Forest
Stewardship News Release
August
26, 2003 - For Immediate Release
Contact: Rance
Harmon, Phone: 814-863-0401 E-mail: rsh144@psu.edu
Windstorms
Create Safety Hazards In Penn's Woods
By
Elizabeth Webster, Penn State Forest Resources Extension Writer
Severe weather changed the face of Pennsylvania woods this summer when windstorms uprooted trees from loose, wet soil caused by heavy rains. Damaged treetops and branches may have blown down during the storm, or they may still be hanging precariously in the canopy. For wildlife, fallen trees and branches provide new food sources, nesting sites, and hiding places. For timber harvesters, the debris may mean a loss of profit, and for woodland owners and recreationalists, a safety hazard. Lee Stover, senior research assistant of forest resources at Penn State, cautions landowners who work in the woods after a storm, "Do a careful and continuous hazard assessment as you work. You're working in a trap."
George Freeman of Clarion County spent two and a half days clearing debris and safeguarding against potential hazards after his property was hit by the same late July storm that toppled the landmark Kinzua Bridge in McKean County. Freeman lost four large oak trees, the tops of two of his trees, and a section of deer fence. "I guess it's just God's way of pruning," he said. Jim Hissom of Mercer County lost 30 trees in the same storm and went without power for four days. The 75-year-old Hissom also worked to clear debris on his property after the storm. As a safety precaution he never works alone, and he always plans an escape route. "If I see anything that doesn't look right, I clear out right away," he says.
In some cases, the best thing a landowner can do is flag the hazardous area, stay away from it, and seek professional help. Stover says, "If you're working on removing storm damage trees, they can have a lot of stresses on them, and it's very hard to anticipate what's going to happen when you take the chainsaw to them…It could spring back and hit you, or come down on your foot." Stover warns that uprooted trees may suddenly tip over or even pop back up. In the case of overhead hazards near power lines, landowners should leave the problem to the power company, Stover says.
Landowners who grow timber for profit may be hoping to salvage a few of those fallen trees to recover their losses. Hissom notes, "If a farmer has his alfalfa flooded he can declare a loss on it. We have no way of buying insurance to insure our trees." The uprooted tree may not have had enough time to grow and reach its potential as timber, but it could still be worth something. Service Forester Sam Cooke has advised landowners in his district to wait a while before calling a logger in case additional trees blow down. "There are a lot of landowners out there who have less than a truckload of trees," he says. "Volume equates value." If the fallen tree is not otherwise intended for timber or firewood, Lee Stover suggests that it ought to be left for wildlife. Brush piles for wildlife cover could be constructed out of a fallen treetop, and leaves near the forest floor could provide food for browsing deer.
The Pennsylvania Forest Stewardship Program provides publications on a variety of topics related to woodland management for private landowners. For a list of free publications, call 1-800-235-WISE (toll-free), send e-mail to RNRext@psu.edu, or write to: Forest Stewardship Program, Forest Resources Extension, The Pennsylvania State University, 320 Forest Resources Building, University Park, PA 16802. The Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry and USDA Forest Service, in partnership with the Penn State's Forest Resources Extension, sponsor the Forest Stewardship Program in Pennsylvania.
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