Forest Management Commons^™

Can Non-State Regulatory Authority Improve Domestic Forest Sustainability? Assessing Interactive Pathways Of Influence In Cameroon, Sophia Carodenuto, Benjamin Cashore

Transnational Business Governance Interactions Working Papers

Transnational business governance can involve the use of non-state mechanisms to target the behavior of firms within domestic settings. Drawing on the implementation pillar of the TGBI framework, this chapter focuses attention on the interaction between state and non-state regulatory authority from two leading cases of TBG in tropical forest management: climate mitigation through avoided deforestation (REDD+) and timber legality verification through international trade agreements (FLEGT/VPA). A dominant justification among global elites for both interventions is that empowering marginalized domestic groups through technology transfer and capacity building will lead to more durable policy solutions on the ground. Drawing on empirical …

Radial Growth Responses Of Upland Oaks Following Recurrent Restoration Treatments In Northern Mississippi, Kathryn R. Kidd, J. Morgan Varner, J. Stephen Brewer

Faculty Publications

Fire exclusion over the past century has substantially altered composition, structure, and fuel dynamics in upland oak-hickory (Quercus-Carya) forests in the Southeastern United States. Numerous restoration efforts have been made to re-establish historical disturbance regimes into these altered forests. However, our understanding of the implications of restorative disturbances on stand dynamics has primarily been limited to shifts in species composition and post-disturbance regeneration. Therefore, we examined annual radial growth responses of dominant upland oaks following a combination of prescribed fires (2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, and 2014) and thinning (starting in 2004) treatments (thin+burn) in stands which had previously been …

Smokejumper Magazine, January 2018, National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper and Static Line Magazines

This issue of the National Smokejumper Association (NSA) Smokejumper Magazine contains the following articles: The 1959 Lava Fire; T.V. Pearson and the Parachute Scheme; Snapshots from the Past; Four Years; First Canadian Smokejumpers; The Jumper Connection and How It Has Affected My Life; A Louder Thump But No Real Injury; The Hat Makes the Man; John Maclean on the Yarnell Hill Fire; Rebuttal - Hotshots History of Bad Decisions; Recording Smokejumper History; Sounding Off from the editor; Update from National Smokejumper Program Manager Roger Staats; Gathering at the Gobi June 2018; Remembering John "Mike" MacKinnon; Book Review; Off the List; …

Site Factors Influence On Herbaceous Understory Diversity In East Texas Pinus Palustris Savannas, Brooke Mccalip, Brian Oswald, Kathryn R. Kidd, Yuhi Weng, Kenneth Farrish Phd

Faculty Publications

Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) savannas were once dominant across the southeastern U.S., including East Texas and parts of western and central Louisiana. The diverse understory associated with these historical savannas may occasionally be seen today, but not often in longleaf pine ecosystems. This project aimed to define east Texas site characteristics that are necessary to support these ecosystems with a dense and diverse herbaceous understory with little to no midstory cover. Fifty-nine plots across three study sites were established to evaluate the influence of overstory cover, basal area, aspect, elevation, and slope on the number of plant genera present. Forest …

On-Road Emissions Of Ammonia: An Underappreciated Source Of Atmospheric Nitrogen Deposition, Mark E. Fenn, Andrzej Bytnerowicz, Susan L. Schilling, Dena M. Vallano, Erika S. Zavaleta, Stuart B. Weiss, Connor Morozumi, Linda H. Geiser, Kenneth Hanks

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

We provide updated spatial distribution and inventory data for on-road NH₃ emissions for the continental United States (U.S.) On-road NH₃ emissions were determined from on-road CO₂ emissions data and empirical NH₃:CO₂ vehicle emissions ratios. Emissions of NH₃ from on-road sources in urbanized regions are typically 0.1– 1.3 t km⁻² yr⁻¹ while NH₃ emissions in agricultural regions generally range from 0.4–5.5 t km⁻² yr⁻¹, with a few hot spots as high as 5.5–11.2 t km⁻² yr⁻¹. Counties with higher vehicle NH3 emissions than from agriculture …

