Forest Management Principles

1. General principles

1. Prepare and maintain an adaptive management plan.
2. Take action in the forest only after careful consideration. Forest time scales are measured in generations; there is rarely any hurry to intervene.
3. Manage for old-growth characteristics.
4. Restore and maintain the health of the forest.
5. Employ the best knowledge of the time in all actions.
6. Achieve a diverse, compatible biota natural to local conditions.
7. Work with neighboring forest owners to create corridors and hubs to be part of the green infrastructure and to minimize forest fragmentation.

2. Specific principles

1. Produce and maintain a comprehensive inventory of forest resources.
2. Control or remove invasive flora or fauna.
3. Replace missing species when possible and appropriate.
4. Seek out, select, and propagate outstanding individuals of species within the forest and from nearby locations.
5. Contain water run-off
6. Encourage the growth of the dominant canopy trees to full maturity and death.
7. Restore or safeguard the persistence of all age classes within the forest.
8. Allow natural processes to proceed on certain sites.
9. Support research in the forest.

3. When providing access for the public

1. Minimize liability; ascertain that the forest is safe.
2. Allow pedestrian traffic to the extent that the highest good of the forest is maintained.
3. Encourage public access for educational and “experiential” purposes, i.e., to quietly enjoy the spiritual and aesthetic qualities of the forest.
4. Design paths and any public facilities to minimize forest impact.

4. If harvesting

1. Adhere to best management practices.
2. Harvest only when compatible with all the other principles and within the context of the management plan.
3. Use sustainable techniques.
4. Remove forest products in a manner that least damages the ecology.
5. Maximize the value of the forest products through effective marketing.

July 26, 2004 Revision