 |
Salmonid:
a fish of the fish family Salmonides; for example salmon,
trout and chars. |
|
Salvage harvesting:
logging operations specifically designed to remove
damaged timber (dead or in poor condition) and yield a wood product. Often
carried out following fire, insect attack or windthrow. |
|
Sanitation treatment:
tree removal or modification operations designed
to reduce damage caused by forest pests and to prevent their spread. |
|
Sapling:
a loose term for a young tree no longer a seedling but not
yet a pole, about 1 - 2 m high and 2 - 4 cm DBH,
typically growing vigorously and without dead bark or more than an occasional
dead branch. Also, a young tree having a DBH
greater
than 1 cm but less than the smallest merchantable diameter. |
|
Sapwood:
the light-coloured wood that appears on the outer portion of
a cross-section of a tree. See Cambium. |
|
Scaling:
the measuring of lengths and diameters of logs and
calculating deductions for defect to determine volume. |
|
Scalping:
site preparation method which exposes favorable mineral soil
for tree seedlings to be planted in. |
|
Scarification:
a method of seedbed preparation which consists of
exposing patches of mineral soil through mechanical action. |
|
Scenic area: any visually sensitive area or scenic landscape
identified through a visual landscape inventory or planning process carried out
or approved by the district manager. |
|
Screefing:
removal of herbaceous vegetation and soil organic matter to
expose a soil surface for planting. |
|
Second growth: a forest or stand that has grown up naturally after
removal of a previous stand by fire, harvesting, insect attack or other cause. |
|
Second pass: the next entry to harvest timber after green-up (or other
recovery objective) occurs. |
|
Secondary channel:
subordinate channel in a stream reach with more
than one channel; minor channel in a floodplain. |
|
Sedimentation:
the process of subsidence and deposition by gravity of
suspended matter carried in water; usually the result of the reduction of water
velocity below the point at which it can transport the material in suspended
form. |
|
Seedlot: a quantity of cones or seeds having the same species, source,
quality and year of collection. |
|
Seed orchard:
a plantation of specially selected trees that is managed
for the production of genetically improved seed. |
|
Seed source: the locality where a seedlot was collected. If the stand
from which collections were made was exotic, the place where its seed originated
is the original seed source. |
|
Seed tree silvicultural system: an even-aged silvicultural system in
which selected trees (seed trees) are left standing after the initial harvest to
provide a seed source for natural regeneration. Seed trees can be left uniformly
distributed or in small groups. Although regeneration is generally secured
naturally, it may be augmented by planting. Seed trees are often removed once
regeneration is established or may be left as reserves. |
|
Seed trees:
trees selected to be left standing to provide seed sources
for natural regeneration. Selection is usually on the basis of good form and
vigor, the absence of serious damage by disease, evidence of the ability to
produce seed, and wind firmness. |
|
Seedbed: in natural regeneration, the soil or forest floor on which
seed falls; in nursery practice, a prepared area over which seed is sown. |
|
Seedling:
a young tree, grown from seed, from the time of germination
to the sapling stage, having a DBH equal or
less than 1 cm. |
|
Seedlots:
seed from a particular collection event, either from a
single tree collection or a pooling of seed from many trees. |
|
Seepage zone: an area on a hillslope or at the slope base where water
frequently or continuously springs to the surface. |
|
Seismic line: a constructed trail used for seismographic exploration. |
|
Selection silvicultural system:
a
silvicultural system that removes mature timber either as single scattered
individuals or in small groups at relatively short intervals, repeated
indefinitely, where the continual establishment of regeneration is encouraged
and an uneven-aged stand is maintained. As defined in the Forest Practices Code
of British Columbia Operation Planning Regulation, group selection removes trees
to create openings in a stand less than twice the height of mature trees in the
stand. |
|
Selective logging: removal of certain trees in a stand as defined by
specific criteria (species, diameter at breast height, or height and form). It
is analogous to highgrading. Not to be confused with the selection silvicultural
system. |
|
Semi-permanent bridge:
a bridge having a substantial proportion of its
components constructed of steel, concrete, or timber that has been
pressure-treated with a suitable preservative. |
|
Senior official:
a senior official means: |
|
a district manager or regional manager, |
|
a person employed in a senior position in the Ministry of Forest, Ministry