Ecological-Economic Assessment Of The Effects Of Freshwater Flow In The Florida Everglades On Recreational Fisheries, Christina Estela Brown, Mahadev G. Bhat, Jennifer S. Rehage, Ali Mirchi, Ross Boucek, Victor Engel, Jerald S. Ault, Pallab Mozumder, David Watkins, Michael Sukop

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

This research develops an integrated methodology to determine the economic value to anglers of recreational fishery ecosystem services in Everglades National Park that could result from different water management scenarios. The study first used bio-hydrological models to link managed freshwater inflows to indicators of fishery productivity and ecosystem health, then link those models to anglers' willingness-to-pay for various attributes of the recreational fishing experience and monthly fishing effort. This approach allowed us to estimate the foregone economic benefits of failing to meet monthly freshwater delivery targets. The study found that the managed freshwater delivery to the Park had declined substantially …

Agroforestry Standards For Regenerative Agriculture [Review], Craig R. Elevitch, D. Niki Mazaroli, Diane Ragone

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Agroforestry is increasingly being recognized as a holistic food production system that can have numerous significant environmental, economic, and social benefits. This growing recognition is paralleled in the USA by the budding interest in regenerative agriculture and motivation to certify regenerative practices. Current efforts to develop a regenerative agriculture certification offer an opportunity to consider agroforestry’s role in furthering regenerative goals. To understand this opportunity, we first examine how agroforestry practices can advance regenerative agriculture’s five core environmental concerns: soil fertility and health, water quality, biodiversity, ecosystem health, and carbon sequestration. Next, we review a subset of certification programs, standards, …

Implications Of Unmanned Aircraft Systems And Sense Of Place: A Case Study In The Mono Basin, Sara Elizabeth Matthews

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This paper contributes to an understanding of the social implications of using UAS in natural resource areas; specifically, the ways in which these tools impact human constructed sense of place. This paper draws on in-depth interviews and document analysis to (a) develop an understanding of place meanings held among Mono Basin stakeholders and (b) define the ways in which increased UAS presence may interact with these visions of place.

In short, this research shows that sense of place in this rural area is influential in the way that UAS are received by local stakeholders. The changing nature of place meanings …

Effects Of Variable Density Thinning On Spatial Patterns Of Overstory Trees In Mt. Hood National Forest, Emma Huston

Environmental Science and Management Professional Master's Project Reports

Variable density thinning (VDT) is a method of restoration thinning that attempts to increase ecosystem resilience and spatial heterogeneity in forest stands to more closely resemble mosaic-like patterns characteristic of late-successional forests, which consist of clusters of multiple trees, individual trees, and gaps. This study examines the spatial patterning of overstory trees resulting from VDT of conifer forests in Mt. Hood National Forest in the western Cascade Mountains and compares these patterns with reference conditions. Stem maps were created from field surveys of study plots within one mature stand and six thinned stands designated as Late-Successional Reserve (LSR) with varying …

Estimation Of Dbh Using Tree Variables Derived From Aerial Lidar For Ford Forest, Baraga, Michigan, Tugay Demiraslan

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This study implemented LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) remote sensing technology and applied ITD (Individual Tree Detection) methods as an approach to estimate some essential tree variables, such as DBH (Diameter at Breast Height), height, volume, and biomass for Ford Forest Research Center in Upper Peninsula, Michigan. There were 34 deciduous (1 bigtooth aspen, 9 red oaks, 20 sugar maples, 2 white birches, and 2 yellow birches) and 17 coniferous (2 eastern hemlocks, 11 red pines, and 4 white pines) subject tree species. There were two different available LiDAR datasets from the same area that were collected in 2011 and …

Field Measures Of Wilderness Character For Bitterroot Recommended Wilderness, Bitterroot National Forest., Carly Stinson

