Wood Degrade Due to Fire

Wright, Janell; Grose, R. J.

doi:10.1080/00049158.1970.10675521

Cited by 8 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Experience from the fires of 1939, 1964(Wright and Grose 1970), 1983and 1998 showed that in order to salvage timber of saw log grade, harvesting must be undertaken within about 18 mo of the fire as dead and damaged trees rapidly degrade through radial cracking and internal cell wall collapse.…”

Section: Timber Resource Planningmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Victorian alpine fires salvage program: response, progress and lessons

Theobald

Lawlor²

2006

Australian Forestry

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over 80 fires were ignited by lightning strikes across the remote forested and alpine areas of north-eastern Victoria and Gippsland. While most of the fires were rapidly controlled, a small number could not be contained and eventually merged to cover about 1.1 million ha. Of the 1 million ha of public land burnt, 440 000 ha of State forest containing more than 87 000 ha of commercially-valuable alpine ash (Eucalyptus delegatensis R.T.Baker) stands were fire affected. Of these, around 7500 ha were initially assessed as being fire killed and considered economically suitable and accessible for salvage harvesting.Wood utilisation plans for an estimated 600 000 m 3 gross of sawlog were developed to reflect resource availability for an intended two-year salvage program. Roads were identified and scheduled for upgrading to cater for the anticipated ten-fold increase in log truck traffic. The Victorian Government approved and supported a salvage program based on a formal business case put forward by Forestry Victoria (now VicForests). The salvage of fire-killed E. delegatensis stands was based on existing geographic management units and organisational structures, supported by additional staff to cater for the significantly increased planning and operational requirements.A limiting factor was the availability of harvesting and haulage contractors. The scale and environmental impact of the program were very different from those of normal operations. This led to the development of specific salvage harvesting prescriptions, using internal and external expertise with an emphasis on soils, water quality, and flora and fauna. A marketing plan catered for harvesting arrangements, resource allocation and distribution, financial considerations, and declining resource quality with time due to gradual surface drying and cracking of the boles.A communication strategy was critical in the early stages of the program, particularly with Local Government. The key issue with the community and other government organisations was the impact of increased log traffic on local roads. As of 31 December 2004 over 2190 ha had been harvested for a total of 20 I 500 m 3 gross of saw logs and 304 000 m 3 gross of residual logs. Operations to recover sawlogs have extended through 2005 and 2006. The challenge of harvesting while optimising protection of fireregenerated seedlings was well met by the use of mechanised harvesters. Monitoring for gaps in regeneration in harvest areas and in E. delegatensis logging coupes with regeneration less than 20 y old is ongoing. Areas requiring retreatment are mechanically disturbed and sown with seed collected from outside the fire area.

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Section: Timber Resource Planningmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Victorian alpine fires salvage program: response, progress and lessons

Theobald

Lawlor²

2006

Australian Forestry

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“…Susceptibility to stain fungi varies among tree species, with species having a higher proportion of sapwood (e.g., pines) more affected. Stain fungi may be more problematic in wet sites, as severity of staining has been linked to the rate of drying in fire-killed Pinus radiata D. Don (Wright and Grose 1970).…”

Section: Stain Fungimentioning

confidence: 99%

Salvage logging in the boreal and cordilleran forests of Canada: Integrating industrial and ecological concerns in management plans

Saint‐Germain¹,

Greene²

2009

The Forestry Chronicle

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Fire has been part of the North American boreal and cordilleran ecosystems for thousands of years. Because fire and harvesting compete directly for the same wood supply, and provinces have, within the last few decades, tended to reach their annual allowable cut, salvage logging has emerged as a practice to minimize the impact of fire on long-term wood supply. In most parts of the boreal and cordilleran forests, fire-killed boles rapidly degrade after their death, as wood-boring insects, stain, wood-decay fungi and checking lead to significant loss of grade or volume in the months following the fire. Because of this impending degradation, salvage operations are often hurried and other considerations, including the potential ecological impacts of salvage logging, have seldom been taken into consideration when defining harvesting strategies. The ecological consequences of rapid salvage have been widely studied only in the last 5 years, and it is now clear that salvage logging can have negative impacts on natural regeneration by seed, water quality, and fire-associated animal species. In this paper, we review both industrial and ecological constraints to salvage logging and discuss how both can be integrated in salvage plans. In particular, we focus on the issues of salvage timing and retention. At this point, some type of retention of merchantable stands, even if only for a few years, appears to be the only way to alleviate the negative ecological impacts of post-fire logging. On-site operational constraints, e.g., stands that cannot be harvested due to lack of accessibility, represent an important starting point for any retention strategy.Key words: boreal forest, forest fires, salvage logging, biodiversity, natural disturbances, regeneration after fire RÉSUMÉLe feu fait partie de l' écosystème boréal et de l' environnement des Rocheuses en Amérique du Nord depuis des milliers d'années. Compte tenu que le feu et l' exploitation forestière sont directement en compétition pour la même source de bois et que les provinces ont, au cours des quelques dernières décennies, tenté d'atteindre leur possibilité annuelle de coupe, la coupe de récupération est de plus en plus utilisée en tant que mesure de réduction des effets du feu sur l'approvisionnement en bois à long terme. Dans la plupart des régions forestières boréales et des Rocheuses, les arbres brûlés se dégradent rapidement après leur mort, puisque les insectes perceurs de bois, les décolorations, les champignons de pourriture et les fentes entraînent une diminution significative de la qualité ou du volume au cours des mois qui suivent un feu de forêt. Cette situation a pour effet que les opérations de récupération sont souvent effectuées à la dernière minute et que les autres considérations, incluant les impacts écologiques potentiels de la coupe de récupération, sont rarement étudiées au moment de l' élaboration des stratégies d' exploitation. Les conséquences écologiques d'une récupération rapide ont été étudiées à plusieurs reprises seulement depuis les ...

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