protection agencies and organizations, and the general public. Acknowledgment We would like to thank several landowners and their representatives for providing land and conducting the harvest operations on which our studies were conducted: Tony Filauro and Great Northern Paper Co., Bill Kropelin and the James River Corporation, Tim Hawley and the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Forestry, and the Green Mountain National Forest. Max McCormack and the Cooperative Forestry Research Unit, University of Maine, Orono, were closely associated with the work in Maine. A number of people assisted in lab and field work, particularly Jane Hislop, Russ Briggs, Florence Peterson, Ray Gomez, and Bart Hawley. We thank David Brynn, Tony Filauro, Walt Winturri, and Bill Leak for providing helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper.
    [Show full text]
  • Brief Curriculum Vitae
    Brief Curriculum Vitae FREDERICK W. CUBBAGE Forest Policy, Economics, and Certification Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-8008 Work Tel: (919) 515-7789; Fax: (919) 515-6193 Email: [email protected] or [email protected] 25 January 2015 EDUCATION Ph.D. Forest Economics University of Minnesota 1981 M.S. Forest Policy University of Minnesota 1978 B.S. Forestry Iowa State University 1974 PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE Professor and Co-Director, Southern Forest Resource Assessment Consortium (SOFAC), Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, 2004-present. Professor and Head, North Carolina State University, Department of Forestry, 1994-2004 Project Leader, Economics of Forest Protection and Management Work Unit, Southeastern Forest Experiment Station, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, 1991-1994 Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Professor, University of Georgia School of Forest Resources, Athens, 1982-1991 Associate Economist, Southern Forest Experiment Station, New Orleans, 1979-1982 Service Forester, Kentucky Division of Forestry, Elizabethtown, 1974-1976 INSTRUCTION AND ADVISING Taught 22 different subjects/course levels; 95 classes; 5 universities Natural Resource Policy and Management, Forest Economics, Natural Resource Issues, Sustainable Forest Management and Certification, Introduction to Natural Resources, Wood Procurement Advised or co-advised 71 finished graduate students:
    [Show full text]
  • Perceptions of Forestry Alternatives in the US Pacific Northwest
    ARTICLE IN PRESS Journal of Environmental Psychology 26 (2006) 100–115 www.elsevier.com/locate/yjevp Perceptions of forestry alternatives in the US Pacific Northwest: Information effects and acceptability distribution analysis$ Robert G. Ribeà Department of Landscape Architecture, Institute for a Sustainable Environment, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-5234, USA Available online 10 August 2006 Abstract Conflicts over timber harvesting and clearcutting versus wildlife conservation have instigated alternative silvicultural systems in the US Pacific Northwest. Major forest treatments can be the most controversial element of such systems. A public survey explored the social acceptability of 19 forest treatments that varied by forest age, level of green-tree retention, pattern of retention, and level of down wood. The survey presented respondents with photos of the treatments, explanatory narratives, and resource outputs related to human and wildlife needs. Respondents rated treatments for scenic beauty, service to human needs, service to wildlife needs, and overall acceptability. Acceptability distribution patterns were analysed for all forest treatments. These showed broad, passionate opposition to clearcutting, conflict over the acceptability of not managing forests, conflict over old growth harvests, conflict with some passionate opposition to 15% retention harvests, and unconflicted acceptance of young forest thinnings and 40% retention harvests. Modelling of these responses found that socially acceptable forestry attends to scenic beauty
    [Show full text]
  • Journal of This Issue: FORESTRY Forest Carbon Stocks and Flows October/November 2011 Volume 109, Number 7S
    SUPPLEMENT TO Society of American Foresters Journal of This Issue: FORESTRY Forest Carbon Stocks and Flows October/November 2011 Volume 109, Number 7S Climate–Forest Interactions Biomass Use and Feedstock Issues Wood–Fossil Fuel Substitution Effects Forest Carbon Policies Integrating Forests into a Rational Policy Framework Managing Forests because Carbon Matters: Integrating Energy, Products, and Land Management Policy A Society of American Foresters Task Force Report www.jofonline.org Journal of JoF FORESTRY Editor W. Keith Moser, CF, [email protected] Managing Editor Matthew Walls, [email protected] Journal of Associate Editors Stanley T. Asah, recreation • Keith A. Blatner, education & communication • Don Bragg, forest ecology • Stephen Bratk- ovich, utilization & engineering • Russell Briggs, CF, soils & hydrology • Dean Coble, measurement • Dean Current, inter- national forestry • Robert Deal, silviculture • John Groninger, silviculture • Sean Healey, geospatial technologies • Shibu Jose, forest ecology • Michael Kilgore, economics • Mee-Sook Kim, entomology & pathology • Jeffrey Kline, economics • Karen Kuers, silviculture • David Kulhavy, entomology & FORESTRY pathology • James G. Lewis, history • Valerie Luzadis, social October/November 2011 (supplement) Volume 109, Number 7S sciences • Michael G. Messina, silviculture • Cassandra Mose- ley, policy • Michael J. Mortimer, policy • David Nowak, urban & community forestry • Jay O’Laughlin, policy • Brian Oswald, • • fire John G. Peden, recreation Barry Rosen, international COMMENTARY
    [Show full text]
  • Accelerating the Development of Old-Growth Characteristics in Second-Growth Northern Hardwoods
    United States Department of Agriculture Accelerating the Development of Old-growth Characteristics in Second-growth Northern Hardwoods Karin S. Fassnacht, Dustin R. Bronson, Brian J. Palik, Anthony W. D’Amato, Craig G. Lorimer, Karl J. Martin Forest Northern General Technical Service Research Station Report NRS-144 February 2015 Abstract Active management techniques that emulate natural forest disturbance and stand development processes have the potential to enhance species diversity, structural complexity, and spatial heterogeneity in managed forests, helping to meet goals related to biodiversity, ecosystem health, and forest resilience in the face of uncertain future conditions. There are a number of steps to complete before, during, and after deciding to use active management for this purpose. These steps include specifying objectives and identifying initial targets, recognizing and addressing contemporary stressors that may hinder the ability to meet those objectives and targets, conducting a pretreatment evaluation, developing and implementing treatments, and evaluating treatments for success of implementation and for effectiveness after application. In this report we discuss these steps as they may be applied to second-growth northern hardwood forests in the northern Lake States region, using our experience with the ongoing managed old-growth silvicultural study (MOSS) as an example. We provide additional examples from other applicable studies across the region. Quality Assurance This publication conforms to the Northern Research Station’s Quality Assurance Implementation Plan which requires technical and policy review for all scientific publications produced or funded by the Station. The process included a blind technical review by at least two reviewers, who were selected by the Assistant Director for Research and unknown to the author.
    [Show full text]