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

In order to know whether an area should become Wilderness, both managers and interested members of the public need to have an idea of what this area is like. My coworker Jamie Drysdale and I collected this data over nine weeks last summer. We followed protocols laid out in Keeping it Wild: An Interagency Strategy to Monitor Trends in Wilderness Character Across the Wilderness Preservation System. We collected data on things such as campsites, invasive plants, installations and developments, trail users, motorized or mechanized use, erosion, and signage. From this data I created maps of the different areas showing each …

Automated Tree-Level Forest Quantification Using Airborne Lidar, Hamid Hamraz

Theses and Dissertations--Computer Science

Traditional forest management relies on a small field sample and interpretation of aerial photography that not only are costly to execute but also yield inaccurate estimates of the entire forest in question. Airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR) is a remote sensing technology that records point clouds representing the 3D structure of a forest canopy and the terrain underneath. We present a method for segmenting individual trees from the LiDAR point clouds without making prior assumptions about tree crown shapes and sizes. We then present a method that vertically stratifies the point cloud to an overstory and multiple understory tree …

Efficacy Of Herbivore Exclusion On Planted Tree Seedling Vitality On A Reclaimed Surface Mine In Eastern Kentucky, Zachary J. Hackworth

Theses and Dissertations--Forestry and Natural Resources

Conventional Appalachian surface-mine reclamation techniques repress natural forest regeneration, and tree plantings are often necessary for reforestation. Reclaimed Appalachian surface mines harbor a suite of mammal herbivores that forage on recently planted seedlings. Anecdotal reports across Appalachia have implicated herbivory in the hindrance and failure of reforestation efforts, yet empirical evaluation of herbivory impacts on planted seedling vitality in this region remains relatively uninitiated. First growing-season survival, height growth, and mammal herbivory damage of black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.), shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata Mill.), and white oak (Quercus alba L.) are presented in response to varying intensities …

Above-Ground Biomass And Carbon Estimations And Recommendations For Forests In Turkey, Cuma Uykun

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation are issues that are tightly related to the environment and the public’s awareness of forest conservation, which are currently major areas of global interest. Greenhouse gas emissions and removals are required to be reported regularly (5 year intervals) and in compliance with the United Nation’s Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) of 1992, which was later extended by the Kyoto Protocol International Treaty. The UNFCCC`s policy has been accepted by more than 150 countries. Turkey`s forests are controlled and managed by the government and some major tree species still need to have their own …

Persistence Of Stream Restoration With Large Wood, Redwood National And State Parks, California, Diedra L. Rodriguez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The conservation and recovery of anadromous salmonids (Oncorhynchus sp.) depend on stream restoration and protection of freshwater habitats. In-stream large wood dictates channel morphology, increases retention of terrestrial inputs such as organic matter, nutrients and sediment, and enhances the quality of fish habitat. Historic land use/land cover changes have resulted in aquatic systems devoid of large wood. Restoration by placement of large wood jams is intended to restore physical and biological processes. An important question for scientists and restoration managers, in addition to the initial effectiveness of restoration, is the persistence and fate of large wood installations. In this …

Two Post-Glacial Sagebrush Steppe Fire Records At The Wildland-Urban Interface, Eastern Cascades, Washington, Dusty Pilkington

All Master's Theses

Recent increases in large fires in the rapidly developing wildland-urban interface (WUI) areas of central Washington, where development intermixes with wildland fuels, contribute to federal firefighting costs exceeding of $1 billion annually. In addition, cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) invasion and anthropogenic-caused warming shorten fire return intervals while lengthening fire seasons. These climatic, ecological, economic, and social factors combine with fuel accumulation resulting from historic fire suppression to threaten lives and property in the WUI. To plan for safe growth in WUI areas, long-term fire histories are needed to expand understanding of past fire regimes in an understudied ecosystem, sagebrush …

