Volume 25, No. 04 - September 11, 2013

NCASI publishes results of herbicide measurements at Alsea Watershed Study

The Alsea Watershed Study Revisited is part of the Watersheds Research Cooperative  at Oregon State University. One component of the study is characterizing potential effects on aquatic ecosystems resulting from the use of herbicides to facilitate tree regeneration in a timber harvest unit in the Alsea’s Needle Branch drainage. Analytical methods and results are presented in NCASI Special Report No. 13-01, Measurement of Glyphosate, Imazapyr, Sulfometuron Methyl, and Metsulfuron Methyl in Needle Branch Streamwater.

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A review of biomass carbon accounting methods and implications

Recently, the benefits of forests and forest products have been disputed, with the debate frequently centered on the question of whether forest biomass is “carbon neutral.” In reality, this debate hinges on the methods used to characterize the carbon and greenhouse gas impacts associated with using forest biomass. NCASI is distributing Technical Bulletin No. 1015, A Review of Biomass Carbon Accounting Methods and Implications. This report explores the carbon accounting questions at the heart of the debate about the benefits of using forest-derived biomass.

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Observations of eastern diamondback rattlesnakes solicited

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service was recently petitioned to list the eastern diamondback rattlesnake as a threatened or endangered species. As the Service reviews the status of the eastern diamondback, NCASI is soliciting information about observations of the snake to improve understanding of its distribution and habitat associations. 

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Forestry session at NCASI West Coast Regional Meeting

NCASI’s 2013 West Coast Regional Meeting will be held October 1-2 in Vancouver, Washington. The meeting will include a full-day forestry technical session on October 2.

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NCASI support for research requirements in forestry certification program

Participants in the Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI) must support research on sustainable forestry topics and apply relevant scientific information in their forest management activities. NCASI’s sustainable forestry research program is well aligned with research topics identified in the SFI program. NCASI prepares detailed documentation every year about how NCASI forestry program tasks are addressing core indicators in the SFI program including the required research topics. 

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Study shows resilience of Douglas-fir to intensive harvesting and soil compaction over 10 years

Questions and concerns about intensive management practices designed to increase forest productivity and the availability of feedstocks for traditional products and energy markets have led states and other agencies and non-governmental organizations to develop biomass harvesting guidelines that include provisions for retaining specific proportions of harvest residues and restricting biomass harvesting on some sites. Scientific justification for such provisions based on long-term field studies is limited. The Fall River study is the longest-running study of its kind for Pacific Northwest Douglas-fir. A recent paper published from the study shows little impact of harvesting intensities beyond those used in practice and of associated compaction on Douglas-fir growth over 10 years. 

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