Selection silvicultural systems in mountain caribou habitat: Logging and learning at Pinkerton Mountain

Experimentation with the selection silvicultural system in the Engelmann Spruce-Subalpine Fir (ESSF) Zone of east-central British Columbia began nearly ten years ago. The initial impetus for partial cutting came from concerns about specific nontimber resources, such as scenic values, water quality for domestic use, and habitat for mountain caribou (Rangifer tarandus). A set of first-generation management trials was established through the Mountain Caribou in Managed Forests program to assess whether it was feasible to use partial cutting to maintain both timber harvest and caribou habitat (Stevenson et al. 1994, Armleder and Stevenson 1996, Jull et al. 1996). One of these was a single-tree selection harvest block at Pinkerton Mountain (CP 376), established in 1991. The results at CP 376 and the other management trials have been monitored and used to design new silvicultural systems blocks. Maintaining caribou habitat remains one of the core reasons for using the selection silvicultural system in the ESSF. Some land use plans, including the Prince George Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP) call for the use of partial cutting rather than clearcutting in specified caribou habitat Selection silvicultural systems in mountain caribou habitat: Logging and learning at Pinkerton Mountain