of Environment, Lands, and Parks or the Ministry of Energy, Mines and
Petroleum Resources, who is designated by name or title to be a senior
official for the purposes the Act by the minister of that ministry. |
|
Sensitive areas: small areas designated to protect important values
during forest and range operations. These areas, established by a Ministry of
Forests district manager in consultation with a designated B.C. Environment
official, guide operations on a site- specific basis and require a combination
of forest practices. Sensitive areas will be mapped by resource agencies, and
include regionally significant recreational areas, scenic areas with high visual
quality objectives, and forest ecosystem networks. |
|
Sensitive areas objectives: to adequately manage, protect, and
conserve the resources of the area. |
|
Sensitive resource area: an identifiable geographic unit of the forest
land base that requires a specific combination of forest practices to adequately
protect important resource values. |
|
Sensitive slopes: any slope identified as prone to mass wasting. |
|
Sensitive soils:
forest land areas that have a moderate to very high
hazard for soil compaction, erosion, displacement, mass wasting or forest floor
displacement. |
|
Sensitive/vulnerable species:
Sensitive or vulnerable species as identified by the Ministry of Environment,
Lands and Parks. Blue-listed species are considered to be vulnerable and "at
risk" but not yet endangered or threatened. Populations of these species may not
be declined by their habitat or other requirements are such that they are
sensitive to further disturbance. The blue list also includes species that are
generally suspected of being vulnerable, but for which information is too
limited to allow designation in another category. |
|
Sensitive watershed:
a watershed that is used for domestic purposes or
that has significant downstream fisheries values, and in which the quality of
the water resource is highly responsive to changes in the environment.
Typically, such watersheds lack settlement ponds, are relatively small, are
located on steep slopes, and have special concerns such as extreme risk of
erosion. |
|
Seral stage:
any stage of development of an ecosystem from a
disturbed, unvegetated state to a climax plant community. |
|
Settlement pond: larger than a catchment basin and preferably with
lower velocity waterflows that enable suspended sediment to settle before the
flow is discharged into a creek. |
|
Shade tolerance:
the capacity of a tree or plant species to develop
and grow in the shade of, and in competition with, other trees or plants. |
|
Shearing:
in Christmas tree culture, to prune the branches to make
dense foliage and give the tree a conical shape. |
|
Shelterwood silvicultural system:
a silvicultural system in which
trees are removed in a series of cuts designed to achieve a new even-aged stand
under the shelter of remaining trees. |
|
Sidecast: moving excavated material onto the downslope side of a
temporary access structure, excavated or bladed trail, or landing during its
construction. |
|
Sills: a single structural member used as a foundation to transfer the
loads from the bridge superstructure to the supporting soil. |
|
Silvics: the study of the life history, requirements and general
characteristics of forest trees and stands in relation to the environment and
the practice of silviculture. |
|
Silvicultural system:
a planned program of treatments throughout the
life of the stand to achieve stand structural objectives based on integrated
resource management goals. A silvicultural system includes harvesting,
regeneration and stand-tending methods or phases. It covers all activities for
the entire length of a rotation or cutting cycle. |
|
The Forest Practices Code
Silvicultural Systems Guidebook identifies
six major categories of silvicultural system: five even-aged systems and one
uneven-aged system. Even-aged categories include the clearcut, patch-cut,
coppice, seed tree and shelterwood systems. Uneven-aged systems are termed
selection silvicultural systems. |
|
Silvicultural system variant:
further describes the functional
attributes of a silvicultural system. A varian describes the general
distribution of cut-and-leave areas or leave-trees on an area over time. The
silvicultural system variant is the recommended minimum level of description of
a silvicultural system for a silvicultural prescription or stand management
prescription. |
|
Silviculture: the art and science of controlling the establishment,
growth, composition, health and quality of forests and woodlands. Silviculture
entails the manipulation of forest and woodland vegetation in stands and on
landscapes to meet the diverse needs and values of landowners and society on a
sustainable basis. |
|
Silviculture prescription: a site-specific operational plan that
describes the forest management objectives for an area. It prescribes the method
