Harvest Residue and Forest Stewardship: An EXAMINATION of Four BC Forest Districts

e s s t t D D i i s s t t r r i i c c t t s s F Fi ie el ld d r re ev vi ie ew w c ca ar rr ri ie ed d o ou ut t i in n S Se ep pt te em mb be er r a an nd d O Oc ct to ob be er r 2 Executive Summary High levels of residue or slash as a result of logging is not surprising in old growth forests, particularly BC coastal temperate rainforests. This review was carried out in response to concerns expressed by Forest District Staff and the public. The concern regarding residue may be centered on a perception that either there is a general lack of care (or stewardship) during logging, or that the province is not getting full economic value for provincial timber. This project was designed as an initial exploration of the stewardship concern only. The economic concern was not part of the terms of reference for this project, and therefore is not addressed in this report. Based on the assessments conducted under this project in four Districts (North Island, North Coast, Fort St. James, and Columbia), it seems that the change in policy (take-or-pay) may have increased the amount of merchantable residue on site (either dispersed or in accumulations), yet the impacts on stewardship for long-term timber management appear to be limited to some localized impacts on Coastal heli-logged sites. Impacts on non-timber resource values, or fire risk were not apparent from this sample. Further study a broader scale may be required to determine if these impacts or risks exist. Timber management impacts on the Coast were centered on stocking of regeneration, long-term overstory retention, and species management. While high accumulations of slash on Coastal heli-logged sites do not seem to preclude adequate stocking to minimum standards, it does seem to require frequent use of minimum inter-tree spacing to attain minimum stocking, resulting in clumpy tree distribution due to slash loading. However, it is expected that natural regeneration on these sites will result in less clumpy tree distribution at or near target stocking levels. Adjustments in the next timber supply review (TSR) may be necessary if the amount of helicopter logging is significant and if tree distribution is significantly clumpy. Excessive retention of uneconomic trees in poor general condition …