Regions: Gwich'in Settlement Area
Tags: forestry, boreal forests, tree growth, succession
| Principal Investigator: | Walker-Larsen, Jennifer (6) |
| Licence Number: | 13476 |
| Organization: | Gwich'in Renewable Resource Board |
| Licensed Year(s): |
2003
2002
2001
2000
|
| Issued: | Jul 02, 2003 |
| Project Team: | N/A |
Objective(s): Baseline data on the rate at which trees grow (productivity) and the time required for trees to re-establish (regeneration) following fires and human disturbances are required to determine forest sustainability and to understand how habitat changes over time (succession). Seismic line cutting in the 1960s and 1970s resulted in hundreds of kilometres of cleared 9 metre lines that crisscross the Gwich'in Settlement Area. Short term projects were carried out to determine the effects of seismic line cutting on northern environments, but no long term monitoring studies were undertaken. It has now been 30 years since the lines were cut and we have the opportunity to assess how well northern forests have recovered from the disturbance. The results of this type of study are important because a second wave of oil and gas exploration is planned for much of the region and a clear understanding of past seismic cutting effects is needed to assess future work. Also, knowledge of forest regrowth in the region will help predict impacts of timber cutting and refine replanting techniques for northern forests. Numerous sites along seismic lines and old burns were sampled in the summer of 2002. More data will be collected in the summer of 2003.
