Single-tree salvage logging as a response to Alaska yellow-cedar climate-induced mortality maintains ecological integrity with limited economic returns

Abstract

Cost-benefit analyses of salvage logging have generally focused on large-scale, landscape disturbances salvaged at high intensity, and there is limited research on the ecological and economic outcomes of low-intensity salvage implemented for the benefit of forest-dependent communities. Here, we assess the potential impacts of small-scale, single-tree salvage logging of a foundation tree species (yellow-cedar, Callitropsis nootkatensis) on ecological integrity against the viability of salvaged wood as a source of timber for cultural and economic purposes. We designed a salvage logging demonstration project in southeast Alaska, USA, and leveraged adjacent salvaged and unsalvaged, reference stands to: 1) investigate the degree to which salvage alters ecological integrity, defined by the abundance of yellow-cedar and post-disturbance stand trajectories, 2) track the volume and kinds of timber products generated by salvage logging activity, and 3) analyze the costs and revenues associated with the harvest and manufacturing of these products. Our results suggest that small-scale, single tree salvage logging has limited impact on yellow-cedar abundance and its potential to serve its foundation species role in forest successional trajectories while providing small to modest economic returns, though with large heterogeneity in net revenue among mill operators. Our findings indicate that salvage at this scale and intensity maintains ecological integrity but with limited economic viability. This management tool is thus best suited for land managers addressing multiple resource objectives in communities dependent on small, continuous streams of forest products.