Klenner W FEMC2007

Maintaining diverse forest values across multiple stands - the need for landscape planning

Walt Klenner, Ministry of Forests and Range, 515 Columbia Street, Kamloops, BC, V2C 2T7, Canada, walt.klenner@gov.bc.ca
Russ Walton, Ministry of Forests and Range, 515 Columbia Street, Kamloops, BC, V2C 2T7, Canada, russ.walton@gov.bc.ca

We used the TELSA (Tool for Exploratory Landscape Scenario Analyses) forest estate model to examine the long-term consequences of applying different stand density and fuel management regimes on indicators of timber yield, forage productivity, crown fuel hazard, understory fuel hazard, treatment costs and wildlife habitat. The TELSA model was calibrated with information from TASS (Tree and Stand Simulator) model projections, field data collected at the Isobel and Opax Mt. Interior Douglas-fir research sites and from published literature. We used a case study landscape of approximately 100,000 ha near Kamloops, BC that was dominated by dry forest types to illustrate the consequences of stand density and forest fuels treatment options on achieving desired landscape conditions that were defined a priori. Management scenarios were developed to illustrate the consequences of managing the landscape using one or more management systems that were interspersed or applied in designated “planning zones” where specific commodity objectives were emphasized. The results illustrate three main principles: (1) one stand management treatment does not adequately maintain multiple values, (2) the high direct (funding) and indirect (effects on other forest values) costs of fuel management treatments will likely necessitate the limited application of treatments to strategically defined zones, and (3) interspersed treatments are less effective in achieving desired conditions than the use of landscape planning zonation. We conclude that forest estate modelling can and should be used to assess the consequences of current or new management initiatives prior to their application to ensure expectations are realistic.