Fri, 06 Jan 2006

Logging may hinder forest regeneration, increase fire risk

I don't know what to think about this. The study was a very short time, in only one area with a particular mix of trees. And I generally like the idea of salvage logging because it reduces waste, and perhaps reduces the numbers of healthy tress logged. On the other hand, any modern logging operation necessarily tears up the ground and leaves piles of bunch lying about. And that can certainly have an effect on both seed germination and future fire hazards.

Perhaps it's more a question of logging techniques than it is the salvage logging itself. Indiana is not known for massive forest fires (Hel, it's so humid here in the summer it's often difficult to get a fire going despite your best efforts!), so I've not had much experience with forest fires on a western scale. But I hate to see willy-nilly logging, and I hate to see wasted resources. So maybe the science will advance here and we can actually balance the needs of humans with the needs of the rest of the ecology.

A new study done in the area burned in the catastrophic Biscuit Fire in Southwestern Oregon in 2002 found that allowing trees to naturally regenerate works about as well or better than logging and replanting, and that undisturbed areas may be at lower fire risk in the future.

(link) [EurekAlert!]

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