Editing Clearcutting (section)

{{Other uses|Clearcut (disambiguation)}}
{{short description|Forestry/logging practice in which most or all trees in an area are uniformly cut down}}
[[File:Lewis and Clark River 2148s.JPG|thumb|upright=1.3|After a century of clearcutting, this forest, near the source of the [[Lewis and Clark River]] in [[Clatsop County, Oregon]], is a patchwork. In each patch, most of the trees are the same age.]]
[[File:Clearcutting Drawing.svg|thumb|A forest before and after clearcutting]]
'''Clearcutting''',  '''clearfelling''' or '''clearcut logging''' is a [[forestry]]/[[logging]] practice in which most or all trees in an area are uniformly cut down. Along with [[Shelterwood cutting|shelterwood]] and [[Seed tree|seed tree harvests]], it is used by [[forester]]s to create certain types of forest [[ecosystems]] and to promote select species<ref>{{cite news|access-date=2018-05-12|title=Budget for a €2,500/ha reforestation cost after clearfelling mature forest |date=2013-08-14|url=https://www.independent.ie/business/farming/budget-for-a-2500ha-reforestation-cost-after-clearfelling-mature-forest-29493489.html|newspaper=FarmIreland.ie|first= William |last= Merivale }}</ref> that require an abundance of sunlight or grow in large, even-age [[stand level modelling|stand]]s.<ref name="Dovetail"/> Clearcutting is a forestry practice that mimics the stand initiation stage of [[forest succession]] after a natural disturbance such as [[Wildfire|stand replacing fire]] or [[Windthrow|wind-throw]], and is successful for regeneration of fast growing, [[Douglas fir|sun tolerant tree species]] and wildlife species that readily regenerate in post-stand replacing sites.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Administrator |title=SFA Silviculture - 2.3. Stand Dynamics: Stand Structure |url=https://www.sfasilviculture.com/index.php/textbook/2-3-stand-dynamics-stand-structure |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=www.sfasilviculture.com |language=en-gb}}</ref> Logging companies and forest-worker unions in some countries support the practice for scientific, safety and economic reasons, while detractors consider it a form of [[deforestation]] that [[habitat destruction|destroys natural habitats]]<ref>U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC (1992). [http://nepis.epa.gov/Exe/ZyNET.exe/200081E1.TXT?ZyActionD=ZyDocument&Client=EPA&Index=1991+Thru+1994&Docs=&Query=&Time=&EndTime=&SearchMethod=1&TocRestrict=n&Toc=&TocEntry=&QField=&QFieldYear=&QFieldMonth=&QFieldDay=&IntQFieldOp=0&ExtQFieldOp=0&XmlQuery=&File=D%3A\zyfiles\Index%20Data\91thru94\Txt\00000004\200081E1.txt&User=ANONYMOUS&Password=anonymous&SortMethod=h|-&MaximumDocuments=1&FuzzyDegree=0&ImageQuality=r75g8/r75g8/x150y150g16/i425&Display=p|f&DefSeekPage=x&SearchBack=ZyActionL&Back=ZyActionS&BackDesc=Results%20page&MaximumPages=1&ZyEntry=1&SeekPage=x&ZyPURL "Clear cut."] ''Terms of Environment: Glossary, Abbreviations and Acronyms.'' p. 6. Document no. EPA-175-B-92-001. Accessed 2011-10-12.</ref> and [[deforestation and climate change|contributes to climate change]].<ref>Center for Biological Diversity, Tucson, AZ. [http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/public_lands/forests/clearcutting_and_climate_change/ "Clearcutting and Climate Change."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180626111339/http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/public_lands/forests/clearcutting_and_climate_change/ |date=2018-06-26 }} Accessed 2011-10-12.</ref>  Environmentalists, traditional owners, local residents and others have regularly campaigned against clearcutting, including through the use of blockades and nonviolent direct action.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McIntyre |first=Iain |date=2020-11-04 |title=Environmental Blockading in Australia and Around the World – Timeline 1974–1997 |url=https://commonslibrary.org/environmental-blockading-in-australia-and-around-the-world-timeline-1974-1997/ |access-date=2023-07-07 |website=The Commons Social Change Library |language=en-AU}}</ref>

Clearcutting is the most economically efficient method of logging.{{citation needed|date=August 2024}} It also may create detrimental side effects, such as the loss of [[topsoil]], the costs of which are intensely debated by economic, environmental and other interests. In addition to the purpose of harvesting wood, clearcutting is used to [[Land development#Conversion to farmland|create land for farming]].<ref name="environmentalgovernance.org">{{Cite web |url=http://www.environmentalgovernance.org/research/issues/forests/ |title=Global Environmental Governance Project: Forests |access-date=2012-11-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121118013713/http://www.environmentalgovernance.org/research/issues/forests/ |archive-date=2012-11-18 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Ultimately, the effects of clearcutting on the land will depend on how well or poorly the forest is managed,<ref>Rodney J. Keenan, & J.P. (Hamish) Kimmins (1993).[https://www.jstor.org/stable/envirevi.1.2.121 "The ecological effects of clear-cutting"] ''Environmental Reviews'', 1(2), 121–144. Retrieved September 16, 2020.</ref> and whether it is converted to non-forest land uses after clearcuts.<ref>FAO (2016). [http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5588e.pdf "State of the World's Forests 2016"]</ref>

While deforestation of both [[temperate forest|temperate]] and [[tropical forest]]s through clearcutting has received considerable media attention in recent years, the other large forests of the world, such as the [[taiga]], also known as boreal forests, are also under threat of rapid development. In Russia, North America and Scandinavia, creating [[Nature reserve|protected areas]] and granting long-term leases to tend and regenerate trees—thus maximizing future harvests—are among the means used to limit the harmful effects of clearcutting.<ref>Kunganavolok (June 25, 1998). [http://www.economist.com/node/372810 "Taiga! taiga! burning bright."] ''The Economist''. Retrieved: 2013-08-06.</ref> Long-term studies of clearcut forests, such as studies of the [[Pasoh Forest Reserve|Pasoh Rainforest]] in Malaysia, are also important in providing insights into the conservation of forest resources worldwide.<ref>Khan, Madeline (February 9, 2004). [http://thevarsity.ca/2004/02/09/clear-cut-forests-in-malaysia-offer-lessons-for-logging-worldwide/ "Clear cut forests in Malaysia offer lessons for logging worldwide."] ''The Varsity'', University of Toronto. Retrieved: 2013-08-06.</ref>