What is it?

Harvesting trees in forestry operations takes a lot of planning and preparation. Harvest design, felling and bucking methods, skidding methods, and disposal of debris and litter should be planned and accounted for.

• Harvest design includes determing appropriate locations for tree landings, minimizing distrubance to soil and native vegetation, and determing appropriate trees to harvest.
• Felling is the process of determining the best strategy for cutting down a tree and bucking is cutting the tree into manageable sections.
• Skidding is the process of moving the timber from the harvest site to a processing or transportation site.

Conservation Benefits

• Reduces the amont of habitat and vegetation lost during harvesting processes
• Reduces amount of erosion at sites

What does it include?

The following recommendations were taken from the Texas Forestry Best Management Practices Handbook produced by the Texas Forestry Association and Texas Forest Service.

Harvest Design

• Landings should be located to reduce the impact of skidding on the natural water drainage pattern. Skidding should avoid road ditches, culverts, sensitive sites, excessive slopes, etc.
• Landings should be located on firm ground outside of the SMZ so runoff is well dispersed before reaching the SMZ
• When operations are complete, plan to disperse water runoff from landings and secondary roads by implementing BMPs where the potential for increased erosion exists.
• Activities located adjacent to navigable waters must comply with applicable U.S. Army Corps of Engineers regulations.
• Shading, soil stabilization, and the water filtering effects of vegetation should be provided along streams by using one or more of the following methods: 1.) Leave trees, shrubs, grasses, rocks, and naturally felled timber wherever they provide shade over a stream or stabilize the soil near such a stream. 2.) Harvest timber from the SMZ in such a way that shading and filtering effects are maintained. 3.) Where it is difficult to leave adequate vegetation within the SMZ to provide stream protection, cover should be re-established as soon as possible after harvesting is complete

Felling and Bucking

• Minimize soil disturbance and protect the residual timber stand within the SMZ.
• If possible, trees harvested in the SMZ should be removed from the SMZ prior to skidding.
• Directional felling should be used near streams to minimize debris entering the stream. Any tree that cannot be felled without falling into or across the streambed should be left standing. Trees accidentally felled across streams should be topped prior to skidding or removed by the top from the other side.
• Minimize the number of trees harvested on the stream bank within an SMZ where they may help to protect the integrity of the stream, provide shade, and stabilize the bank.
• Trees should be removed from the SMZ before being limbed and topped if the adjacent areas are to be burned after logging operations.

Skidding

• Skid trails should be placed to minimize disruption of natural drainage patterns.
• Stream channels, road ditches, or roads (primary or secondary) should not be used as skid trails.
• Temporary crossings using culverts, poles, or portable bridges should be removed and the site restored as soon as their use is complete. Dirt crossings and fords should never be used.
• Skid trails on slopes should have occasional breaks in grade to vent water. Upon completion of use, and if necessary, trails should be stabilized to prevent excessive soil erosion.
• Erosion prone areas should be mulched, seeded, stabilized with logging debris to help re-establish permanent vegetative cover when necessary.

Disposal of debris and litter

• Logging debris in streams should be removed immediately.
• Logging debris should not be pushed into drains, streams, or SMZs.
• All trash associated with the logging operation should be promptly hauled to a legal disposal site (not buried).
• All equipment fluids should be captured and disposed of properly. Service equipment away from streams outside the SMZ so accidental spillage will not result in stream contamination.