Effects of whole-tree harvesting on site productivity

The increased removal of biomass from the forest sites with whole-tree harvesting has raised concern over the sustainability of site productivity. In this study reviewed the results from 86 studies quantifying the short-term effects of whole-tree harvesting as compared with stem-only harvesting on soil-and tree-based indicators of site productivity. The aim was in estimating the risks of both negative and positive impacts on site productivity.

The results showed that the risk level of change in indicators of site productivity following clear-cutting with whole-tree harvesting might be high enough to justify a need for mitigation measures. Following thinning with whole-tree harvesting, the probability of occurrence of the negative effects and the risk levels were lower in comparison to clear-cutting. Therefore, mitigation measures at thinning may not be needed.

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