Topic 7.2: Relevant National, State, and Local Regulations

In some cases, silvicultural options are constrained by legislation or regulations that are essentially beyond the forester’s control.  For example, certain felling regimes might be prohibited (e.g., clearcutting), annual allowable cuts may be set by politicians rather than forest managers, and minimum diameter cutting limits may be arbitrarily determined without due consideration of the diversity of forests to be managed.  Forest managers are obliged to know and to abide by these regulations, even when they may not be silviculturally appropriate.  But it will also behoove foresters to inform the decision-making process, lest their silvicultural activities be controlled by regulations that they know are bad for the forest.