美国林地权属管理制度探析

文中从联邦与州2个层级介绍美国与林地权属相关的主管机构及职责以及不同权属变更的形式、对象、条件及资金管理。研究发现,联邦主管机构主要为内政部的土地管理局、国家公园管理局、鱼类与野生动物保护局,农业部的林务局以及国防和能源部,各州主管机构主要有其自然资源部的自然资源委员会或林业委员会等;林地权属变更的形式主要是出售和交换,变更对象要求任何林地不得出售、交换或捐赠给非美国公民或不受任何州或联邦法律约束的公司;联邦与不同的州关于权属变更的规定详细程度存在差异,而内容却存在一定相似性;联邦与部分州政府建立相关基金或账户,以储存出售或交换土地所获收入并用于购买土地等。     

The impact of forest service litigation success on administrative appeals of proposed fuels reduction actions

In this paper, we explore empirically whether the USDA Forest Service's litigation success rate in each Forest Service region helps explain the persistent regional effects noted by Laband et al. (Laband, D.N., González-Cabán, A., and Hussain, A. (2006). “Factors That Influence Administrative Appeals of Proposed USDA Forest Service Fuels Reduction Actions,” Forest Science, 52(5): 477–488.) with respect to the pattern of administrative appeals of proposed fuels reduction actions. We find strong evidence of an inverse relationship between the Forest Service's litigation success rate and the likelihood of administrative appeal of proposed fuels reduction actions on public lands. However, inclusion of this variable explains only about 20% of the region-specific impact noted in Laband et al. (Laband, D.N., González-Cabán, A., and Hussain, A. (2006). “Factors That Influence Administrative Appeals of Proposed USDA Forest Service Fuels Reduction Actions,” Forest Science, 52(5): 477–488.), which continues to command additional investigation.     

美国林务局技术转移现状及启示

在知识经济时代, 知识流动对技术创新的作用日趋重要, 加强技术转移体系建设已经成为世界各国创新体系建设的重点。然而, 长期以来, 技术转移是我国国家创新体系建设中的薄弱环节, 缺乏良好的体制、机制和政策环境, 成为提高我国企业自主创新能力的主要障碍。美国林务局以服务公众利益、促进经济发展和提高全球竞争力为目的, 一直致力于自身科研创新成果的技术转移和商业化, 在长期的实践过程中形成了完善的技术转移机制, 其成功经验值得我国林业行业学习和借鉴。文中总结分析了美国林务局技术转移机制、政策措施和取得的成效, 提出了促进我国林业技术转移的启示, 对于国内相关政府部门和林业科研机构具有参考价值。     

Participatory Research for Adaptive Ecosystem Management

Summary

Participatory research involves members of interested communities who work with researchers to apply their joint skills and experience to explore issues of mutual concern. There is an increasingly explicit federal mandate for participatory research efforts involving stakeholder groups in public land management. This paper presents a case study of one effort ongoing in the Hayfork Adaptive Management Area (AMA) on the Six Rivers and Shasta-Trinity national forests of northern California. There, a network of U.S. Forest Service staff, scientists, local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and nontimber forest product harvesters (wildcrafters) has been working to address ecological, economic, and social aspects of harvesting nontimber forest products (NTFP) from public land. This paper discusses the challenges of NTFP management on public lands and analyzes participatory research as an approach for addressing some of these challenges.     

Public Involvement in Forest Management Planning

Summary

In 1997, the US Forest Service initiated public involvement processes in three national forests in the northeastern United States-the Finger Lakes National Forest in central New York, the Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont, and the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire and Maine. Citizens' perspectives were sought on forest management prior to determining the changes needed for revising the Land and Resource Management Plans (Forest Plans) as well as to exchange information on management of these three forests. These processes represent a pro-active effort by the US Forest Service to engage communities of interest in dialogue about the management of these national forests. The Forest Service has emphasized the principles of ecosystem management and community partnership in developing these plans. The paper describes the policy framework for forest planning and an outline of the Plan Revision process as developed in the Northeast. It further offers a preliminary analysis of this approach, including lessons to date, their implication for subsequent phases of plan revision processes in the Northeast, and possible relevance for agencies embarking on similar public planning initiatives.     

