Northern California Redwood Coastal Forests

by Andrew Yang

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Old growth size comparison to a human.

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Map of the range of Coastal Redwoods

History

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New growth forest that has suffered logging

Redwoods are large—on both a literal and figurative scale. They, the Sequoia sempervirens, are the tallest species of trees, and with a lifespan that can be upwards of 2000 years, are also one of trees with the largest life expectancy. The Redwood forests date back to the prehistoric era when they were abundant in multiple regions, spanning across more than one continent. These various species gradually became extinct until few remained. The most prominent of those remaining was the Coastal Redwood, the star in the California Coastal Redwood Forests. The Californian forests remained largely intact even with the inhabitation of Native Americans, only starting to lose its spatial scope when logging began with the European arrival to the New World. A historic Coastal Redwood Forest would have more biodiversity, less litter on the forest floor, a presence of dead trees, and a more grandeur appearance. With a majority of the old growths cut down and a severely hampered range of habitation, the current Coastal Redwood Forests pale in comparison to what the Native Americans witnessed thousands of years ago; however, the modern day forest retains some of the core characteristics of the Redwood forest. It is adapted to fire, resistant to flooding, re-sprouts easily, and is still incredibly diverse. It houses numerous species of fauna and flora, including the California Huckleberry, Wood Rose, the Black bear, Raccoon, and coyote. The climate that Coast Redwoods thrive in has also been generally constant throughout the years with mild temperatures that rarely go below freezing or exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and a moderate amount of precipitation ranging from 40 to 100 inches in a year. When the rain does not provide enough, which is usually in the summer, the Redwoods capitalize on the coastal fogs to provide moisture not only for themselves, but also for the other plants within the ecosystem. The Redwood Coastal Forests are currently located on the west coast of Northern California and Oregon and aggregate a total of 1.74 million acres, though only a small portion of that is under protected reserves and parks, which brings into question the future for these ancient giants.

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The historical range of the Coastal Redwoods layered against current reserves.

 

Impact

Human Impact is considered “ugly” when it comes to the Redwood Coastal Forest. Human contact accounts for the majority of the degradation of this particular ecosystem. About 96% of the old growth Redwoods has been cut down. Of this remaining portion, 18% are not protected and run the risk of being cut for lumber. Logging is a fairly large industry while redwood is a valuable wood. Over a quarter of the wood that is cut in California each  year is redwood lumber. The Gold Rush of 1850, which raised demand for wood to build houses and mines, triggered the intensive logging that would continue to this day. The logging not only leaves discontinuous areas of Redwood Coastal Forest that are isolated and unless under protected grounds are targets for lumber companies, but also destroys old growth which can affect the endemic fauna and flora.. Human mining, fishing and other practices also affect the flora and fauna, forcing some, such as Salmon, out of their usual homes and way of life. Urbanization, expansion and, once again, logging around the area also endangers the forests and its inhabitants due to changes in the watershed that could increase the quantity and magnitude of sedimentation and flooding. Fire suppression laws also are an issue. Fire is a natural part of the Redwood Coastal Forest ecosystem, clearing out pests as well as understory build up or litter. When this “cleansing” does not occur, the litter builds up causing larger, hotter and more devastating fires that could destroy the forest itself, despite the fire resistant Redwoods. The Redwood Coastal Forest is certainly not in a good place. Even with efforts to preserve these one of a kind ecosystems, our grandchildren may not live to see a fully intact and healthy Redwood Forest.

What the future holds...

http://www.fs.fed.us/psw/publications/documents/psw_gtr194/psw_gtr194_61.pdf
Graph indicating the transition from logging old growth to new growth

The outlook on the Redwood Coastal Forest is not too bright. There are protected parks, but they only comprise of roughly 450,000 acres of forest.  When looking at the parks themselves, few are large enough to fully sustain the Redwood Coastal Forest ecosystem. These are the Humboldt Redwoods State Parks and other National and State Parks; however, they too are threatened by their surroundings, especially from the increasing population and development. Most other parks are relatively small patches of forest used mostly for recreation that ultimately will not save the ecosystem. The permanent damage of cutting down the majority of the old growth has been done. The lumber companies are now cutting “young growth” or second and third growths, showing just how few old growths are left. It is now up to the public to decide the fate of the forest. How much do they want to support the cause of preserving and restoring the forest? There are organizations such as the Save the Redwoods League that has been established for over a hundred years. If nothing is done the Redwood Coastal Forest will disappear. Population is exponentially rising and soon the reserves and protected parks will surrender to development that is already chipping away at the land. Soon there will be none left save the few patches within a densely populated area that will not truly preserve the ecosystem as a whole, but rather only show a snapshot of what once was. The young growth forests are just not the same as the ancient old growth forests that sported an extremely diverse, unique and complex ecosystem, and even these young growths will have to deal with our ever expanding human race.