for harvesting the existing forest stand, and a series of silviculture
treatments that will be carried out to establish a free growing stand in a
manner that accommodates other resource values as identified. |
|
Silviculture regime:
a series of site-specific silviculture treatments
planned over time. |
|
Silviculture survey:
a sampling
procedure to determine silvicultural conditions such as planting survival,
free-growing status, stocking, etc., leading to management decisions. See:
Pre-Harvest
Silviculture Assessment. |
|
Silviculture treatment: any silviculture activity on forest stands to
meet stand-specific objectives. |
|
Silviculture treatments:
activities that ensure the regeneration of
young forests on harvested areas and enhance tree growth and improve wood
quality in selected stands. |
|
Single tree selection: see Selection
silvicultural system. |
|
Site:
an area described or defined by its biotic, climatic, and soil
conditions in relation to its capacity to produce vegetation; the smallest
planning unit. |
|
Site class: the measure of the relative productive capacity of a site
for a particular crop or stand, generally based on tree height at a given age
and expressed as either good, medium, poor or low. |
|
Site index:
an expression of the forest site quality of a stand, at a
specified age, based either on the site height, or on the top height, which is a
more objective measure. |
|
Site preparation:
the treatment of the soil and ground vegetation to
prepare the soil surface as a favorable seedbed for either naturally or
artificially disseminated seed or for planted seedlings. |
|
Site productivity: the inherent capabilities of a site to produce or
provide the commodities or values for which the area will be managed in
accordance with Section 4 that is, timber, forage, recreation, fisheries, wildlife, and
water. |
|
Site rehabilitation:
the conversion of the existing unsatisfactory
cover on highly productive forest sites to a cover of commercially valuable
species. |
|
Site sensitivity:
an assessment of the susceptibility of a site to
soil-degrading processes, such as soil compaction, erosion, mass wasting, and
forest floor displacement. |
|
Site-specific:
pertaining to a specific planning unit. |
|
Situation Report (SITREP):
an itemized list and/or written account,
usually issued on a daily basis, detailing the status of various fire-related
activities. A SITREP generally contains information on fire occurrence and area
burned to date, fire suppression resources committed to going fires and
resources on standby, number of fires in the various stages of control, fire
danger class, fire weather forecast and forest closures (if any). |
|
Skid road:
a bladed or backhoe-constructed pathway where stumps are
removed within the running surface as necessary. Skid roads are suitable only
for tracked or rubber-tired skidders bringing trees or logs from the felling
site to a landing. |
|
Skid trail:
a random pathway travelled by ground skidding equipment
while moving trees or logs to a landing. A skid trail differs from a skid road
in that stumps are cut very low and the ground surface is mainly untouched by
the blades of earth moving machines. |
|
Skidder:
a wheeled or tracked vehicle used for sliding and dragging
logs from the stump to a landing. |
|
Skidding:
the process of sliding and dragging logs from the stump to a
landing, usually applied to ground-based as opposed to highlead operations. |
|
Skyline:
a type of cable logging system in which a skyline is
stationary and a carriage moves along it carrying logs above the ground, from
the felling site to the landing. |
|
Slash: the residue left on the ground as a result of forest and other
vegetation being altered by forest practices or other land use activities. |
|
Slide: a mass movement process in which slope
failure occurs along one or more slip surfaces and in which the unit generally
disintegrates into a jumbled mass en route to its depositional site. A debris
flow or torrent flow may occur if enough water is present in the mass. |
|
Slope failure: see Slide. |
|
Slope processes: all processes and events by which the configuration
of the slope is changed; especially processes by which rock, surficial materials
and soil are transferred downslope under the dominating influence of gravity. |
|
Slope stability:
susceptibility of a slope to erosion and slides. |
|
Slump: a mass movement process in which slope failure occurs on a
usually curved slip surface and the unit moves downslope as an intact block,
frequently rotating outward. Slumps appear as discrete block movements, often in
place, whereas slides usually break up and travel downslope. |
|
Small Business Forest Enterprise Program (SBFEP):
this program permits the Ministry of Forests to sell Crown timber
competitively to individuals and corporations who are registered in the SBFEP. |
|
Small-scale forestry:
in general, non-industrial forestry operations.