Integration of forest inventory and satellite imagery:: a Canadian status assessment and research issues

Canada's ability to sustainably manage approximately 10% of the global forest cover is a critical environmental and economic issue. The capacity to meet such demands and to deliver on national and international commitments regarding forest management is enabled through collaboration between federal, provincial, and territorial agencies. A principal collaborator is the National Forest Inventory (NFI); a systematic photo-plot based monitoring system designed specifically for reporting purposes and as an important input for scientific models. Satellite imagery is illustrated here as a support data set to ensure the quality of the NFI, for auditing the photo-plot contents, and to detect spatial biases. The Canadian Forest Service, in collaboration with the Canadian Space Agency and other federal and provincial agencies, is producing a national land cover database of the forested area of Canada (Earth Observation for Sustainable Development of Forests (EOSD)) using Landsat-7 ETM+ data for circa 2000 conditions. The integration between the plot-based NFI with classified EOSD data is presented for central British Columbia, an area comprising 6 Landsat scenes and 324 2 km × 2 km photo-plots. Traditional accuracy assessment measures based on the analysis of coincidence matrices are reported as levels of agreement for hierarchically aggregated land cover categories (overall agreements of 91%, 79%, 64% and 26% for 3, 4, 6 and 20 classes respectively) to demonstrate coincidence between the different data products. Local agreement between NFI and EOSD is demonstrated as a means of photo-plot auditing while spatial biases are detected through investigations of geographic pattern in the coincidence values. The illustrated approaches may be expanded or applied to different mapped attributes (e.g., biomass) that are of utility to those attempting to characterize large areas in a consistent and rigorous fashion.     

Reprint of: When peer-reviewed publications are not enough! Delivering science for natural resource management

Over the last century, natural resource management on forest lands has shifted from a singular focus on resource extraction to many foci, such as recreation, tourism, conservation, view-scapes, cultural and spiritual values, sustainability, and other values. As a result, the information needs of land managers must now include social and cultural values. In addition, the public's interest in having greater participation in land management decisions and in generating scientific knowledge has never been greater. The generation of scientific knowledge which is expressed primarily through conventional means – such as peer-reviewed publications targeting academics and technology transfer (e.g., patents, licenses, agreements) primarily for government and industry – does not always satisfy the needs of resource managers and public. In recent decades, there has been rapid growth of methods to help bridge this gap by better connecting new knowledge and knowledge generation with public needs. The U.S. Forest Service is making science delivery as important goal as science creation, including structural institutional changes at the interface among researchers, resource managers, and the public, allocating an appropriate portion of project funding specifically for delivery. The Forest Service is considering increasing its use of citizen science and participatory research – which brings resource managers, decision makers, and the public into the research process to varying extents – as part of the agency's science delivery efforts. Here we explore citizen science and participatory research as possible vehicles to augment existing science delivery efforts from the perspective of a federal land management agency. We found that these mechanisms facilitate public involvement in fundamentally different ways. Depending on the type of research and desired use of research outcomes, either citizen science or participatory research could enhance the use of science in some natural resource management discussions, possibly leading to supportable solutions.     

California's regulatory forest carbon market: Viability for northeast landowners

Carbon markets have the potential to reward landowners for improved forest management and forest conservation. To date, the Over the Counter (OTC) voluntary market represents the greatest opportunity for forest landowners to participate in carbon transactions. However, lack of a consistent carbon price signal and sporadic demand coupled by high transaction costs has prevented widespread participation from family forest landowners. Adoption of a U.S. based cap-and-trade program reduces price risk and may provide incentives for sustainable forest management across large areas. Yet few studies have examined the supply side of carbon offsets and factors affecting project financial viability. To address this gap, we assessed how (1) property characteristics (i.e. stocking level, forest type, size etc.); (2) silvicultural treatments; and (3) protocol and legislative requirements affect the financial viability of compliance forest offset projects, focusing on California's Air Resource Board (ARB) program due to its significance as the world's second largest carbon market. We used forest inventory data from 25 properties in the northeastern United States to examine the viability of the sites as ARB offset projects. We utilized the U.S. Forest Service Forest Vegetation Simulator for our growth and yield simulations. To examine the factors that influence project viability, we used a classification and regression tree analysis performed in S-Plus software. Results indicate C stocking and property size are the most important property characteristics driving return on investment. However, protocol requirements and legislative assumptions impacting long-term monitoring costs are also important factors. While reduced price risk in a compliance carbon market has the potential to improve forest management in North America; high initial project development costs, long-term monitoring obligations, and legislative uncertainty are significant barriers that will limit family forest landowner market participation. The model developed here can be used by U.S. landowners to assess the financial viability of their property as a compliance offset project and can be utilized by policymakers to develop cost-effective climate change policy.     