http://www.fs.fed.us/psw/publications/documents/psw_gtr194/psw_gtr194_61.pdf
Data table that suggests development in Redwood regions

http://www.fs.fed.us/psw/publications/documents/psw_gtr194/psw_gtr194_61.pdf
Data table that indicates the population surrounding the Redwood Regions

 What can we do?

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Twin Redwood Trees

The harsh reality is that we cannot do much. The change that needs to occur is on the federal level, which we can push for, but ultimately we cannot directly affect. The government needs to immediately take action by securing 100% of old growths under federal protection, setting up more sustainable federal park lands that encourages restoration of the ecosystem, acquiring forest land and creating new national or state parks,forming regulations of not only the forest but also its surroundings so as to protect watershed and other indirect harms, and establishing stricter codes for logging companies or simply buying the remaining Redwood Coastal Forests that are in possession of private companies. The latter is most likely impossible due to economic reasons, but if it really means life and death of an entire ecosystem, it needs to be done. The government can also stop spreading the misconception of fire suppression, which hurts the forest more than it helps. We all know Smokey the bear, well it is time for Smokey to go back into hibernation. One thing that the public can do is spread awareness of this issue as well as support organizations that voice their opinion. We can also pressure the private land owners in the redwood forest to receive third party certification of restoration and sustainability. These, however, will only go so far. We need a large continuous piece of Forest land that will preserve the Redwood Coastal Forest ecosystem as a whole and the government has to get involved if we want to see the Redwood Coastal Forest to survive into the next century.

References

"Coast Redwoods." Savetheredwoods. Save the Redwoods League. 2010. Web. 28 Nov 2011. <http://www.savetheredwoods.org/education/coastredwood.shtml>.

"Coast Redwood Forest." Las Pilitas Nursery. Web. 28 Nov 2011. <http://www.laspilitas.com/nature-of-california/communities/redwood-forest>.

Dawson, T.E. "Fog in the California redwood forest: ecosystem inputs and use by plants." 1998. Web. 28 Nov 2011

<http://oregonstate.edu/groups/hydro/Seminars/spring08/Dawson.Oecologia.Fog.98.pdf>.

Hemmerich, Natalie. "Human Impact." Sequoia sempervirens Perhaps the Eighth Natural Wonder of the World.... 15 April 2009. Web. 28 Nov 2011. <http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2009/hemmeric_nata/human impacts.htm>.

Jebens, Brandon. "The Biogeography of Sequoia sempervirens." Redwoods. 1999. Web. 28 Nov 2011. <http://bss.sfsu.edu/holzman/courses/Fall99Projects/redwood.htm>.

Noss, Reed F. The Redwood Forest: History, Ecology, and Conservation of the Coast Redwoods. Washington, D.C.: Island, 2000. Print.

Olson, D, and John Sawyer. "Northern California coastal forests." . World Wildlife Fund, 2001. Web. 28 Nov 2011. <http://www.laspilitas.com/nature-of-california/communities/redwood-forest>.

"Redwood statistics."savetheredwoods. Save the Redwoods League. 2010. 28 Nov 2011. Web. <http://www.savetheredwoods.org/education/coastredwood.shtml>.

"Redwoods: Survivors of an Ancient Time." Hotspots. California Academy of Sciences. Web. 28 Nov 2011. <http://www.calacademy.org/exhibits/california_hotspot/habitat_redwoods.htm>.

Shirley, James C,. The Redwoods of Coast and Sierra. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1940. eBook. 28 Nov 2011

<http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/shirley/sec9.htm>.

Stewart, William. "The New Economies of the Redwood Region in the 21st Century1." . USDA Forest Service, 2007. Web. 28 Nov 2011. <http://www.fs.fed.us/psw/publications/documents/psw_gtr194/psw_gtr194_61.pdf>.

"Technical Data Sheet: Redwood." calredwood. Web. 28 Nov 2011. <http://www.calredwood.org/pdf/Redwood Forests Certified for Sustainable Harvests.pdf>.