Tracking A Tree-Killer: Improving Detection And Characterizing Species Distribution Of Phytophthora Cinnamomi In Appalachian Forests, Kenton L. Sena

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Phytophthora cinnamomi is a soil-borne oomycete pathogen causing root rot in susceptible host species. P. cinnamomi is thought to have originated in Southeast Asia, but has since been introduced to many regions around the world, where it causes dramatic declines in many forest tree species. In the eastern US, the primary susceptible tree species of concern are American chestnut (Castanea dentata), white oak (Quercus alba), and shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata). American chestnut, functionally eliminated in the early 1900s by the rapidly acting chestnut blight (Cryphonectria parasitica), has been the subject of decades-long …

Resource Selection Of Free-Ranging Horses Influenced By Fire In Northern Canada, Sonja E. R. Leverkus, Samuel D. Fuhlendorf, Marten Geertsema, Brady W. Allred, Mark Gregory, Alexandre R. Bevington, David M. Engle, J. Derek Scasta

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Free-ranging or feral horses (Equus ferus caballus) were important to the livelihood of First Nations and indigenous communities in Canada. The early inhabitants of the boreal region of British Columbia (BC) capitalized on naturally occurring wildfires and anthropogenic burning to provide forage for free-ranging horses and manage habitat for wildlife. This form of pyric herbivory, or grazing driven by fi re via the attraction to the palatable vegetation in recently burned areas, is an evolutionary disturbance process that occurs globally. However, its application to manage forage availability for free-ranging horses has not been studied in northern Canada. Across Canada, there …

The Three Creeks Allotment Consolidation: Changing Western Federal Grazing Paradigms, Taylor Payne

Human–Wildlife Interactions

The federal government owns approximately 47% of all land in the western United States. In the state of Utah, about 64% of the land base is managed by the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). The government has historically issued permits to owners of private lands to allow the owners to graze their livestock on public lands. The permits (allotments) are generally of 10-year duration and allow for an annual season of use. In some cases, continued and repeated historical annual grazing practices may not be ideal for permit holders and their communities nor …

Natural And Anthropogenic Drivers Of Tree Evolutionary Dynamics, Brandon M. Lind

Theses and Dissertations

Species of trees inhabit diverse and heterogeneous environments, and often play important ecological roles in such communities. As a result of their vast ecological breadth, trees have become adapted to various environmental pressures. In this dissertation I examine various environmental factors that drive evolutionary dynamics in threePinusspecies in California and Nevada, USA. In chapter two, I assess the role of management influence of thinning, fire, and their interaction on fine-scale gene flow within fire-suppressed populations of Pinus lambertiana, a historically dominant and ecologically important member of mixed-conifer forests of the Sierra Nevada, California. Here, I find evidence …

Impacts On Soils And Residual Trees From Cut-To-Length Thinning Operations In California's Redwood Forests, Kyungrok Hwang

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

In northern California, a cut-to-length (CTL) system was used for the first time to harvest young redwood forests (Sequoia sempervirens (Lamb. ex D. Don) Endl.). However, landowners and public agencies are concerned about the potential negative impacts of CTL logging to soils and residual trees since the extent and amount of CTL impacts are unknown in these forests. This study was designed to (1) determine soil physical property using bulk density (BD) and hydraulic conductivity (HC) (2) examine the characteristics of stand damage after CTL harvesting, and (3) compare the scar size differences between tree growing patterns (individuals vs. …

Assessing Spatio-Temporal Patterns Of Forest Decline Across A Diverse Landscape In The Klamath Mountains Using A 28-Year Landsat Time-Series Analysis, Drew S. Bost

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Rates of tree mortality in California and the Pacific Northwest have greatly increased in recent years, driven largely by pest and pathogen outbreaks as well as the effects of hotter, warmer droughts. While there have been a multitude of regional-scale assessments of mortality and forest decline, landscape-level studies are necessary to better identify forests that are most vulnerable to decline and to anticipate future changes. This need is particularly notable in the remote and little-studied mountains of northwest California, which are renowned for their diverse, heterogeneous vegetation types. A recent observation of elevated levels of Shasta red fir (Abies …

