Clearcutting is used as a method of regenerating or rejuvenating certain kinds of trees that cannot tolerate shade .
What is the purpose of clear-cutting?
The principal objective of clearcutting is to regenerate the forest with healthier trees, not to harvest timber . Timber harvesting is a secondary objective. In a true clearcut, all of the trees greater than 2 inches in diameter are cut, as opposed to a commercial clearcut where only marketable trees are removed.
What is clear-cutting and why is it bad?
Clearcutting can destroy an area’s ecological integrity in a number of ways, including: the destruction of buffer zones which reduce the severity of flooding by absorbing and holding water; the immediate removal of forest canopy, which destroys the habitat for many rainforest-dependent insects and bacteria; the removal ...
What is clear-cutting method?
Clear-cutting is a silvicultural system that removes an entire stand of trees from an area of 1 ha or more, and greater than two tree heights in width , in a single harvesting operation (Figure 5). ... Clear-cutting mountain forests can initiate erosion processes which may result in a complete loss of the soil.
Is clear-cutting good for soil?
Clear-cutting loosens up carbon stored in forest soils , increasing the chances it will return to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide and contribute to climate change, a Dartmouth College study shows. The findings appear in the journal Soil Science.
Who benefits from clear-cutting?
Clearcutting pros: It creates wide, open spaces with lots of sun exposure . This allows the most sunlight to reach tree seedlings that require full-sun conditions to thrive. Clearcutting also creates forest clearings that are habitat for some species of songbirds, deer and elk.
What are the pros and cons of clear-cutting?
- Pro: Financial Reasons. Clearcutting advocates argue that the method is the most efficient for both harvesting and replanting trees. ...
- Con: Effects on Plant and Wildlife. ...
- Pro: Increased Water Flow. ...
- Con: Loss of Recreation Land. ...
- Pro: Increased Farmland.
What is the problem with clear-cutting?
Clearcutting may lead to increased stream flow during storms, loss of habitat and species diversity, opportunities for invasive and weedy species , and negative impacts on scenery, specifically, a growth of contempt by those familiar with the area for the wooded, planet aftermaths, as well as a decrease in property ...
How does clear-cutting affect human health?
Over the past two decades, a growing body of scientific evidence suggests that deforestation, by triggering a complex cascade of events , creates the conditions for a range of deadly pathogens—such as Nipah and Lassa viruses, and the parasites that cause malaria and Lyme disease—to spread to people.
How do I stop clear-cutting?
- Begin by hugging a tree. ...
- Start planting trees. ...
- Stop printing and go paperless. ...
- Recycle paper and cardboard. ...
- When shopping, move towards buying recycled products mainly. ...
- When at home, recycle as much as possible.
Is clear cut still?
Clear-cutting in national forests now can only be done if it’s used to further the improvement of ecological objectives to include wildlife habitat improvement or to preserve forest health, but not for economic gain.
Does clear-cutting cause flooding?
Findings in the OLIFE Initiative were that clearcut logging “... substantially increases the likelihood of large landslides and severe flooding ...” and has resulted in “...
Why is clear-cutting not sustainable?
The act of clear cutting is not only damaging to the structure and function of the forest , but in particularly erosion-prone areas the loss of root structures significantly affects water quality, and leads to the loss and fragmentation of nutrient rich soil, creating a lack of regenerative biomass and reduces primary ...
Why is selective cutting better than clear-cutting?
Selective Cutting as a Tool of Sustainable Forestry
Allows more light to penetrate the upper story of growth . The remaining tree growth will increase dramatically. Allows trees that are shade intolerant to receive more light. Encourages remaining trees to naturally seed open areas.
Is clear-cutting deforestation?
The Effects of Cutting Down Trees on the Ecosystem
From small farmers slashing and burning a few acres for subsistence to large agribusiness corporations clearing thousands of acres, clear-cutting is part of the worldwide phenomenon of deforestation .
When did clear-cutting stop?
The Forest Service began to back away from this controversial harvesting method, when Chief Dale Robertson proposed new policies in 1988 and 1992. The 1992 policy, with seven criteria, called for eliminating clearcutting by as much as 70 percent from the 1988 levels.
