| Title | An initial evaluation of potential options for managing riparian reserves of the Aquatic Conservation Strategy of the Northwest Forest Plan |
| Publication Type | Report |
| Year of Publication | 2016 |
| Authors | Reeves, Gordon H., Brian R. Pickard, Norman K. Johnson, and U. S. Department of Agriculture. Forest Service. Pacific Northwest Research Station,, |
| Secondary Title | General Technical Report PNW |
| Volume | no.937 |
| Pagination | 97 p. |
| Date Published | 2016, Apr. |
| Call Number | OSU Libraries: Digital Open Access |
| Keywords | Siuslaw River, Smith River, North Umpqua River, Myrtle Creek, Coquille River, McKenzie River, Applegate River, terrestrial vegetation, riparian areas, habitats, water quality, water temperature, fishes, ecosystem health, environmental law and policy, |
| Notes | The Northwest Forest Plan was adopted in 1994. Part of the Plan involved developing an Aquatic Conservation Strategy “to maintain and improve the ecological processes in aquatic ecosystems for Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), other native fish, aquatic and riparian-dependent organisms, and water quality” (from the Executive Summary).The Plan met this goal by using riparian reserves, areas near streams in which logging was banned to the distance of two tree-heights (220 feet) on fish-bearing streams, and one tree-height on streams without fishes. The width of the reserves was considered to be an interim measure, but the issue has not been subsequently revisited. This report is an attempt to re-assess the minimum widths of riparian reserves. The authors offer an option that uses new techniques such as tree-tipping, which would enable forest managers to reduce the width of riparian boundaries and permit logging closer to streams without reducing water quality. |
| URL | https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/50788 |
