Characteristics of Logging Businesses that Harvest Biomass for Energy Production
Utilization of biomass from logging residues for renewable energy production depends on forest harvesting businesses. As biomass markets emerge, businesses will need to adapt to meet operational requirements. Logging businesses that supplied biomass for energy production in Virginia were surveyed regarding operations and attitudes. Results show that businesses across a broad range of total production levels (150 to 6250 tons/wk) harvested biomass and roundwood using integrated harvesting operations with whole tree chippers. Businesses had produced biomass an average of 6.8 years.
Adapting to a Changing Landscape: How Wisconsin Loggers Persist in an Era of Parcelization
The average forest landowner in Wisconsin owns fewer than 30 acres, and in 2014, landowners with as few as 10 acres of forestland were eligible to enroll in a tax program that required periodic timber harvests. These factors point to a need for loggers capable of profitably harvesting small parcels of timber. A series of in-person interviews were conducted with representatives of 15 Wisconsin logging firms previously identified as successful at harvesting small parcels of timber. Ninety-two percent of mechanized loggers had harvested parcels of 10 acres and smaller within the past year.
Bundling of ecosystem services to increase forestland value and enhance sustainable forest management
There has been increasing interest in the use of market-based approaches to add value for forestland and to assist with the conservation of natural resources. While markets for ecosystem services show potential for increasing forestland value, there is concern that the lack of an integrated program will simply add to the complexity of these services without generating significant public benefits.
Implications of African wild dog (Lycaon pictus) denning on the density and distribution of a key prey species: addressing myths and misperceptions
African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) are often the least popular large carnivore among game ranchers because of their perceived impact on prey populations. Landowner perceptions include that wild dogs greatly deplete prey during their three-month denning period, take prey that could otherwise be sold for hunting and cause prey to move away from the vicinity of their den sites. Landowners’ tolerance towards African wild dogs could thus be improved with a more rigorous understanding of the actual impact of wild dogs on prey populations during the denning period.
Land claims and the pursuit of co-management on four protected areas in South Africa
Successful land claims on protected areas by previously disenfranchised communities often result in co-management agreements between claimant communities and state conservation agencies. South Africa, in particular, has pursued co-management as the desired outcome of land claims on its protected areas. We review four cases of co-management on protected areas in South Africa, and reflect on the appropriateness of the pursuit of co-management as the preferred outcome of land claims.
Utah prairie dogs: creative strategies to de-list a problematic endangered species
Restoration of dry tropical forests in Central America: A review of pattern and process
Much information on restoration and management exists for wet tropical forests of Central America but comparatively little work has been done in the dry forests of this region. Such information is critical for reforestation efforts that are now occurring throughout Central America. This paper describes processes of degradation due to land use and provides a conceptual framework for the restoration of dry tropical forest. Most of this forest type was initially harvested for timber and then cleared for cattle in the last century (1930–1970).
Trends in Deforestation and Forest Degradation after a Decade of Monitoring in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico
We used aerial photographs, satellite images, and field surveys to monitor forest cover in the core zones of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico from 2001 to 2012. We used our data to assess the effectiveness of conservation actions that involved local, state, and federal authorities and community members (e.g., local landowners and private and civil organizations) in one of the world's most iconic protected areas. From 2001 through 2012, 1254 ha were deforested (i.e., cleared areas had
Objective and perceived wildfire risk and its influence on private forest landowners’ fuel reduction activities in Oregon’s (USA) ponderosa pine ecoregion
Policymakers seek ways to encourage fuel reduction among private forest landowners to augment similar efforts on federal and state lands. Motivating landowners to contribute to landscape-level wildfire protection requires an understanding of factors that underlie landowner behaviour regarding wildfire. We developed a conceptual framework describing landowners’ propensity to conduct fuel reduction as a function of objective and subjective factors relating to wildfire risk.
Landowners Perceptions of Their Moral and Ethical Stewardship Responsibilities in New Brunswick, Canada, and Maine, USA
The province of New Brunswick (NB), Canada and the state of Maine (ME), USA are heavily forested jurisdictions whose forests provide many social, ecological, and economic functions. Roughly a third of NB and ME’s forested land is owned by private, non-industrial owners [sometimes called family forests or woodlot owners]. The choices of thousands of individual parcel owners of forest land determine the fate of these ecosystems. Ownership of forest land implies a social contract between the landowners and the rest of society.