Testing the Effectiveness of Riparian Buffers Along Non-Fishbearing Streams: The Type N Experimental Buffer Treatment Study

Categories:

Published: 2005

Pages: 1

Author(s): Aimee P. McIntyre, Marc P. Hayes, William J. Ehinger, Robert E. Bilby, Stephanie Estrella, James G. MacCracken, Timothy Quinn, Casey H. Richart, Dave Schuett-Hames, and Andrew Storfer

Introduction

In the spring of 2000, the Washington Forest Practices Board (WFPB) adopted emergency rules designed to maintain and restore salmonid populations and meet the requirements of the federal Clean Water Act (WFPB 2000). These rules were based on the recommendations of the Forests and Fish Report (FFR), the product of negotiations between federal agencies, timber landowners, state resource agencies, and tribal and local governments (USFWS et al.1999). Permanent rules were adopted in May 2001 (WPFB 2001).

The resource goals of FFR are to:

  • Meet water quality standards,
  • Maintain a viable timber industry in Washington,
  • Provide harvestable levels of fish, and
  • Maintain viable populations of stream-associated amphibians (SAAs).

Riparian buffer prescriptions are a key part of the FFR strategy to achieve these three goals.