Forestry auctions with interdependent values: Evidence from timber auctions

This article exploits first-price sealed-bid auctions data from the U.S. Forest Service to find through a semi-parametric estimation evidence of interdependent values in the bidding behavior in the Forestry. Under this assumption, a theoretical model is developed for forest land auctions such that management of the forest is released to the winning firm. I characterize in the first-price auctions the optimal rotation as well as the reservation price. A calibration of the model is then proposed using the estimated parameters as well as the estimation of the underlying distribution of signals.     

The political situation facing the United States Forest Service

Congressional hearings pertaining to national forest management, timber sales, the National Forest Management Act (NFMA), and the Resources Planning Act (RPA) were censused and subjected to content analysis. Trends in interest group attitudes toward the Forest Service, as revealed by their formal position statements to Congress, were identified for the period 1984 to 1993. The resulting quantitative data were converted into percent pro and con values and plotted over time. Industry support has waned, and although positive responses from environmental groups have increased, they have not been enough to offset the industry decline. Opinions toward management issues have shown the greatest shift, while attitudes regarding timber sales and NFMA/RPA have remained relatively uniform throughout the time period. This analysis suggests that the United States Forest Service has lost an element of leverage in its dealings with Congress. As its programs have become broader, its support from interest groups has weakened. Research Assistant Professor and Department Head.     

美国森林服务管理经验与启示

森林服务管理是融合了生态效益、社会效益、经济效益的管理科学。目标是环境可持续发展、创造社会生产力和服务公众利益，以满足现在和未来人类对环境的需求。美国林务局作为美国森林服务管理的责任机构，其管理水平一直处于世界领先地位。文中从美国林务局历史演变、机构设置、管理模式、服务领域和战略规划等方面对美国森林服务管理模式进行概括和梳理；分析其管理模式的优越性和先进性；提出对完善我国森林服务管理的启示:加大科技投入，健全政策法规，发挥森林多功能效益。     

Biodiversity Values and Measures Applied to Forest Management

Abstract

With the new emphasis in land management agencies (particularly the USDA Forest Service) on ecosystem management, new attention is being paid to measurements of biological diversity (biodiversity). Forest managers faced with incorporating the maintenance of biodiversity into their analyses, plans, and decisions need reliable, quantitative biodiversity measures. Deciding which measures to use requires land managers to understand why biodiversity is valued, which components of diversity are of most value, and how to measure these components feasibly. In this paper, the values associated with biodiversity and the principal indices available to forest managers are reviewed. Attention is drawn to the differing emphases of biodiversity indices-species richness, heterogeneity, and evenness-and to how diese differences address different values. Potential applications for these indices in forest management plans-including ways to use habitat models to approximate biodiversity-are also discussed.     

美国国有林的发展与对策

文章回顾了美国国有林的发展历程,并介绍了一些重大历史事件。作者着重阐明了美国国有林的管理体制和技术经济政策。     

Characterizing the sustainable forestry issue network in the United States

Issue network analysis techniques were applied to the issue of sustainable forestry in the United States to identify potential public and private outcomes for the issue. A quantitative approach based on work by Laumann and Knoke [The Organizational State (1987)] was utilized in conjunction with the Delphi method. Results suggest that the parity in the distribution of influence among network sectors means that moving the issue of sustainable forestry onto the formal policy agenda will require more consensus on problems and solutions than exists at the present time. Accordingly, broad policy actions resulting from the expansion of the issue of sustainable forestry are unlikely in the short-term. However, experts on the Delphi panel anticipate that changes will occur in response to sustainability issues. At the federal and state level, this is likely to result in changes to public forest management and to the objectives assigned to the USDA Forest Service and to the state forestry agencies. States are projected to draft new and to change old private forest practices regulations as a result of sustainable forestry concerns. In the private sector, the trend of applying criteria and indicator-based sustainable forestry management standards and certification programs will continue. Non-industrial private forest owners are projected to make the fewest direct accommodations. Finally, where directly comparable, the Delphi study's results were not significantly different from the quantitative approach, suggesting that Delphi has promise for network research applications.     

An Overview of Non-Timber Forest Products in the United States Today

Summary

As people become more interested in personal health and family activities, demand for wild forest products has increased. This increased demand coupled with an increased concern for sustainable m anagement practices has focused attention on the variety of issues and products involved in the non-timber forest products industry. Forest management organizations have gradually increased funding for research and management of non-timber forest products over the past two decades. The broad categories of U.S. non-timber forest products include floral greens, Christmas greens, ornamentals and craft materials, wild edibles, medicinals, ceremonials/culturals, and native transplants. The increase in resource pressure has had many policy reactions, including restricted access, harvesting fees, and harvest limits. Opportunities for public input to policy decisions on federal, state and private land are often unclear or nonexistent. Researchers, managers, and policy makers are working to understand the multitude of issues surrounding non-timber forest products, including biology, management, public policy and equity issues.     

