Achieving Sustainable Forest Management in the Southeastern USA

1. Achieving Sustainable Forest Management in the Southeastern USA October 21st Management Responses: Wildlife, Plant and Animal Diversity, Landscape Issues, Forest Health, High Conservation Value Forests

2. FSC 1. Compliance 2. Tenure 3. Indigenous Peoples 4. Community/Workers 5. Benefits 6. Environmental Impact 7. Management Plan 8. Monitoring/Assess. 9. HCVF’s 10. Plantations SFI 1. Broaden the Practice 2. Ensure LT Prod./Cons. 3. Protect Water 4. Manage Wildlife, Conserve Diversity 5. Manage Visual Impact 6. Ecologic, Geologic, Historic Signif. 7. Efficient Use 8. Broaden Practice-Procurement* 9. Public Reporting 10. Public/Comm. Particip. Applicable Standards/Objectives

3. FSC Principle 6. Environmental ImpactForest management shall conserve biological diversity and its associated values, water resources, soils, and unique and fragile ecosystems and landscapes, and, by doing so, maintain ecological functions and the integrity of the forest.

4. Criterion 6.1 (Habitat and Biodiversity, (Landscape Issues) Assessment completed at appropriate scale, intensity and uniqueness, adequately integrated. Landscape and on-site level. Complete assessment prior to on-site disturbing activities.

5. NCSU (#7) 1yr. Will demonstrate how their planning and operations includes landscape considerations and include a section for this in themanagement plan Duke (#5) 1yr. Develop, document and implement a formal protocol that specifies the various planning considerations at the site level and options for minimizing environmental impact to the site. Conditions

6. Criterion 6.3 (Habitat and Biodiversity) Ecological functions and values shall be maintained intact, enhanced or restored including: Forest regeneration and succession; genetic, species and ecosystem diversity; natural cycles that affect the productivity of the forest ecosystem

7. NCSU (#8) 1yr. Develop and implement a policy indicating how green tree retention will be used in even-aged management units for purposes of maintaining vertical structure and providing refugia within stands Duke (#4) NCSU(#6) Prior to next harvest shall develop and implement a process for preparing written prescriptions that document the ecological and silvicultural rationale and that incorporates these records within their forest and stand history. Conditions

8. Criterion 6.4 (Landscape Issues) Representative samples of existing ecosystems w/in landscape shall be protected in their natural state and recorded on maps, appropriate to scale, intensity of operations and uniqueness of affected resources

9. Condition • NCSU(#9) • 1 yr. Will develop and implement a strategy to ensure that the representative pine stands of older age classes are maintained

10. Criterion 6.6 (Forest Health) …shall promote development and adoption of environmentally friendly non-chemical methods of pest management and strive to avoid the use of chemical pesticides. WHO Type 1A and 1B, chlorinated hydrocarbon, persistent or toxic in food chain beyond intend use, and internationally banned pesticides prohibited. Proper training and equipment provided. (employ…integrated pest management… strategies)

11. Condition • NCSU (#14) • 2yrs. Will develop and implement a formal Integrated Pest Management Program that describes the approach taken to manage pest problems within the forests.

12. SFI on Forest Health (2000 Standard, 2001 edition*, compare to 2002-2004 Standard) • Objective 2. Ensure long-term forest productivity and conservation of forest resources through prompt reforestation, soil conservation, afforestation and other measures. • (6 Performance Measures)

13. Performance Measure 5. …shall manage so as to protect forests from damaging agents such as wildfire, pests, and diseases to maintain and improve long-term forest health and productivity (and economic viability).Core: Written Policy* Manage in healthy/productive condition* Participate/support fire and pest programs*Other: Reduce fuel hazards* Maintain initial fire attack capability* Apply prescribed burning* Monitor and map pest/disease outbreaks* Use Integrated Pest Management strategies Participate in state “Keep Green” programs

14. Criterion 6.9 (Exotics)The use of exotic species shall be carefully controlled and actively monitored to avoid adverse ecological impacts. Criterion 10.4 (Plantations/Exotics) Species for planting selected on basis of site suitability and mgmt. plan objectives, natives preferred over exotics. Exotics only when performance greater than natives, carefully monitored.

15. Condition • NCSU (#21) 1yr. Will document and implement a systematic process with an objective to eradicate Paulownia when encountered and prevent its spread from the Hill Forest and also initiate a monitoring and assessment protocol for arboretum exotics to ensure they will not “escape” from that locale.

