| dc.description.abstract | Public sentiment is against herbicide use on public forests in Ontario. Provincial
policies are directing research into alternative vegetation management with only
limited interaction or support with forest resource based industries. The
initiative of this analysis was to substantiate or dismiss the hypothesis that a
forest industry could feasibly regenerate a sound wood supply from a forest in
Northwestern Ontario under various herbicide-use limitations. Forest-level
simulation was used to produce 100-year forecast data for thirteen management
scenarios, which covered current levels, reductions in area treated, restrictions
on how and where it could be applied, no use of herbicides, and a shift to a
flexible wood supply.
Results of the wood-supply analysis revealed that the company's wood-fibre
needs from the study forest could be maintained for all scenarios. Due to the
age class structure of the forest and the reasonable harvest levels imposed by
the company, the most important component of the forest model was its
present volume. Thus, even under assumptions of decreased coniferous
volume production resulting from non-herbicide silvicultural treatments, only
slight increases in harvest area were necessary 70+ years into the forecasts.
The wood supply, area treated with herbicides and silviculture cost response
variables provided the information required for sound decisions to be made for a
large array of potential herbicide policy changes. Any strategy derived would
need to meet the new policy's requirements while minimizing impacts on wood
supply and silviculture costs and maintaining a desirable level of flexibility. For
the Seine River forest, a step-wise reduction in herbicide use was determined to
be the most appropriate strategy. This timing conforms well with forecasts of
low need for herbicide treatments and provides adequate time for research and development of environmentally sound, socially acceptable and economically
feasible alternatives to herbicides.
This strategy meets the 20% herbicide use reduction imposed in 1991 and sets
the company in a position to meet further changes. Impacts on both wood
supply and silvicultural costs were shown to be minor. | |
