Healthy Lakes and Wetlands For Tomorrow - Species at Risk

FORESTRY PRACTICES
Forestry practices impact the landscape, and good planning with sound ecological
management can go a long way towards preventing damage to wildlife habitat. Both large
forestry companies and small woodlot owners are a vital component for the stewardship
of species at risk in forested landscapes. In Nova Scotia, forestry activities occur largely on
privately owned land. Small woodlot owners own almost half of the forested land in this
province and can make a huge difference by using sustainable forestry techniques. The
following are recommended forestry practices for lands with species at risk.
Avoid harvesting in Blanding’s Turtle
nesting habitat in June.
This will minimize danger to female turtles
travelling to nesting sites.
Blanding’s Turtle
Boreal Felt Lichen
American Marten
Practice uneven-aged management using techniques such as (but not limited to)
selection harvesting and patch cutting.
Currently, even-aged management through clearcutting is the most common harvest practice (over 90%)
in Nova Scotia. This creates a forest with trees that are of one age class and similar height. Some species,
such as balsam fir and white birch, may be found in even-aged stands because of their natural disturbance
patterns. Uneven-aged management helps to maintain the forests natural biodiversity and structural
components by maintaining forest cover, improving stand quality, and having a woodlot composed of
diverse ages and species. Uneven-aged management offers long-term rewards such as an increase in the
harvest volume of select valuable trees, which can benefit the landowner and the creatures that share
their land. High value trees that thrive in uneven-aged Acadian forests include red spruce, sugar maple,
yellow birch, beech, and hemlock.
Maintain the natural vegetation and forest canopy around watercourses.
Practicing uneven-aged management will help to maintain the forest canopy throughout the woodlot
and will be beneficial to wildlife and the watercourse. If you are practicing even-aged management and
harvesting all the trees in an area, the Nova Scotia Forests Act requires a 20 m Special Management Zone
along watercourses. A vegetated zone that is at least one to two tree lengths would be better, with 100 m
(330 feet) ideal.
Incorporate tree marking into your woodlot management.
Tree marking is the practice of carefully considering which trees to harvest based on tree size, health,
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