The Infrastructure-Extractives-Resource Governance Complex In The Pan-Amazon: Roll Backs And Contestations, Denise Bebbington, Ricardo Verdum, Cesar Gamboa, Anthony J. Bebbington

Geography

Large-scale access and energy infrastructure projects, together with expanding investments in natural resource extraction, pose significant challenges to biodiversity conservation, forest cover, and the defence of forest peoples' rights and livelihoods across the wider Amazon region. Following a period in which safeguards and forest dwellers' territorial rights were strengthened under more permissive political opportunity structures, the current period has been characterized by efforts to weaken these protections and to facilitate large-scale private investment in previously protected lands. We describe these investment-based threats to forests and rights, and the nature of regulatory rollbacks in the region. We then discuss some of …

A Comparison Of Two Methods Of Quantifying Mating Success In Low Density Gypsy Moth (Lymantria Dispar) Populations, Alexandra Barry, Hannah Byrne, Derek M. Johnson

UROP Posters

The gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar) is a defoliating pest native to Europe and invasive to North America. The gypsy moth is subject to depressed mating success in low density populations, which may restrict spread of the forest pest. Research focusing on gypsy moth density as it relates to mating behavior has often used counts of males caught in pheromone-baited delta traps as a proxy to estimate the probability of female mating success. The purpose of this project was to determine whether pheromone trap counts provide accurate estimates of female mating success probability, by comparing data gathered from pheromone-baited …

Drivers Of Post-Fire Vascular Plant Regeneration In The Conifer-Dominated Boreal Forest Of Southern Northwest Territories, Alison White

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In recent years, climate warming has led to an increase in the severity and frequency of naturally occurring fires in boreal ecosystems globally. In 2014, an unprecedented 3.4 million hectares of boreal forest burned in the Northwest Territories (NWT). While much research has focused on post-fire succession of serotinous tree species such as Picea mariana (black spruce) and Pinus banksiana (jack pine), the understory community of vascular plants play an important role in ecosystem functioning but less is known about the response of this component of the system to changing fire regimes. Regeneration strategies such as the ability to resprout …

Smokejumper Obituary: Anderson, James W. (Missoula 1958), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.

Smokejumper Obituary: Hobbs, Gene W. (Idaho City 1961), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.

Remote Sensing Of Forests Using Discrete Return Airborne Lidar, Hamid Hamraz, Marco A. Contreras

Forestry and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

Airborne discrete return light detection and ranging (LiDAR) point clouds covering forested areas can be processed to segment individual trees and retrieve their morphological attributes. Segmenting individual trees in natural deciduous forests, however, remained a challenge because of the complex and multi-layered canopy. In this chapter, we present (i) a robust segmentation method that avoids a priori assumptions about the canopy structure, (ii) a vertical canopy stratification procedure that improves segmentation of understory trees, (iii) an occlusion model for estimating the point density of each canopy stratum, and (iv) a distributed computing approach for efficient processing at the forest level. …

Monitoring Soft-Mast Production In Pine Woodland Restoration Areas On The Ouachita National Forest, Tamara B. Wood

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The use of prescribed fire is integral to the restoration of open woodland habitats in the southeast, including shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata) woodlands in the Ouachita Mountains. Mature pine habitats maintained with recurrent disturbances have an open understory with a rich floristic diversity that provides quality habitat for many wildlife species, including the endemic and endangered red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis). Fire has many potential benefits for wildlife; however, the effects of fire on several important woody soft-mast producing species are not fully understood. Soft-mast quantity and quality is a key component in determining year-round habitat quality …

Smokejumper Obituary: Dickey, Leas D. (Redding 1961), National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper Obituaries

No abstract provided.