SLB plots (trees and CWD) for the British Columbia Forest and Range Evaluation Program (FREP) are established both within retention patches and in the harvested area of recent cutblocks. The tree plot is a survey of all standing trees (diameter, height, species, wildlife tree class) within a prism sweep, fixed radius plot or full count area. The coarse woody debris plot is a 30 metre line transect from the tree plot center, measuring CWD diameter, length, species and decay class. Other general attributes to assess in a retention patch are amount of windthrow, operability constraints on the area (e.g. riparian management zone), valuable ecological attributes (e.g. large hollow tree), size and location of the retention patch, and presence of invasive species.
The CWD data found in retention patches provides a baseline for the CWD in the harvested areas of the cutblocks.
The tree data is assessed in relation to the type and quality (e.g. variety of tree species, large trees, tall snags) of trees in pre-harvest stands. The assessment of retention biodiversity quality is not done on individual cutblocks, but can be done for 10 or more cutblocks to determine if the full range of natural biodiversity attributes are being maintained.
British Columbians desire sustainable use of the forests they hold in trust for future generations. Sustainable use can be defined in many ways. For the purpose of the Forest and Range Evaluation Program (FREP), sustainable use means:
managing forests to meet present needs without compromising the needs of future generations;
providing stewardship of forests based on an ethic of respect for the land;
balancing economic, productive, spiritual, ecological and recreational values of forests to meet the economic, social and cultural needs of the Province's people and communities;
conserving the resource values identified under the Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA) and regulations, namely, biodiversity, cultural heritage, soil, water, fish, forage and associated plant communities, timber, recreation, resource features, visual quality and wildlife.
The Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA) and regulations introduce the transition to a results-based forest practices framework in British Columbia. For more information on FRPA and its regulations, resource values, objectives, etc., see http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/code/.
Under this new approach to forest management, the forest industry is responsible for developing results and strategies, or using specified defaults, for the sustainable management of resources. The role of government is to ensure compliance with established results and strategies and other practice requirements, and evaluate the effectiveness of forest and range practices in achieving management objectives.
FREP has been put in place as a multi-agency program to evaluate whether practices under FRPA are meeting not only the intent of current FRPA objectives, but also to determine whether the practices and the legislation itself, are meeting government's broader intent for the sustainable use of resources.
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Wind Damaged Lagerstroemia - Prune Like a Proby PruneLikeAPro169 views
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