Treesearch

This paper demonstrates how Stand Density Index may be used to guide postthinning stand structure for the sustainable management of pinyon-juniper ecosystems. The post-thinning residual stand density can be varied to achieve various management objectives. Uneven-aged management is recommended, where possible, as a better approximation of the natural development process of pinyon-juniper stands.

Southwestern pinyon-juniper and juniper woodlands cover large areas of the Western United States. The woodlands are heterogeneous, consisting of numerous combinations of tree, shrub, and herbaceous species and stand densities that are representative of the wide range of sites and habitat types they occupy. Silvicultural methods can be employed on better sites to meet multi-resource objectives and maintain the health and sustainability of the woodlands. Even-aged, uneven-aged, and coppice regeneration methods can be used in pinyon-juniper woodlands. Thinning operations may have a variety of...

A spatially explicit dataset of aboveground live forest biomass was made from ground measured inventory plots for the conterminous U.S., Alaska and Puerto Rico. The plot data are from the USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program. To scale these plot data to maps, we developed models relating field-measured response variables to plot attributes serving as the predictor variables. The plot attributes came from intersecting plot coordinates with geospatial datasets. Consequently, these models serve as mapping models. The geospatial predictor variables included Moderate...

The Interagency Native Plant Materials Development Program outlined in the 2002 Report to Congress (USDI and USDA 2002), USDI Bureau of Land Management programs and policies and the Great Basin Restoration Initiative encourage the use of native species for rangeland rehabilitation and restoration where feasible. This project was initiated to foster the development of native plant materials based on analysis of adaptive traits for use in the Great Basin and to provide information that will be useful to managers when making decisions about selecting appropriate plant materials for seedings....

The highlands of New Mexico's Gila region provide an important stronghold for the Mexican spotted owl (Strix occidentalis lucida Nelson). Historical data document that this region supported spotted owls in the past, and recent studies indicate that owls are both relatively common and well distributed in this region at present. Spotted owls are most numerous in mixed-conifer forests within the Gila region but may also occur in other forest types, particularly where rocky cliffs and outcrops are present. These features provide owls with nest and roost sites as well as habitat for common prey...

Numerous laws directly, or indirectly, mandate the conservation of all species on public lands in the United States (Goble and Freyfogle 2002, Nagle and Ruhl 2002). Key laws relevant to the management of biodiversity on federal lands include the National Forest Management Act (NFMA; Noon et al. 2003) and the Federal Endangered Species Act (ESA; 1973). However, there are also many companion laws that govern the use of these same lands that are in conflict with a goal of maximizing the conservation of species and their habitats (e.g., Multiple Use Sustained Yield Act, 1960). Consequently,...

Thinning of forest stands is frequently used to reduce the risk of catastrophic fire. But thinning requires that the refuse (or slash) be removed from the site, which can be done either by burning it or by mastication and dispersal. Either method has long term consequences to the soil and to soil moisture and soil CO2 levels. This study presents 2+ years (2004-2006) of continuous soil moisture and CO2 measurements at two experimental slash treatment sites within Manitou Experimental Forest in the Rocky Mountains of southern Colorado: (i) a prescribed burn site and (ii) a site at which the...

Over 100 years of fire suppression and over grazing by cattle have left profound changes to some of the ponderosa pine forests in Colorado. The forest stand structure has shifted from a wide open savanna-like structure to one with very high tree densities, which in turn has contributed to destructive forest fires such as the Hayman fire of 2002 (Graham, 2003). The current restoration program for the ponderosa pine ecosystem in the Colorado Rocky Mountains involves thinning and reintroduction of fire through prescribed burns to bring back the historical forest structure and function (Dahms...

Nutrient availability is an important constraint on sustainable forest productivity, and it is crucial to understand the long-term effects of management practices, including soil scarification, on soil microbial communities because they store and cycle nutrients. In addition, because forests are subject to wildfires, it would be useful to understand potential interactive effects of wildfire and management practice on forest soil ecosystems. We studied the individual and combined effects of soil scarification and a subsequent wildfire on microbial community structure of a ponderosa pine...

This special guide for teaching and facilitating High Reliability Organizing (HRO) reflects the presentations that were made at the three-day May 2007 Facilitating HRO in Wildland Fire workshop. By using and following this guide, the HRO teacher will understand the fundamentals of HRO and will be better prepared to facilitate these principles to others.