Logging planning and layout costs for thinning : experience from the Willamette Young Stand Project

Abstract

Logging planning and layout costs were examined for commercial thinning of 40- to 50-yr-old stands of Douglas-fir on the Willamette National Forest in the Cascade Mountains of Oregon. The study consisted of four replications of three silvicultural treatments. Thinning involved three types of logging systems: mechanized cut-to-length (a combination of single-grip harvester and forwarder), tractor, and skyline. Data for the study came from two sources: activities completed by the Forest Service in preparing sales for bid, and the layout completed by the logging contractor after a contract was awarded. Planning and layout costs showed no consistent relationship to type of silvicultural treatment. Logging contractor layout costs showed a relationship to type of logging system: the mechanized system had the lowest layout cost, followed by the tractor systems, with the skyline systems having the highest costs.