In B.C., small-scale forestry operations are carried out by woodlot licensees,
Indian bands, municipalities and private landowners. |
|
Smoke management: the scheduling and conducting of a prescribed
burning program under predetermined burning prescriptions and firing techniques
that will minimize the adverse effects of the resulting smoke production in
smoke-sensitive areas. |
|
Smoke-sensitive area:
an area that has been identified in which smoke
accumulations may cause a safety or public health hazard, or may unreasonably
deny aesthetic enjoyment to the public. |
|
Snag: a standing dead tree or part of a dead tree from which at least
the smaller branches have fallen. |
|
Softwoods: cone-bearing trees with needle or scale-like leaves such as
Douglas-fir, western red cedar and ponderosa pine. |
|
Soil:
the naturally occurring, unconsolidated mineral or organic
material at the surface of the earth that is capable of supporting plant growth.
It extends from the surface to 15 cm below the depth at which properties
produced by soil-forming processes can be detected. The soil-forming processes
are an interaction between climate, living organisms, and relief acting on soil
and soil parent material. Unconsolidated material includes material cemented or
compacted by soil-forming processes. Soil may have water covering its surface to
a depth of 60 cm or less in the driest part of the year. |
|
Soil displacement hazard: a soil displacement hazard as determined in
accordance with procedures set out in the Ministry of Forests’ publication
“Hazard Assessment Keys for Evaluating Site Sensitivity to Soil Degrading
Processes Guidebook,” as amended from time to time. |
|
Soil disturbance: disturbance caused by a forest practice on an area
covered by a silviculture prescription or stand management prescription
including areas occupied by excavated or bladed trails of a temporary nature,
areas occupied by corduroyed trails, compacted areas, and areas of dispersed
disturbance. |
|
Soil disturbance hazard: an assessment of the susceptibility of a soil
to adverse impacts on its productive capability due to soil compaction, soil
puddling, surface erosion, mineral soil displacement, mass wasting, or forest
floor displacement. |
|
Soil erosion:
the wearing away of the earth's
surface by water, gravity, wind, and ice. |
|
Soil pit: an excavation into the mineral soil of sufficient depth to
allow assessment of variability in soil physical properties within a defined
area of land. |
|
Soil productivity:
the capacity of a soil, in its normal environment,
to support plant growth. |
|
Soil verification pit:
an excavation into the mineral soil of
sufficient depth to allow assessment of the soil properties used to evaluate
soil productivity and sensitivity to forest management-related disturbances.
This generally requires an excavation 90 cm deep unless a watertable, compact
soil, or bedrock is encountered closer to the soil surface, in which case the
depth to one of these layers is the minimum depth of pit required. |
|
Spacing: the removal of undesirable trees within a young stand to
control stocking, to maintain or improve growth, to increase wood quality and
value, or to achieve other resource management objectives. |
|
Special forest products: these are: poles; posts; pilings; shakes; shingle
bolts; Christmas trees; building logs; mining timbers, props, and caps;
cribbing; firewood and fuel logs; hop poles; orchard props; car stakes; round
stakes, sticks, and pickets; split stakes, pickets, palings, and lagging; and
shake bolts, blocks, and blanks. |
|
Special sale area: see Regulated
unit. |
|
Species:
a singular or plural term for a population or series of
populations of organisms that are capable of interbreeding freely with each
other but not with members of other species. Includes a number of cases: |
|
endemic species: a species originating in, or belonging to, a particular
region. Both "endemic" and "indigenous" are preferred over "native." |
|
exotic species: a species introduced accidentally or intentionally to a
region beyond its natural range. "Exotic" is preferred over "alien," "foreign"
and "non-native.’ |
|
subspecies: a subdivision of a species. A population or series of
populations occupying a discrete range and differing genetically from other
subspecies of the same species. |
|
Species at risk: |
|
a) any wildlife species that, in the opinion of the Deputy Minister of
Environment, Lands and Parks, or a person authorized by that deputy minister,
