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wood NCSU -study: Harvesting has no impact on oo o dl a fy , Researchers cataloged small animals in clear -cut areas in N.C. where wood debris was removed Animals use the debris when available but do not depend on it Instead, they say, the animals are resilient and adapt to changing conditions BY STEPHEN GINLEY Correspondent RALEIGH Harvesting wood debris from areas that have been clear -cut of timber does not affect the animals that live there, according to a study from researchers at N.C. State University. Chris Moorman, a pro- fessor of forestry and - environmental resources, and his students spent four years cataloging small animals such as mice, toads, bugs and mourning doves at loblolly pine plantations. They found that the'populatnons' in clear -cut sites were . unaffected regardless of how much wood debris was removed. This low -value wood, or "biomass," left over from logging is pulverized to make wood pellets that are used as a carbon friendly alternative to coal in Europe and in parts of the United States. Wood is classified as a renewable energy source by the Eu- ropean Union, which burns wood pellets from the southeastern U.S. to comply with the Kyoto Protocol to curb green- house gas emissions. The biomass left after a forest has been clear -cut supports a host of critters. It is home to bugs at the bottom of the food chain, which are eaten by bur- rowing shrews and am- phibians and small reptiles such as salamanders. Some of the biomass is a fertilizer for smaller vege- tation that feeds birds and rodents. The cold- blooded biomass. The quarters were separated by low current electrical wire that would track when it was crossed by the toads Fritts kept in the box. She found that during the day, toads spent their time in the debris because it retains - TRAVIS LONG tlong @newsobserveccom Logging leaves low -value wood that can be harvested to create wood pellets that are used as fuel. citizens of the sites make their homes in the wet, woody debris left by log- ging Moorman and his stu- dents wanted to know if removing large amounts of this biomass to make wood pellets could hurt the communities that spring up after the lumber is chopped down. Moorman says clear -cut logging has a well -known effect on b'iodiversity by displacing forest - dwellers such as deer and nesting birds. Less understood water and shielded them from the sun. When it cooled off at night, the toads ventured out to find food. According to Moorman, the animals that live in clear -cuts "evolved to respond to disturbances. was the effect of clearing the debris left after log- ging. Ecologists have pre- dicted that harvesting biomass would remove potential habitats and sources of food from clear -cut areas, causing animal populations to fall. Sarah Fritts, an ecologist who studied the mam mals, amphibians and reptiles at the logging sites, speculated that toad populations would be lower in areas where more wood debris was harvest- ed. But after four years ui Forest clearing events like forest fires and hurricanes are even more destructive than logging, and the populations in coastal North Carolina are resil- ient. Moorman noted the study may not apply to biomass harvesting in logging sites in the moun- tains. Stephen Ginley: 919- 829 -4520 research, she says, she "captured thousands,and thousands of toads," and there was no variation even in the most harvest- ed sites. The- 150 -acre pine plan- tations in the study have so much wood debris left over after logging that even the most heavily harvested sites were left with 10 percent of their biomass, Moorman said. The harvesters start to lose money if they chase down every last branch and pile of wood chips, some of'which are water - damaged and would not make 'good wood pellets anyway: Even 10 percent of the debris is enough to satisfy the population that survives after clear -cut- ting. To count the popula- tions at each site, Fritts '.set live traps and put -a tag on each animal so it would not be counted again. She was curious about why the toads were not as affected by lack of debris as she hypothesized. To find out what they preferred she built a 30- square -foot rink divided into four sections, each with different amounts of SEE LOGGING, 4A