Effects of a selection harvest in a riparian buffer situated in Manitoba Forest Management License 01

Abstract

Forest resource managers have become increasingly aware of the shortcomings of conventional riparian management. Riparian buffers may enter a decadent state as trees age and begin to acquire attributes that may reduce the effectiveness of the buffer and threaten non-timber resource values associated with the riparian zone. A selective harvest was designed and implemented in an experimental riparian buffer within FML 01, aimed at circumventing the problems associated with traditional riparian resource management. Due to the ecological and recreational value of the riparian resource, harvesting was designed with the intent to integrate various existing non-timber values. A pilot study was subsequently implemented to address the initial effects of selective harvesting on buffer floristics, the avian community, erosion and sedimentation and streamside aesthetics. Primary data was collected for one year prior to, and for one year following, harvesting. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)