1. Forestry, Rangelands, Wilderness, and National Parks
Lesson 2

2. Human Activities Affecting Land and Environment
Extensive logging – mudslides
Deforestation – climate change
Paving – water runoff, “heat islands”
Overuse of farmland – soil degradation, water pollution

3. Tragedy of the Commons Land viewed as a common resource Garrett Hardin
a. Tragedy of the Commons
- shared, limited resource becomes depleted due
to people acting on self-interest for short-term
gain
More common when there’s no land use agreement or regulation
* As populations increased, common lands tend to become degraded through overgrazing, overharvesting and deforestation

4. Result of negative externality
- can lead to serious environmental problems
- no one be held legally or financially responsible
Solution
- private ownership
- regulation
Externality – cost or benefit of a good or service that is not included in the purchase price of that good or service
Regulation – land can be managed effectively at a community level

5. Maximum Sustainable Yield (MYP)
a. maximum amount that can be harvested without
compromising the future availability of that resource
b. keeps the resource population at ~1/2 carrying
capacity of environment
c. permits an indefinite use without depletion of
resource
Varies case by case depending on carrying capacity of population as well as growth rate
Example: deering hunting not regulated compared to being prohibited
- intermediate hunting is ideal because it leaves enough deer to reproduce at a rate that willl maintain the population but not too many to where they have to compete for food
MSY – intermediate harvest

6. Role of Rural Lands Ecosystem services Recreational/spiritual uses
Wildlife habitat, flood/erosion control, ground water recharge
Breaks down pollutants & recycles waste
Provide habitat for organism
Recreational/spiritual uses
Hiking, boating, sport hunting, fishing
Used as bench marks for scientists to determine the impact of human activity 6

7. FORESTS Occupy less than 1/3 of Earth’s surface
Supply: Fuel, timber, paper products, nuts, mushrooms, fruits, medicines
Provide many ecosystem services
Influence local climate - Transpiration
Regulating global biogeochemical cycles
Act as “sinks” for CO2
Hold soil in place reducing erosion/mudslides
Watersheds:
Absorb, hold and slowly release water
Controls flooding & droughts
Animal habitat 7

8. Most “managed” forests are monocultures where trees are planted in rows and are of one variety
All trees are the same age & size
More prone to insects and diseases
Insecticides & fungicides are used
Monocultures can’t support large food webs
FOREST MANAGMENT 8

9. Sustainable Forestry loggers farmers Seeks to: COOPERATION is crucial!
Conserve forests for long-term commercial timber harvest
Sustain biodiversity by…
Provide improved habitat for many species
Decrease soil erosion
Preserve watersheds
COOPERATION is crucial!
environmentalists
government officials
loggers
farmers 9

10. Sustainable Logging Practices:
Unlogged areas are saved as sanctuaries
Wildlife corridors are created
(zones that connect isolated unlogged areas)
Provide escape routes so
animals can interbreed
(help reduce extinction)
Large animals can
maintain large territories. 10

11. Harvesting Trees Harvesting Methods 5 Countries harvest the most trees
US, Canada, Russia, China, Brazil
What happens to harvested trees?
55% are burned
Fuel wood or made into charcoal (partially burn w/o O2)
Very important for developing nations
45% used for paper/wood products in highly developed nations
Harvesting Methods
Selective cutting
Shelter wood cutting
Seed tree cutting
Clearcutting 11

12. 1. Selective Cutting
Mature trees are cut individually or in small clusters while the rest of the forest remains intact.
Remaining trees fill in with saplings
Animals don’t lose habitat 12

13. 2. Shelterwood Cutting
Some mature trees are harvested, leaving some to provide protection/shade for young trees and seedlings.
The remaining mature trees are harvested once regeneration is well established.
Little soil erosion 13

14. 3. Seed Tree Cutting Almost all trees are harvested from an area
A few desirable trees are left to provide seeds for the regeneration of the forest. 14

15. 4. Clearcutting Removal of all trees from an area
Area is allowed to reseed and regenerate naturally or is planted
Timber companies prefer because it is cost effective.
Destroys habitat & causes fragmentation
Massive soil erosion issues 15

16. US FORESTS
57% privately owned; 20% US Gov.; % Corporations; 8% State & local Gov.
Privately owned forests can be protected through the Forest Legacy Program
Landowner grants a conservation easement
US Gov. buys the land, agreeing not to develop it for a certain number of years
National Forests have multiple uses.
timber, livestock, water & watershed protection, mining, recreation & habitat
Issues
confrontations over multiple uses
building of logging roads with tax revenues
clear cutting 16

17. Land ownership in US Includes ecosystems from tundra to desert
55% owned privately
3% owned by Native Americans
~35% owned by the Federal Govt.
Includes ecosystems from tundra to desert
Contains important resources such as minerals, fossil fuels, historical significance or critical habitat
Mostly in Alaska and 11 western states
Managed by:
1. US Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)
National Park Service (NPS)
2. Department of Agriculture
U.S. Forest Service (USFS)
~7% owned by state/local Govt. 17

18. Public Land Use ~ 11% of Earth’s land area is protected
International Categories of Public Lands
a. National Parks
b. Managed Resource Protected Areas
c. Habitat/Species Management Areas
d. Strict Nature Reserves and Wilderness Areas
e. Protected Landscapes and Seascapes
f. National Monuments
Lands are classified according to how they are used.