Avian research on U.S. Forest Service Experimental Forests and Ranges: Emergent themes, opportunities, and challenges

Since 1908, U.S. Forest Service Experimental Forests and Ranges have been dedicated to long-term interdisciplinary research on a variety of ecological and management questions. They encompass a wide diversity of life zones and ecoregions, and provide access to research infrastructure, opportunities for controlled manipulations, and integration with other types of long-term data. These features have facilitated important advances in a number of areas of avian research, including furthering our understanding of population dynamics, the effects of forest management on birds, avian responses to disturbances such as fire and hurricanes, and other aspects of avian ecology and conservation. However, despite these contributions, this invaluable resource has been underutilized by ornithologists. Most of the Experimental Forests and Ranges have had no ornithological work done on them. We encourage the ornithological community, especially graduate students and new faculty, to take advantage of this largely untapped potential for long-term work, linkage with long-term data sets, multiple disciplines, and active forest management.     

美国林务局计划体系及其分析工具

本文介绍了美国农业部林务局(USDAFS,简称美国林务局)的林业计划体系及其计划分析工具,论述了美国林务局林业计划体系的组织形式和执行方式,特别是在制订不同层次的复杂的林业计划时所采用的民主、科学的管理手段,很值得我们学习与借鉴。     

Large-scale interdisciplinary experiments inform current and future forestry management options in the U.S. Pacific Northwest

Over the last 20 years, changing public values and increased ecological understanding have led to a paradigm shift in forestry from timber management to sustainable ecosystem management on U.S. federal lands. Forest managers are now seeking alternative management approaches that simultaneously meet socio-cultural, ecological and economic goals. Consequently, many field experiments have become increasingly interdisciplinary and larger in scale or scope. Individually and collectively, these studies in western Washington and Oregon represent major investments by research and land management organizations to enhance the science and understanding for sustainable forest management under increasing public scrutiny and demands for safeguarding healthy environments, conserving biological diversity and providing some level of economic prosperity. They also help to facilitate the transfer of scientific results into practical applications and to realize a more effective interface between science and policy. Questions addressed in this paper include (i) what do we mean by large-scale experiments, (ii) who is investing in these kinds of experiments and why, (iii) where is this information being put to use, and (iv) what does the future hold for these studies?     

Forest Health Management Policy

The two national forests in southwestern Idaho-the Boise and Payette National Forests-have both recently experienced five years of "catastrophic" timber mortality. That is, annual mortality exceeded annual growth on lands suitable for timber production. Boise Cascade Corporation lands lie between and, in some cases, are interspersed with these two national forests, and did not experience such high levels of mortality. The major difference in management strategies is that the company practices stand density control on all its lands; the national forests have not historically placed the same emphasis on stocking control. The Payette and Boise National Forests developed different strategies for approaching their tree mortality problems. The Payette placed a priority on developing a comprehensive treatment plan for the affected acres in the roaded portions of the suitable base. The Boise opted for a three phase approach, which stressed rapid salvage efforts, followed by cultural treatments designed to improve the vigor of remaining stands, and a comprehensive public education program. In each case, the U.S. Forest Service was confronted with appeals or litigation due to the public mistrust of such efforts.     

Theoretical models for creep slip of nailed joints between wood and wood-based materials

Summary Applying modern methods of analyzing floor, wall, and connection subsystems in light-frame wood buildings requires information on the stiffness of nailed joints under long-term loads. Because this information can best be derived by testing nail-joint specimens under constant loads, theoretical procedures were developed that use test data for constant loads to predict stiffness under variable in-service loads; five nonlinear, viscous-viscoelastic models were develpoed on the basis of existing formulations of creep and mechanisms of load transfer between nails and wood. The models incorporated the modified superposition and strain-hardening principles in describing responses to discrete or continuous loading functions. Tests have shown that the models closely predict creep slip of typical nailed joints.This research was jointly supported by the Forest Research Laboratory, Oregon State University, and the Cooperative State Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Special Grant 85-CRSR-2-2553. This is Paper 2288 of the Forest Research LaboratoryFormerly Graduate Research Assistant Forest Research Laboratory