Related Terms

• Content available for subscribers only.

Background

• Logging refers to the cutting down of trees, trimming of the cut trees into logs, and transportation of the logs to sawmills for processing. More broadly, logging may refer to the clearing of forested areas for subsistence farming, commercial farming, grazing, or other uses. Land clearance may be done in many ways, including slash-and-burn clearing, clearcutting (also called clearfelling) selective logging, and salvage logging.
• Silviculture refers to the art and science of forest management. Many of the forest management concepts in use today were first developed in Germany in the 18th Century. One of the most important of these was the concept of sustained yield, which basically refers to managing the frequency and amount of tree harvesting in order to ensure that a reliable amount of timber may be cut indefinitely. In the last half of the 20th Century, silviculture expanded to include the concept of multiple uses, in recognition of the fact that forest management needed to address not only timber production but also forest uses such as recreation, hunting, watershed protection, and preservation of plant and animal habitat. More recently, the role of silviculture has expanded again to include the concept of the forest as an ecosystem interacting with human society, plant and animal environments, and climate.
• The application of these concepts is a continuing subject of debate among groups with different and often conflicting opinions about forest management. The meaning of what a "sustainable" yield should be can be very different for timber companies, conservationists, ecologists, and local communities. Similarly, the concept of "multiple use" does not in itself provide an easy way to decide which uses are more or less important and deserve greater or lesser priority. These are essentially political issues that tend to be resolved or not resolved in the political arena, by legislative actions or local, national, or international agencies and regulatory bodies.
• Deforestation commonly refers to the wholesale removal of forest cover by logging, natural events, or other human actions. Such actions include the use of herbicides both in war, as occurred in Vietnam, and in efforts to curb illegal drug production trafficking, as has occurred in Colombia and other areas of South America.
• Further content available for subscribers only.

Technique

• Content available for subscribers only.

Logging in the United States

• Content available for subscribers only.

Logging in Developing Countries

• Content available for subscribers only.

Theory/Evidence

• Content available for subscribers only.

Health Impact/Safety

• Content available for subscribers only.

Future Research or Applications

• Content available for subscribers only.

Author Information

• Content available for subscribers only.

References

Natural Standard developed the above evidence-based information based on a thorough systematic review of the available scientific articles. For comprehensive information about alternative and complementary therapies on the professional level, go to www.naturalstandard.com. Selected references are listed below.

• Content available for subscribers only.