19. b. managed for scientific, educational, and recreational use
National Parks
a. 3,400 in the world
b. managed for scientific, educational,
and recreational use
c. not used for extraction of resources
Exist to generate tourism and protect animal species
Negative: government have evicted some indigenous people from their homes

20. Managed Resource Protected Areas a. 4,100 sites
b. allows for sustained use of biological,
mineral and recreational uses
c. ex) national forests

21. Habitat/Species Management Areas a. 27,600 sites
b. actively managed to maintain
biological communities
c. done through predator prevention, etc.

22. Strict Nature Reserves and Wilderness Areas a. 6,000 sites
b. established to protect species and
ecosystems

23. Protected Landscapes and Seascapes a. 6,500 sites
b. nondestructive use of natural resources
with opportunities for tourism and
recreation
c. ex) orchards, beaches, etc

24. b. protect unique sites of natural and cultural interest
National Monuments
a. 20,000
b. protect unique sites of natural and
cultural interest

25. Public Land in the US Owned by federal, state, or local government’s
Federal is the largest (~25% of country)
Classification
a. include
- rangelands, national forests,
national parks, wildlife refuges, and
wilderness areas

26. a. used for recreation, grazing, timber, and mineral extraction
Multiple-Use Lands
a. used for recreation, grazing, timber,
and mineral extraction
Done in order to manage competing interests (done by the US government)
Other lands are designated as protected lands

27. a. Bureau of Land Management - grazing, mining, recreation, timber
Federal Agencies
a. Bureau of Land Management
- grazing, mining, recreation, timber
b. United States Forest Service
- timber, grazing, mining
c. National Park Service
- recreation and conservation
d. Fish and Wildlife Service
- wildlife conservation, hunting, recreation
The use of land determines how it is classified.
More than 95% of all federal lands are managed by four federal agencies.

28. Land Management Practices
Rangelands
a. dry, open grasslands
b. primarily used for cattle grazing
c. Grazing
1. benefit
- uses less fossil fuel then feedlots
2. consequence
- leaves land exposed to erosion
leaves land exposed to wind erosion making it difficult for soil to absorb and retain water

29. b. used for commercial logging - pulp and wood
Forests
a. dominated by trees
b. used for commercial logging
- pulp and wood
c. harvesting techniques
1. clear-cutting
- removing all trees in an area
- forests are replanted all at once
- steep slopes: loss of soil and nutrients
- increases sunlight reaching water
- replanting
* use of herbicides and fire
* reduces soil quality, contaminates water,
reduces biodiversity
Commercial logging companies are allowed to use these private lands due to exchange for a royalty (percentage of their revenues)
Federal government tends to spend more money on managing the timber program than what it receives in revenue
Clear-cutting
- easiest method
- replanted forests are composed of trees the same age
- steep slopes – increased wind and and water erosion, erosion adds silt and sediment to streams
- replace these areas with what is called tree plantations that are easily harvested in cycles because they grow quickly due to full sunlight

30. 2. selective-cutting - removes single tree among many - creates small openings - trees of different ages - shade-tolerant 3. Impacts of both types of harvesting - logging roads to carry equipment * destruction of habitats * compaction of soil  loss of nutrients and ability to infiltrate water
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31. d. Fire Management - natural process for nutrient cycling - provides openings for early-successional species - prescribed burn * fire set under controlled conditions
Build up of dead biomass on forest floor if fires do not happen therefore we do them under controlled settings
Best example: fire in yellowstone national park summer of 1988
Fires have created new nutrient rich habitats for species

32. Rangelands Temperate & Tropical Grasslands
Predominant vegetation includes grasses, forbs, and shrubs
Provide fodder for livestock
Animals eat the leafy shoots of the grass and the fibrous roots continue to develop, allowing the plant to recover and re-grow
Can actually encourage greater plant diversity
Cannot exceed carrying capacity
Overgrazed land BAD!!!!
Can lead to Desertification: rangeland converted to desert due to drought and or overgrazing 32

33. Rangelands
Desertification is result of overuse of the land leaving it dry and erosion removes the little topsoil present and the sand left behind forms dunes.
Reduces agricultural productivity, forces organisms out and threatens endangered species
About 135 Million people are in danger of displacement due to desertification

34. National Parks Service
Protect land & biological diversity
in an unimpaired condition
385 sites (57 of them are National Parks)
Many parks are threatened
Human Activities- littering, graffiti, pollution, development around parks
Large mammal population decrease (Bears)
Large mammal population increase (Elk)
Parks are now managed using Natural Regulation
Populations are allowed to fluctuate naturally due to weather or predators
Fires are not suppressed unless they threaten people
Park managers DO control exotic species invasion 34

35. National Parks
a. 58 in US
b. Goal
1. based on multiple-use principle
2. set aside to protect ecosystems
c. human activities
1. air and water pollution
2. lead to destruction of habitats

36. Wildlife Refuges and Wilderness Areas
a. protecting wildlife
b. limited human use and are road less

37. Federal Regulation
a. National Environmental Policy Act
- assesses all projects
b. Environmental Impact Statement
- analyzes environmental impact
c. Environmental Mitigation Plan
- how will the impact be addressed
d. Endangered Species Act
- designed to protect species