The document discusses potential policy changes to encourage more diverse early successional forests in Oregon. On private lands, ideas include removing the free-to-grow requirement for reforestation, removing reforestation requirements entirely for small harvest units, and allowing landowners to substitute invasive species removal or wildlife plans instead of reforestation. On federal lands, ideas are to allow burned areas more natural recovery, implement longer harvest rotations on BLM lands, and conduct larger regeneration harvests on national forests to emulate natural disturbances. The overall goal is creating early successional forest habitat without increasing landowner costs or changing agency missions.

1. Policies to Encourage Diverse, Early Seral Forest in Oregon: What Might We Do? K. Norman Johnson Debora L. Johnson

3. “ A future wood supply… is not assured. The serous factor in the forestry problem becomes evident when it is stated that a timber crop requires from fifty to one hundred years for maturity. When to this statement is added the assertions that this nation is using timber four times as fast as it is being produced; that by far the greater portion of the original stand of timber has been removed; and that in spite of substitutes for wood, the annual rate of timber consumption does not decrease, the seriousness of the forestry problem becomes increasingly clear.” George W. Peavy, 1929

4. “ One thing is certain: there must be a decided change in our attitude toward our timber resources… The forest is a renewable resource. In the interest of the nation and of the state, Oregon’s forests should be renewed: and, by all means, there should be as little delay as possible in making a beginning.” George W. Peavy, 1929

5. Source: Oregon’s Commercial Forests, 1929, George W. Peavy

6. Source: Oregon’s Commercial Forests, 1929, George W. Peavy

7. The purpose of the reforestation rules is to ensure that forest tree cover is maintained or re-established after harvest. Tree Species Suitable for Reforestation 1. The species must be ecologically suited to the planting site; 2. The species must be capable of producing logs, fiber, or other wood products suitable in size and quality for the production of lumber, sheeting, pulp or other commercial forest products; and 3. The species must be marketable in the foreseeable future. Oregon’s Reforestation Rules ODF, December, 1994

8. Minimum Tree Stocking Standards Oregon Forest Practices Act 40 sq. ft. 60/acre 100/acre Cubic Foot Site Class VI Ponderosa pine 100-year site index 40-63 50 sq. ft. 75/acre 125/acre Cubic Foot Site Class IV and V Ponderosa pine 100-year site index 64-108 80 sq. ft. 120/acre 200/acre Cubic Foot Site Class I, II, and III Douglas-fir 100 year site index 124 and higher Trees 11” and larger ba Saplings and Poles 1-10” dbh tpa Seedlings <1”dbh tpa Site Productivity

15. Baker, et al. 2006 Implementation monitoring: Summary of NWPF regional interagency monitoring results

18. Annual regen harvest (M acres) % Forest (M acres) Owner group 1 100 .1 14.4 220 1320 BLM Total 0 0 380 Forest Service 3 .4 50 State 12 1.7 145 Family Forest 84 12 525 Forest Industry

20. Perhaps on small harvest units Remove “free-to grow” requirement

22. Remove the entire reforestation requirement Perhaps on small harvest units and/or in certain zones Brandis Oak Savanna Restoration Project

23. Allow substitution of an invasives eradication plan Scot’s broom

24. Value – residual trees (ODF 4 th Qtr. 2006) Allow substitution of an enhanced wildlife tree plan 45 Utility 185 SC 220 3S (12+) 465 4S 490 3S 540 2S Pond Value $/MBF Grade

25. Encourage the retention of logging debris Carbon stores increased as rotation length increased, but decreased as the fraction of trees harvested and logging debris removed increased. Source: Forests, Carbon and Climate Change: A Synthesis of Science Findings. 2006. Oregon Forest Resources Institute

30. Current Policy – Now

31. Current Policy – Year 50

32. Long Rotation BLM– Year 50

40. Policies to Encourage Diverse, Early Seral Forest in Oregon: What might we do? K. Norman Johnson Debora L. Johnson