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It's hard to believe that anything positive can come out of the fearsome superstorm that leveled millions of trees in northern Minnesota last July 4. But the force that blew forests apart is actually bringing cooperators together around a very real opportunity: a chance to study how a forest recovers from a massive natural disturbance.
"Our goal was to pool energies and expertise right from the start, so that what we learn from this storm can be broadly applied-across resource areas and across administrative boundaries," said Logan Lee, Supervisor of the Chippewa National Forest and member of the steering committee organizing the storm-recovery effort. Other committee members are Alan Ek, University of Minnesota; Jerry Rose, State of Minnesota; and Forest Service representatives Mike Prouty, Jim Sanders, and Dave Shriner.
Priority-setting for the research and management response began at a workshop on March 14-16 in St. Paul, Minnesota, sponsored by the University of Minnesota, the State of Minnesota, and the USDA Forest Service-the Superior and Chippewa National Forests, the North Central Research Station, and Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry. What follows is a sampler of reactions to the meeting:
Jim Sanders: Forest Supervisor, Superior National Forest
A year ago, I doubt we could have assembled 60 researchers in a room to talk about forest management in Minnesota. But this was a unique event in a unique landscape, and it drew us together. I'm hoping that in 5 to 10 years, members of this group will still be working together, not just on the storm, but on other issues. What we've formed here is a brain trust, a network of researchers and managers who can systematically take a look at a whole host of issues. Our challenge is to continue the momentum we've started.
Logan Lee: Forest Supervisor, Chippewa National Forest
This was the first time I saw different scientific disciplines interact in this way, and it broadened my vision of what research can be.
We were fortunate to have such a diversity of legal authorities in the room. Some of us have access to private landowners, access to public lands, access to research talent, access to different funding sources, and access to various management tools. Together, we can really take a landscape view.
Alan Ek: Head of the Department of Forest Resources at the University of Minnesota
The meeting excelled in bringing together researchers from Federal, State, and university environments-folks who see each other occasionally but don't always have a chance to work on a common project.
What's most interesting to me about this storm is not the disturbance per se. Natural disturbances in the Upper Midwest are actually quite common. We drive by the sites of large-scale disturbance all the time, but more often than not, salvage operations have hidden the effects from view. In this case, we'll see the storm aftermath in two different settings-managed and unmanaged. In that zone of comparison-that's where the interesting research questions will be answered.
Rick Hokans: Analyst, Land Management Planning Group, FS Northern Region
The meeting was a remarkable show of cooperative spirit between the National Forest System and Research. Our managers appreciated the chance to tap directly into researchers for short-term information-data we need to do our environmental impact statements today. Secondly, we got a chance to help set direction for long-term research. We were able to say, "Here's the knowledge and decision support we need to adequately respond to extreme events."
John Dwyer: Project Leader, NC's Urban Forestry Unit, Chicago
I just kept thinking what a profound learning experience this will be for the public. Already, permit applications for BWCA travel are up this year, not down. I would guess that people's fascination with the spectacle of recovery is a part of that. Look at how many people flocked to see the greening of Yellowstone and Mount St. Helens! Millions of people love the Boundary Waters, and they'll no doubt be curious too. That makes this a teachable moment, and if we do it right, the teaching can go both ways-from us to the public and from the public to us.
For more information, contact Bill Mattson, Storm Recovery Research Coordinator from Forest Service Research, at 715-362-1174.
Excerpt from NC NEWS, April/May 2000 issue
USDA Forest Service, North Central Research Station
© 2000 by eForest and the Regents of the University of Minnesota. Send Comments to: Kali Sawaya
Last Modified March 11, 2000
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