16. 9 (High Conservation Value Forests) Management activities in high conservation value forests shall maintain or enhance attributes defining such forests. Decisions regarding HCVFs shall be considered in the context of a precautionary approach.9.4 (HCVFs)Annual monitoring shall be conducted to assess the effectiveness of the measures employed to maintain or enhance the applicable conservation attributes.

17. Conditions • Duke (#14) 1 yr. / NCSU(#20) 3 yrs. • …shall develop and implement a formal monitoring system for ensuring the maintenance of high conservation values (attributes) and ensure that it is described in management plans and procedures. This effort should include a plan for educating stakeholders on HCVFs

18. SFI on Wildlife Habitat and Diversity(2000 Standard, 2001 edition* compare to 2002-2004 Standard)Objective 4. Manage the quality and distribution of wildlife habitats and contribute to the conservation of biological diversity by developing an implementing stand-and landscape-level measures that promote habitat diversity and the conservation of forest plants and animals including aquatic fauna.(3 Performance Measures)

19. Performance Measure 1. …shall have policies(programs and plans)* to promote habitat diversity at stand-and landscape-levels.Core: Written Policy* Programs for federal T&E species* Plans for critically imperiled and imperiled species Training for personnel Policy/plan for stand level habitat System to achieve continual compliance Available regulatory information

20. Other: Plans for vulnerable species Land classific./mapping system* Harvest planning w/diversity goals* Silviculture to improve stand lvl. diversity* Funding or coop projects for protection Identification of and minimization of invasive exotics

21. Performance Measure 2. …shall , individually, through coop efforts, or thorough AF&PA provide funding for research to improve the science and understanding of wildlife management at stand-or landscape-levels, ecosystem functions and the conservation of biological diversity.Core: Current or in-kind support

22. Performance Measure 3. …shall apply knowledge gained through research, science, technology, and field experience to manage wildlife habitat and contribute to the conservation of biological diversity.Core: Coll. Inf. On critically imperiled, imperiled species and other biodiversity data.* Training/education* Method to incorporate research (other*)Other: Participate in landscape planning efforts Professional expertise available* Participation in habitat, T&E, landscape, or conserv. of biodiversity*(wording changed)

23. Duke SFI Major Non-ConformanceObjective 4--PM 1. Duke not following forest plan wildlife provision that “prescribed burning is regularly used.”--PM1, Core 2. Duke not able to show “programs to protect federally listed T&E species”. During audit this consideration was remedied by new addendum to forest plan.

24. --PM 3. Core 1. Duke Forest not able to show data analysis to monitor achievement of its habitat composition goals.--PM3. Core 2. Duke Forest was not able to adequately show “training and education for operations personnel” related to wildlife and biodiversity, and this lack of training affected the ability of personnel to explain in the field how practices had been used to benefit wildlife and biodiversity.

25. --PM 3, Other 1. Duke Forest was not able to demonstrate an availability and use of “professional expertise…to assist in developing wildlife and biodiversity programs”.

26. Proposed remedies to major non-conformance:--analyzing forest cover data from 1986 and 1997 and provide calculations of Shannon-Weaver indices for these periods for comparison with 1975 assessment of performance of target wildlife habitat acreages recommended in the Duke Forest plan.--revising the wildlife management section of the Duke Forest plan utilizing the expertise of at least three individuals with training and expertise in wildlife management: and thereafter implementing the resulting management guidelines in prescriptions for silvicultural activities.

27. and…--requiring that Duke Forest staff members…each attend relevant short courses, symposia, technical presentation, or other training sessions on wildlife or habitat management, with knowledge gained in this training incorporated in prescriptions for silvicultural activities.

28. Do we have time for more?

29. NCDFR non-conformance under PM4.A project presented as wildlife research was not current. BLSF has remedied this major on-conformance by providing evidence of wildlife research supported by its SFI licensing fee.

30. Objective 5. Manage the visual impact of harvesting and other forest operations.(4 Performance Measures)Performance Measure 4. …shall use harvest methods, age classes and judicious placement of harvest units to promote diversity across the forest landscape.Core: Written policy (program and/or plan*)Other: Maps or GIS* Plans to increase landscape diversity* Use of current science/research* Participate in landscape planning Train staff (only*)