for Fire and Fuels Project Managers Environmental Consequences

Moving equipment and logs over the surface of forest soils causes gouges and ruts in the mineral soil, displaces organic matter, and can cause compaction. Com-paction is measured by pore volume (the size of spaces between soil particles), bulk density (soil weight per unit volume), soil aeration (the amount of air in the soil), water infiltration (rate of water movement into the soil), and saturated hydraulic conductivity (the ability of soil to transmit water). Compaction is the component of soil productivity most influenced by forest management, but the degree to which soils may be compacted depends on initial soil bulk density. For example, low bulk density soils (such as volcanic ash-cap soils) are much easier to compact than those soils with a high baseline bulk density. Why Is It Important? Concern over changes in soil productivity after forest management activities is a topic debated by forest managers and the pub-lic. Important components of this debat