Recovery of a Deforested Ecosystem

Abstract

Cutting of northern USA hardwood forests caused a variety of ecological effects related to the removal of living vegetation and to the disruption of the forest floor. An experiment was used to test the impact of deforestation of the yield and timing of runoff, snowmelt and water quality and to determine the rate at which these parameters return to precutting levels. The deforested area was treated with herbicides to keep the surface free of vegetative growth. By way of streams flowing through the deforested area, many of the minerals are lost from the soil. Much of the nutritional content and organic matter are lost in these deforested areas. Clear-cutting can lead to unnecessary short or long-term degradation of the forest ecosystem. It should be coupled with carefully designed safeguards so that another forest ecosystem can develop.