Treesearch

Wildfire and forest operations remove vegetation and disturb forest soils. Both of these effects can lead to an increased risk of soil erosion. Operations to reduce forest fuel loads, however, may reduce the risk of wildfire. This paper presents research and modeling results which show that under many conditions, carefully planned operations with adequate buffers, results in lower long-term erosion rates than experienced following wildfire, which is inevitable if fuel loads are not reduced. The effects of reducing fire-induced flood flows on forest stream systems, however, are unknown.

A model for spatial prediction of landslide hazard was applied to a watershed affected by landslide events that occurred during the winter of 1995-96, following heavy rains, and snowmelt. Digital elevation data with 22.86 m x 22.86 m resolution was used for deriving topographic attributes used for modeling. The model is based on the combination of logistic regression and principal component analysis (PCA) of road related landslides and assumes that the meteorologic factors which caused failures in the past will cause failures in the future. This model was intended to provide forest land...

Many high-elevation lakes in designated wilderness are stocked with native and nonnative fish by state fish and game agencies to provide recreational fishing opportunities. In several areas, this practice has become controversial with state wildlife managers who support historical recreational use of wilderness, federal wilderness managers who assert that stocking compromises some of the ecological and social values of wilderness, and different public groups that support one or the other position. Herein we examine this controversy from the perspective of the 1964 Wilderness Act, its...

Scenario analysis techniques were used to combine projections from 35 grazed forage experts to estimate future forage demand scenarios and examine factors that are anticipated to impact the use of grazed forages in the South, North, and West Regions of the United States. The amount of land available for forage production is projected to decrease in all regions while local impacts from environmental concerns and government policies will be significant in areas where resource concerns have already emerged. Urban sprawl, suburbanization, and increased demands for recreation were projected to...

Globalization has expanded the scope and geographic scale of leisure and tourism practices and their consequent impacts on society. Yet studies of such topics as community, home, migration, and tourism remain infused with outdated assumptions of a geographically rooted subject. In the future, the changing nature of employment, retirement, and lifestyles are likely to influence not only amenity migration, but residence patterns, meanings, and identities more generally. Amenity migration research should focus on the impact of increasing geographic mobility on how people interweave home,...

A protocol and methods for monitoring the major physical, chemical, and biological components of stream ecosystems are presented. The monitoring protocol is organized into four stages. At stage 1 information is obtained on a basic set of parameters that describe stream ecosystems. Each following stage builds upon stage 1 by increasing the number of parameters and the detail and frequency of the measurements. Stage 4 supplements analyses of stream biotic structure with measurements of stream function: carbon and nutrient processes. Standard methods are presented that were selected or...

The current status and trend of aspen is a topic of debate; some studies have claimed dramatic reductions in aspen stands while others have found no major changes. The actual picture of aspen forests across the West is variable, and the presence of conifers and ungulates in aspen may or may not indicate a progressive loss of aspen. These proceedings summarize the state of knowledge about aspen ecology, the condition and trends in aspen ecosystems in the West, and human dimensions and management options for sustaining aspen.

Prairie woodlands comprise about 1 percent of the landscape in the northern Great Plains. However, prairie woodlands provide habitat for far more than 1 percent of the wildlife species that occur in the prairie region. With increasing pressures on natural resources, managers need methods for managing wildlife habitat and biodiversity that are based on ecological processes. We studied the small mammals and vegetation in seral stages of four woodland types in central South Dakota. None of the species was restricted to a single seral stage, but abundance of some small mammals varied depending...

High mountain lakes in Idaho total about 1800 and represent one of the most pristine type ecosystems in the country. Limnological characteristics are described for 27 lakes and 20 ponds in 32 established and proposed Research Natural Areas (RNA) representing seven subregions in the state. Field collections were made from the 1960s through 1999 by different researchers. Even though data about some of these lakes is not currently available, the databases can be updated as research continues. A classification is developed to include elevation, size, depth, production potential and lake...

Roads provide increased access to lands rich in natural resources and beauty, but they can also damage those lands and the ecological values therein. In particular, much interest has been focused on the hydrologic and geomorphic changes in roaded watersheds and their effects on aquatic ecosystems (Lee et al., 1997; Dunham and Rieman, 1999; also see papers in Luce and Wemple, 2001). As a consequence, most public land management agencies and some private forest land managers are closing and rehabilitating roaded areas to restore forest productivity and improve watershed function.