Salvage timber harvesting considerations

Whether to harvest trees killed as a result of wildfire is a personal decision, but one that needs to be made fairly quickly after the fire is out. Trees that sustain heavy damage from fire die and lose their commercial value rapidly. Trees which sustain medium damage may survive but typically do not fully recover their previous vigor. This leaves them vulnerable to attack by insects and to future droughts.

Once a tree has died, it loses its commercial value quickly due to decay. The speed at which this occurs depends on the tree species (see insert box). White fir is especially quick to decay, while Douglas-fir is much more resistant and will typically take several years longer. In addition, dead trees that still contain sound wood may become infected with blue stain fungus, which does not weaken the wood, but does decrease the value and grade of lumber that can be made from it.

Conifer Decay Rates After Fire
Years After Death	White Fir	Ponderosa/ Jeffrey Pine	Sugar Pine	Douglas-fir
1	10–20 percent of volume decayed	1/4 sapwood bluestained	Little decay, extensive bluestain
2	50 percent of volume decayed	All bluestained, 1/2 sapwood decayed	3/4 of sapwood decayed
3		All sapwood decayed, some heartwood	All sapwood decayed	Sapwood deteriorated, little bluestain
4				Heartwood deteriorating
5			Only large trees remain sound	Only large trees remain sound

Salvage harvesting provides a number of advantages to landowners. Most importantly, accumulated dead and damaged trees provide fuel for future fires and their removal reduces the risk that additional fires will burn through the damaged area. Removal also reduces the spread of insects which proliferate in dead and damaged trees.

Any income received from salvaged trees can be used to recoup losses as well as to finance rehabilitation of damaged areas through replanting and installation of erosion control measures.

While salvage harvesting can produce these benefits, it must be carried out properly to avoid further resource damage. Improperly done harvesting can increase soil damage when too much soil is disturbed or the wrong equipment is used.

In the long term, some dead trees are needed for wildlife habitat and cover. Also, dead trees return nutrients to the soil.

Because of these concerns, it is critical that salvage harvesting be carried out in a professional manner with the help of a Registered Professional Forester (RPF). If any financial benefits are to be gained, it must also be done quickly before decay depletes damaged trees of their commercial value.

How much value is Left?

How much value is left in burned trees depends on a combination of factors including species, timber quality and amount of decay, as well as market conditions. In general, pines are worth more than other species, larger trees are worth more than smaller ones, and fine-grained, knot-free logs are worth more than knotty young trees. Sound logs can be made into lumber which has a higher value than decayed wood and brush which can be sold as chips to wood-fueled power plants. The value of standing trees (stumpage) is lower than the value of the log delivered to the mill because of the cost of harvesting and hauling logs for long distances.

Salvage harvest planning and permitting

If you choose to harvest some of the trees killed by fire on your property, you will need to acquire the proper permits. You must notify the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection which regulates timber harvesting on private land in California.

Unlike harvesting done when there is no fire, salvaging of fire-killed trees does not require a Timber Harvest Plan (THP). It does, however, require that you file a “Notice of Emergency Timber Operations” which must be signed by a Registered Professional Forester.

If you own less than three acres of land, you can file a “Notice of Emergency Timber Operations that are Exempt” without an RPF’s signature. Exemption from preparing a THP does not exempt landowners from environmental and other regulations aimed at protecting water quality, soil conditions, and riparian habitat.

—from Recovering from Wildfire (see page 10 for information about this publication.)