Environmental issues in Pacific Northwest forest management

Executive Summary 1 1 The Promised Land: The Land of Promise 15 Introduction 15 Loss of the Frontier 16 Changing Knowledge Base 16 Changing Social Values 17 The Study Area 21 Other Major Studies and Reports 22 This Report 26 2 The Region and Its Forests 27 Introduction 27 A Brief History 27 Demographics and the Economy 33 Population Growth 33 Economic Implications of Population Growth 35 The Region's Forests 36 Westside Forests 36 Eastside Forests 38 Northern Rocky Mountains 39 Regional Ownership Patterns 40 Summary 42 CONTENTS xiii About this PDF file: This new digital representation of the original work has been recomposed from XML files created from the original paper book, not from the original typesetting files. Page breaks are true to the original; line lengths, word breaks, heading styles, and other typesetting-specific formatting, however, cannot be retained, and some typographic errors may have been accidentally inserted. Please use the print version of this publication as the authoritative version for attribution. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. 3 Old-Growth Forests 44 Introduction 44 What Is Vegetative Succsession? 44 What Is an Old-Growth Forest? 45 Time Required for Old-Growth Development 53 Old-Growth Landscapes 53 Managed Forests and Old-Growth Characteristics 59 Stand Size 60 Biological Functions of Old-Growth and Late-Successional Forests 61 Species Diversity 62 Logs and Woody Debris 64 Susceptibility to Disturbance 65 Aquatic Ecosystems 66 Extent and Status of Old-Growth Forests 67 Summary 72 4 The Status and Functioning of Pacific Northwest Forests 73 Introduction 73 Forest Condition 73 General Criteria of Condition 73 The Role of Biological Diversity 75 Resistance and Resilience 78 Landscape Change and Threats to Biodiversity 81 Diseases and Pests 85 Incidence of Pest and Disease Outbreaks 87 Status of Other Plant Species 91 Status of Wildlife 92 Salmon and Other Fisheries 98 Invertebrates 101 Fungi 102 Viable Populations and the Conservation of Biodiversity 103 Demographic Factors 105 Genetic Factors 106 Population Viability Analysis 107 5 Forest Succession, Fire, and Landscape Dynamics 108 CONTENTS xiv About this PDF file: This new digital representation of the original work has been recomposed from XML files created from the original paper book, not from the original typesetting files. 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Introduction 108 Concepts of Succession and Landscape Dynamics 109 Fire and Landscape Dynamics 112 Presettlement Fire Regimes and Successional Change 113 Human Alteration of Fire Regimes 116 Natural Disturbance and Human Management: An Ecological Comparison 118 Landscape Considerations 118 Fuels 119 Nutrient Fluxes 120 Biological Diversity 121 6 Products from the Forests 122 Pacific Northwest Wood Products in the National Economy 123 Products in National and International Markets 129 Effects of Changes in Federal Timber Harvests in the Pacific Northwest 129 Increased Harvests at the Extensive Margin 135 Increased Harvests at the Intensive Margin 136 Increased Use of Hardwoods 137 Technology Changes, 138 Materials Substitution 138 Environmental Effects 139 Implications for Other Regions 141 Effects on Regional and National Income 144 Change and Incentives 145 Nonwood Products from Forests 146 Wildlife-Related Recreation 147 Other Forest-Related Recreation 151 Fisheries 153 Mushrooms 155 Water 156 Effects of Changes in Management of PNW Forests on Nonwood Products 157 Regional Economic Effects 158 Summary 159 CONTENTS xv About this PDF file: This new digital representation of the original work has been recomposed from XML files created from the original paper book, not from the original typesetting files. Page breaks are true to the original; line lengths, word breaks, heading styles, and other typesetting-specific formatting, however, cannot be retained, and some typographic errors may have been accidentally inserted. Please use the print version of this publication as the authoritative version for attribution. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. 7 Forest Management and Rural Communities in the Pacific Northwest 160 Rural Economic Well Being and Natural-Resource Industries 160 Timber Dependency and Community Well Being 162 Diversification in Rural Communities of the Pacific Northwest 165 In-Migration 168 Poverty and Plenty—Anger and Hope in the Pacific Northwest 169 Summary 170 8 A Framework for Sustainable Forest Management 171 Introduction 171 Elements of Forest Management 171 Land Allocation 172 Rationing Uses 174 Harvesting 176 Investment 179 Examples of Forest Investment 180 Positive and Negative Incentives to Forest Investment 181 Meeting the Goals of Sustainable Forest Management 182 A Framework for Sustainable Forest Management 184 Operational Goals 184 Managing in Context and Across Scales of Space and Time 185 Approaches to Managing for Diversity: General Considerations 186 Reserves 189 Logging to Improve Forest Health 190 Management for Complexity and Diversity 191 Variability and Change 192 Uncertainty and Surprise 193 Humans as Ecosystem Components 194 Making Management Adaptable 195 Resolving Conflicts 197 9 Conclusions and Recommendations 199 Forestry Practices in the Pacific Northwest 200 What Is Old-Growth? 205 Old-Growth Management 206 Forest Products Substitution 206 Research Recommendations 208 CONTENTS xvi About this PDF file: This new digital representation of the original work has been recomposed from XML files created from the original paper book, not from the original typesetting files. Page breaks are true to the original; line lengths, word breaks, heading styles, and other typesetting-specific formatting, however, cannot be retained, and some typographic errors may have been accidentally inserted. Please use the print version of this publication as the authoritative version for attribution. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. References 211 Glossary 254