Environmental Issues in Pacific Northwest Forest Management

People are demanding more of the goods, services, and amenities provided by the forests of the Pacific Northwest, but the finiteness of the supply has become clear. This issue involves complex questions of biology, economics, social values, community life, and federal intervention.

Forests of the Pacific Northwest explains that economic and aesthetic benefits can be sustained through new approaches to management, proposes general goals for forest management, and discusses strategies for achieving them. Recommendations address restoration of damaged areas, management for multiple uses, dispute resolution, and federal authority.

The volume explores the market role of Pacific Northwest wood products and looks at the implications if other regions should be expected to make up for reduced timber harvests.

The book also reviews the health of the forested ecosystems of the region, evaluating the effects of past forest use patterns and management practices. It discusses the biological importance, social significance, and management of old-growth as well as late-succession forests.

This volume will be of interest to public officials, policymakers, the forest products industry, environmental advocates, researchers, and concerned residents.

• Front Matter
• Executive Summary
• 1 The Promised Land: The Land of Promise
• 2 The Region and Its Forests
• 3 Old-Growth Forests
• 4 The Status and Functioning of Pacific Northwest Forests
• 5 Forest Succession, Fire, and Landscape Dynamics
• 6 Products from the Forests
• 7 Forest Management and Rural Communities in the Pacific Northwest
• 8 A Framework for Sustainable Forest Management
• 9 Conclusions and Recommendations
• References
• Glossary