How Much Land is Needed for the Harvest Access System on Nonindustrial Private Forestlands Dominated by Northern Hardwoods?

Harvest access systems (forest roads, skid trails, and landings) account for 90% of the erosion and sedimentation during harvesting activities. A well-planned harvest access system can reduce the surface area disturbed by logging, thereby decreasing the potential for erosion and sedimentation. Most Best Management Practices (BMP) guidelines suggest that the area disturbed by the harvest access system should range from 10 to 15%. We measured surface area disturbance by the harvest access system on 43 harvest sites on nonindustrial private forestlands in northern hardwood cover types in New York State and found that the average area percent disturbed was 6% with a range of 3 to 13%. The quality of BMP implementation was positively associated with the percentage of surface area disturbed, suggesting that harvests with a low percentage of surface area disturbance do not necessarily exhibit high-quality BMP.North. J. Appl. For. 22(4):243–247.

Economies of Tract Size in Timber Growing

Disadvantages of small size in increasing costs, reducing revenues, and increasing risks may substantially lessen incentives to invest in timber growing on many nonindustrial private forestlands. Effects of tract size imply that programs to assist forest owners should emphasize careful consideration of each individual situation and goals before timber investments are recommended.