Bibliographic Metadata :
An Ecosystem Management Strategy for Southern Sierran Mixed-Conifer Forests
Title
:
An Ecosystem Management Strategy for Southern Sierran Mixed-Conifer Forests
Secondary Title
:
Authors
:
North, M.; Stine, P.; O’Hara, K.; Zielinski, W.; Stephens, S.
Place Published
:
Publish Date
:
Year
:
Publisher
:
US Forest Service
Source
:
U.S.F.S. Sierra Nevada Research Center, Davis, CA; Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of California, Berkeley; U.S.F.S. Redwood Sciences Lab, Arcata, CA.
ISSN/ISBN
:
Issue
:
Keywords
:
climate, climate change, ecosystem, mixed-conifer, transects, land management, healthy forest, Sierra Nevada, Fuels management, 2009-symposium
Text
:
Pages
:
Abstract
:
In recent years, there has been substantial debate over how Sierra Nevada forests should be managed. All perspectives on this debate inevitably cite "sound science" as a necessary foundation for any management practice. Over the last dozen years since publication of the Sierra Nevada Ecosystem Project (SNEP 1996), many relevant research projects have published findings in dozens of scientific journals, yet these have rarely been synthesized or presented in a form that speaks directly to current land management challenges. The intent of this paper is to propose a set of management recommendations based on recent research findings and opportunities to implement new forest management practices in southern Sierran mixed-conifer forests. Current management usually cites a "healthy forest" (http://www.fs.fed.us/projects/hfi) as a primary objective. It is difficult, however, to define forest ‘health’, and as a broad concept, it provides few specifics to guide management or assess forest practices. A premise of silviculture is that forest prescriptions can be tailored to fit a wide variety of land management objectives, once those objectives are defined. In this paper, we attempt to define some of the key management objectives on National Forest lands in the southern Sierra and how they might be approached through particular silvicultural prescriptions.
Notes
:
Reference Type
Document