Buckman, Robert E. 1993. The H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest. In: Proceedings of the experimental forests workshop: Canada-British Columbia partnership agreement on forest resource development: FRDA II; 1992 April 28-29; Victoria, BC. BCFRAC Rep. 2. Victoria, BC: Forestry Canada and B.C. Ministry of Forests: 31.
The H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest was established on the Willamette National Forest in 1948. Itembraces 6400 ha of mountainous forested watersheds in west-central Oregon. The history and uses of thisexperimental forest illustrate many of the points of my earlier remarks concerning experimental forests of theU.S. Forest Service (pp. 15-26).
The H.J. Andrews has evolved through several phases including:
1950s: systems of roading, harvesting, and regeneration of old-growth forest, all in anticipationof commercial logging on midslopes of the Cascade Mountains.
1960s: effects of logging and roading on water quality and yield, much of this research in responseto unusually heavy flood damage early in this decade.
1970s: basic studies of forest and stream ecosystems, in response to U.S. participation in theInternational Biological Program, and the need to undertake more fundamental and integrativeecological studies.
1980s: continuation of ecological studies with emphasis on application to silviculture, wildlife, andlandscape ecology.
The impact of the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest has been substantial :
It has been the subject of some 1400 publications and more than 100 graduate theses.
Several hundred visitors per year, including opinion leaders and policy-makers, come to the forest.Research here has been a model of co-operation and interaction among researchers and users,including those from the host Willamette National Forest.
Work on the forest has had substantial technical impact on such forestry practices as roading andharvesting design, water yield and quality in relation to timber harvesting, riparian zone manage-ment for fish habitat, and forestry practices to maintain biological diversity.
The H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest has multiple classifications, including one of the 13 long-termEcological Reserves funded by the National Science Foundation. It is also a Biosphere Reserve, part of aglobal network recognized by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization. It has hadstrong leadership during its several evolutionary stages. It also enjoys strong collaborative researchparticipation among several groups, including Oregon State University, University of Washington, NationalScience Foundation, U.S. Geological Service, and others. Indeed, leadership for various activities is moreoften vested in non—Forest Service scientists than fromthe Forest Service (the nominal administrative leader)itself.
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