is threatened, endangered, sensitive or vulnerable, |
|
b) any threatened and endangered plants or plant communities identified by
the Deputy Minister of Environment, Lands and Parks, or any person authorized
by that deputy minister, as requiring protection and |
|
c) regionally important wildlife as determined by the Deputy Minister of
Environment, Lands and Parks or a person authorized by that deputy minister. |
|
Species composition: the percentage of each recognized tree species
comprising the forest type based upon the gross volume, the relative number of
stems per hectare or basal area. |
|
Species conversion:
a change from one tree species to another. |
|
Spot burning:
a modified form of broadcast burning in which only the
larger accumulations of slash are fired and the fire is confined to these spots. |
|
Spring: a flow of ground water emerging naturally onto the earth's
surface and used as a domestic water source within a community watershed. The
watershed area of a spring is defined as the total recharge area of the spring. |
|
Stabilized road width: the width of the travelled portion of the road
that has been surfaced with material of sufficient strength and quantity to
support the intended traffic. |
|
Stagnant:
of stands whose growth and development have all but ceased
due to poor site and/or excessive stocking. |
|
Stand: a community of trees sufficiently uniform in
species composition, age, arrangement, and condition to be distinguishable as a
group from the forest or other growth on the adjoining area, and thus forming a
silviculture or management entity. |
|
Stand composition:
the proportion of each tree species in a stand
expressed as a percentage of either the total number, basal area or volume of
all tree species in the stand. |
|
Stand conversion: changing the species composition of a stand to more
desirable tree species which are less susceptible to damage or mortality from
certain insects or diseases. |
|
Stand density:
a relative measure of the amount of stocking on a
forest area. Often described in terms of stems per hectare. |
|
Stand development:
the part of stand dynamics concerned with changes
in stand structure over time. |
|
Stand dynamics: the study of changes in forest stand structure over
time, including stand behavior during and after disturbances. |
|
Stand level:
the level of forest management at which a relatively
homogeneous land unit can be managed under a single prescription, or set of
treatments, to meet well-defined objectives. |
|
Stand management prescription:
A site-specific operational plan
describing the nature and extend of silviculture activities planned for a free
growing stand of trees to facilitate the achievement of specified or identified
social, economic and environmental objectives. |
|
Stand model:
a computer model that forecasts the development of a
forest stand, usually in terms of stand attributes such as mean diameter or
height. |
|
Stand strategy:
a documented plan of stand treatments to achieve
management objectives during the life of a particular stand. |
|
Stand structure:
the distribution of trees
in a stand, which can be described by species, vertical or horizontal spatial
patterns, size of trees or tree parts, age, or a combination of these. |
|
Stand table: a summary table showing the number of trees per unit area
by species and diameter class, for a stand or type. The data may also be
presented in the form of a frequency distribution of diameter classes. |
|
Stand tending:
a variety of forest management treatments, including
spacing, fertilization, pruning, and commercial thinning, carried out at
different stages during a stand's development. |
|
Stand types:
see Stand,
Stand
structure. |
|
Standard: the required level or measure of practice established by
authority of the Forest Practices Code and referenced in legislation. |
|
Standing: status held by a person or group which allows the person or
group to challenge or appeal a particular decision. |
|
Statutory framework: where forest practices are primarily regulated by
legislation. |
|
Stewardship:
caring for land and associated resources and passing
healthy ecosystems to future generations. |
|
Stocking: a measure of the area occupied by trees, usually measured in
terms of well- spaced trees per hectare, or basal area per hectare, relative to
an optimum or desired level. |
|
Stocking class: a numeric code representing a range of stems per
hectare, sometimes estimated by crown closure on aerial photographs, e.g.
