Robert B. Rummer

Production of short-rotation woody crops grown with a range of nutrient and water availability: establishment report and first-year responses.

Coleman, M.D., et. al. 2003. Production of Short-Rotation Woody Crops Grown with a Range of Nutrient and Water Availability: Establishment Report and First-Year Responses. Report. USDA Forest Service, Savannah River, Aiken, SC. 26 pp. Abstract: Many researchers have studied the productivity potential of intensively managed forest plantations. However, we need to learn more about the effects of fundamental growth processes on forest productivity; especially the influence of aboveground and belowground resource acquisition and allocation. This report presents installation, establishment, and first-year results of four tree species (two cottonwood clones, sycamore, sweetgum, and loblolly pine) grown with fertilizer and irrigation treatments. At this early stage of development, irrigation and fertilization were additive only in cottonwood clone ST66 and sweetgum. Leaf area development was directly related to stem growth, but root production was not always consistent with shoot responses, suggesting that allocation of resources varies among treatments. We will evaluate the consequences of these early responses on resource availability in subsequent growing seasons. This information will be used to: (1) optimize fiber and bioenergy production; (2) understand carbon sequestration; and (3) develop innovative applications such as phytoremediation; municipal, industrial, and agricultural wastes management; and protection of soil, air, and water resources.

Effects of ventilated safety helmets in a hot environment

Forest workers are likely to remove head protection in hot and humid conditions because of thermal discomfort. However, a recent Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulation revision requires all workers in logging operations to wear safety helmets, thus creating a compliance problem. To determine which factors contribute to forest workers’ thermal discomfort, this study evaluated subjects’ physiological and psychophysical responses during tasks approximating the workload of forest workers in a high-temperature environment similar to that found in the southeastern United States during the summer. Environmental conditions in the helmet dome space were also evaluated. Three helmets were used in this study: a standard helmet, a passively ventilated helmet, and an actively ventilated helmet. It was found that none of the tested helmets burdened the body significantly for the physiological variables that were examined. Evaluation of the dome space environmental conditions showed that both the dry-bulb temperature (DBT) and wet-bulb temperature (WBT) varied significantly among the helmets tested. Psychophysical results showed that ventilation contributes to greater helmet comfort, and that weight and fit are important factors in helmet design. Relevance to industry Protective helmets for use in hot and humid environments should be modified to make them more comfortable, encouraging forest workers to wear them and thus comply with OSHA regulations. # 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Influence of harvesting on biogeochemical exchange in sheetflow and soil processes in a eutrophic floodplain forest

Abstract Floodplain forests contribute to the maintenance of water quality as a result of various biogeochemical transformations which occur within them. In particular, they can serve as sinks for nutrient run-off from adjacent uplands or as nutrient transformers as water moves downstream. However, little is known about the potential that land management activities may have for alteration of these biogeochemical functions. This paper examines the effects of three harvesting regimes (unharvested control, clearcut, and partial cut) on the physical and chemical parameters within the Flint River floodplain located in southwestern Georgia, USA. Data presented in this paper were collected during the year following initiation of the harvesting treatments which occurred in September of 1993. Sheetflow water chemistry (total suspended solids (TSS), total dissolved solids (TDS), nitrate (NO3−), phosphate (PO43−), sulfate (SO42−), calcium (Ca2+), potassium (K+), magnesium (Mg2+), ammonium (NH4+), total phosphorous (P), total nitrogen (N), total carbon (C), dissolved organic carbon (DOC)), sedimentation rates, depth of soil oxidation after flooding, saturated hydraulic conductivity, and bulk density were measured. During the year immediately after treatment installation, alterations in some of the physical and chemical properties (TDS, NO3−, total P, and K+) of floodwaters crossing harvest plots were detected. Soil oxidation depths, saturated hydraulic conductivity and bulk density also changed with treatment. The meaning of the changes detected is uncertain but they suggest the nature of potential changes in nutrient spiralling and non-point source cumulative effects that may occur within a managed watershed. Second-year data may offer an interesting comparison of sheetflow chemistry and sedimentation changes between vegetated and non-vegetated conditions.

Utilization and Cost of Log Production from Animal Logging Operations

Abstract Forest harvesting with animals is a labor-intensive operation. It is expensive to use machines on smaller woodlots, which require frequent moves if mechanically logged. So, small logging systems using animals may be more cost effective. In this study, work sampling was used for five animal logging operations in Alabama to measure productive and non-productive time elements to determine utilization with respect to operators, functions (felling and processing of trees, skidding, loading, and forwarding of logs), animals, and machines. Cost of log production was calculated from the figures reported by owners and the crew members. Average utilization of crew was 58 percent, animals (horses and mules) were utilized only 22 percent and the machines were utilized from 5 to 74 percent of scheduled time. Average cost of log production per m3 was

Soil Disturbances from Horse/Mule Logging Operations Coupled with Machines in the Southern United States

11.28. There appears to be an opportunity to reduce cost of log production by coordinating functions, increasing scheduled work hours, utilization of machines and animals, and reducing labor cost.

Measuring whole-body vibration of forest equipment operators with a digital data acquisition system.

Abstract Forest harvesting with animals is a labor-intensive operation. While mechanized logging is very efficient for large tracts of timber, it is often disruptive to the soil. Small logging operations using animals may be less environmentally disruptive. To better understand horse/mule logging performances for soil disturbance, five different horse/mule harvesting operations were investigated. About 75 percent of the soil was undisturbed and 22 percent of the remaining soil disturbance was judged to be slight. Only 3 percent of the soil examinations were classified as deeply disturbed and rutted – a condition considered to be prone to soil erosion. This study suggests that horse and mule logging has low soil disturbance in a partial cut of mixed pine/hardwood forests.

Smallwood Logging Production and Costs – Mechanized vs Manual

Abstract A microcomputer-based data acquisition system (MDAS) was developed to collect whole-body vibration data in a study of forest machine operators. This system was implemented with a combination of standard off-the-shelf hardware and custom-built circuits. The installation of suitable signalconditioning cards in the unit permits the system to be used for the measurement of all standard physical quantities. The design provided for recording the data in digital form on a 10-Mbyte removable cartridge data-storage subsystem. Hardware and software development and the operation of the MDAS is discussed.

An inexpensive digital rotation sensor

During August 2001 two harvesting systems, one manual and one mechanized, were evaluated in terms of productivity and cost while performing a thinning in a lodgepole pine stand on the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest in Wyoming. The existing manual system had a system rate of 2.76 green tonnes per Scheduled Machine Hour (SMH) with a system cost of

Plow Power Requirements for Forestry Site Preparation

27 per green tonne. The mechanized system had a system rate of 2.93 green tonnes per SMH with a system cost of

Utilization of air-conditioned feller/bunchers

39 per green tonne. In terms of tonnes per person-day the manual system produced 3.7 green tonnes per person-day compared to 11.7 green tonnes per person-day for the mechanized system. Residual tree damage to the stand was higher for the mechanized system at 420 damaged trees per hectare, compared to 49 damaged trees per hectare for the manual system.