Biological and social issues affecting forest management: the central highland region

Hardwoods are being deliberately sought as elements of pine stands. Mixed pine-hardwood stands are increasingly viewed as an ecological and social alternative to pine plantation management, and are thought to provide enhanced biodiversity, wildlife benefits, visual quality and scenic attractiveness, and riparian benefits. The New Perspectives research program on the Ouachita and Ozark National Forests is charged with developing alternatives to clearcutting and planting. Using partial cutting to regenerate mixed pine-hardwood stands is a prominent aspect of the research. Results from the study, currently being imposed, should quantify the conditions under which mixed stands can be sustainably managed. But in regard to the biological and social issues that affect resource management, the research under the New Perspectives banner raises as many questions as it answers. A prominent question beyond the stand level will be to develop a better understanding of the social dimensions that constrain and guide ecosystem management — the answers to which will only increase the prominence of hardwoods in pine management of the future.

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