stocking class 1 is mature with 76+ stems/ha of > 27.5 cm DBH; class 2
is mature with <76 stems/ha; class 0 is immature. |
|
Stocking plan:
a plan that provides objectives and strategies for land
allocation and/or resource management, including regional plans, subregional
plans, and local resource plans. |
|
Stocking standard: the required range of healthy, well-spaced,
acceptable trees. |
|
Stocking survey: the determination of the stocking of an area of both
well-spaced and total trees; also used to generate an inventory label. |
|
Strategic land-use planning: Planning at the regional, sub-regional
and, in some cases, at the local level which results in land allocation and/or
resource management direction. Strategic land-use planning at the regional and
sub-regional level involves the preparation of resource management zones,
objectives and strategies. |
|
Strategy: a broad non-specific statement of an approach to
accomplishing desired goals and objectives. |
|
Stream: a watercourse, having an alluvial sediment bed, formed when
water flows on a perennial or intermittent basis between continuous definable
banks. |
|
Stream bank:
the rising ground bordering a stream channel. |
|
Stream channel:
the streambed and banks formed by fluvial processes,
including deposited organic debris. |
|
Stream class: the British Columbia Coastal Fisheries/Forestry
Guidelines defines three stream classes: |
|
Stream Class A includes streams or portions of streams that are frequented
by anadromous salmonids and/or resident sport fish or regionally significant
fish species; or streams identified for fishery enhancement in an approved
fishery management plan; stream gradient is usually less than 12 percent. |
|
Stream Class B includes streams or portions of streams populated by
resident fish not currently designated as sport fish or regionally significant
fish; stream gradient is usually 8-20 percent. |
|
Stream Class C includes streams or portions of streams not frequented by
fish; stream gradient is usually greater than 20 percent. |
|
Stream culvert: a culvert used to carry stream flow in an ephemeral or
perennial stream channel from one side of the road to the other. |
|
Stream gradient: the general slope, or rate of vertical drop per unit
of length of a flowing stream. |
|
Streambed: the bottom of the stream below the usual water surface. |
|
Streamside Management Zone (SMZ):
the land, together with the
vegetation that supports it, immediately in contact with the stream and
sufficiently close to have a major influence on the total ecological character
and functional processes of the stream. |
|
Stumpage:
is the fee that individuals and firms are
required to pay to the government when they harvest Crown timber in British
Columbia. Stumpage is determined through a complex appraisal of each stand or
area of trees that will be harvested for a given timber mark. A stumpage rate ($
per m3) is determined and applied to the volume of timber that is cut (m3).
Invoices are then sent to individuals or firms. |
|
Subgrade:
the material movement necessary to construct the roadway,
excluding surfacing. |
|
Substructure: the part of a bridge that supports the superstructure
and carries all the applied lateral and vertical loads; includes caps, sills,
piles, and posts, each comprising elements known as abutments and piers. |
|
Subsurface drainage: water flow through permeable soil or rock beneath
the surface of the land. |
|
Sub-unit plan:
the fourth level of planning in the Ministry of Forests
hierarchical planning system. The aggregation of a number of courses of action
in map and written form designed to achieve sub-unit objectives. Normally
centred on watersheds. |
|
Succession:
the gradual supplanting of one community of plants by
another, the sequence of communities being termed a sere and each stage seral. |
|
Suitability mapping: a habitat interpretation that describes the
current potential of a habitat to support a species. Habitat potential is
reflected by the present habitat condition or successional stage. |
|
Superstructure:
the part of a bridge found above or supported by the
caps or sills, including the deck, girders, stringers, and curbs. |
|
Supply block: an area of Crown land that is relatively homogeneous
with respect to forest characteristics, access development and management
concerns. Supply blocks are the next smaller timber management unit within a
Timber Supply Area. |
|
Surface soil erosion: means for an area where a forest practice has
been carried out, the movement of soil particles from the area by wind, gravity
or water at a rate that is greater than that which would have occurred had the
forest practice not been carried out. |
|
Surplus forest:
a forest in which existing
stands can provide more harvest volume than is needed to maintain the harvest at
the level of long run sustained yield until the stands created when the existing
stands are cut become available for harvest. See also deficit
forest. |
|
Sustainability: A state or process that can be maintained
indefinitely. The principles of sustainability integrate three closely
interlined elements—the environment, the economy and the social system—into a
system that can be maintained in a healthy state indefinitely. |
|
Sustainable development:
preservation and protection of diverse
ecosystems-the soil, plants, animals, insects and fungi while maintaining the
forest's productivity. |
|
Sustainable forest management:
management regimes applied to forest
land which maintain the productive and renewal capacities as well as the
genetic, species and ecological diversity of forest ecosystems. |
|
Sustained yield:
a method of forest management that calls for an
approximate balance between net growth and amount harvested. |
|
Switchback: a horizontal road curve used for surmounting the grade of
a step hill, usually with a small radius (15-10 m) and curving 180 degrees. |
|
System road:
a permanent road required for long-term management of the
forest. |