study show's that salvage logging does more damage then the original storms and fires

December 11, 2002

Salvage-logging operations that extract downed trees from

storm-damaged areas may actually wreak more havoc on forests than did

the original storm, according to a study conducted at the University

of Colorado at Boulder. The research, which was partially funded by

the U.S. EPA, focused on Colorado's Routt National Forest, where a

1997 windstorm blew down 13,000 acres of spruce trees. In spots

where salvage logging was conducted after the storm, heavy erosion

and reduced shade made it more difficult for new tree seedlings to

take root. In contrast, in areas that had been left alone, the

forest was growing back more quickly and seedlings were thriving. A

University of Georgia scientist found similar results when he studied

an area of downed trees in Pennsylvania. The study's findings come

just a week after the Bush administration announced regulations that

are expected to make it much easier to approve salvage logging in

fire-damaged public forests.

straight to the source: Boulder Daily Camera, Associated Press,

Colleen Long, 11 Dec 2002

straight to the source: Denver Post, Theo Stein, 28 Nov 2002

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