89:). In October 1975, strong winds damaged many spruce trees in the Bowron River valley and caused a buildup of debris. A series of mild winters with significant snow accumulation, followed by early springs, created ideal conditions for one-year life cycle spruce beetles. An overlap with two-year life cycle spruce beetles caused a huge expansion in beetle populations.
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Between 1981 and 1987 forestry licensees were allowed to harvest what would normally be allowable over a period of 25-30 years. 48,000 hectares were clearcut within the total 175,000 hectare outbreak area. An additional 3,300 hectares were burned by wildfire. The amount of wood harvested, about 15
70:. This killed many trees that were unable to be salvaged, and may have informed the decision to clearcut the future Bowron River outbreak. All known outbreaks of spruce bark beetle have accumulated in woody debris caused by logging or
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Studies since the logging have suggested that more standing dead trees should have been left in place. This would have had the benefit of preventing flooding by shading snowmelt, as well as providing habitat for local fauna.
392:"Responses of macroinvertebrate community composition to changes in stream abiotic factors after streamside clear-cut logging in the central interior of British Columbia"
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The growing beetle population was first observed in 1979. The subsequent outbreak infested 175,000 hectares of forest, killing up to 60% of mature spruce trees.
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415:"Standardized approaches in effectiveness monitoring programs and regional relevance: lessons from the Bowron River Watershed Riparian Evaluation Project"
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In total, approximately 62.5 million trees were planted over 43,500 hectares. Some regions with lodgepole pine were allowed to naturally regenerate.
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The peak of the harvest was between 1984 and 1985. 750 truckloads of wood would leave the Bowron a day to bring the timber to
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The Bowron clearcut has been used as a model and case study for habitat monitoring and regeneration.
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million cubic meters, was enough to build approximately 900,000 1,200 square-foot-sized houses.
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It was known as the "clear-cut you could see from space." Despite its reputation, clearcuts on
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108:. Up to 10 additional logging companies were established in the area to profit from the work.
454:"Clearcut: Reading the Forest in Canadian and Brazilian Literatures and Cultural Imaginaries"
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132:(2%) was also planted. The seeds used to grow the saplings were taken from local stock.
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had his "final apotheosis" in
British Columbia. Fawcett was in correspondence with
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Nordin, L. J.; Rex, J. F.; Maloney, D. A.; Tschaplinski, P. J. (December 2008).
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358:"Forestry and the Forest Industry in the Central Interior of British Columbia"
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In the 1940s, spruce bark beetle populations began to rise in the area of the
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The forest composition of the region was typically interior spruce (
39:. It was once considered the largest clearcut in the world. A large
371:. Western Division, Canadian Association of Geographers: 211–212
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infestation. 15 million cubic meters of wood were harvested.
288:"The Upper Bowron Spruce Beetle Outbreak: A Case History"
120:Reforestation was completed by 1999. Predominantly
43:operation took place in the 1980s in response to a
324:"Saga of the Spruce Beetle Outbreak in the Bowron"
232:"Clear-cuts flout forest salvage efforts: report"
150:, Brian Fawcett likened the Bowron clearcut to
202:The British Columbia Forest Service Newsletter
8:
479:"Bowron Clearcut documentary by Peter Lynch"
16:Forest clearcut in British Columbia, Canada
164:about creating a documentary on the cut.
328:University of Northern British Columbia
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128:(28%) were utilized. A small amount of
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270:http://dx.doi.org/10.14288/1.0048367
419:Canadian Journal of Forest Research
322:Costello, Allan; Philippe, Henry.
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230:Stueck, Wendy (4 November 2009).
174:Deforestation in British Columbia
394:. University of British Columbia
511:Environmental history of Canada
195:"Bowron clearcut just a memory"
193:Richards, Bob (November 1995).
452:Gonçalves, Patricia Magazoni.
292:University of British Columbia
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286:Cozens, Russ (August 2004).
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390:Fuchs, Shirley A. (1999).
54:as well as those found in
521:Timber industry in Canada
80:Picea glauca x engelmanni
356:Lewis, Kathy J. (2002).
37:British Columbia, Canada
264:. (1992, January 29). "
485:. Northern BC Archives
153:The Epic of Gilgamesh
83:) and spruce-balsam (
25:Bowron River clearcut
458:University of Ottawa
266:The Biggest Clearcut
483:search.nbca.unbc.ca
298:on 4 September 2018
146:In his 2003 memoir
116:Restoration efforts
526:Beetles and humans
236:The Globe and Mail
516:Logging in Canada
425:(12): 3139–3150.
365:Western Geography
334:on 23 August 2023
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148:Virtual Clearcut
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487:. Retrieved
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58:are larger.
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33:Bowron River
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162:Peter Lynch
130:Douglas fir
52:Cape Breton
505:Categories
180:References
124:(70%) and
62:Background
439:0045-5067
208:(11): 4–5
72:windthrow
31:near the
268:" . doi:
168:See also
29:clearcut
489:30 July
463:30 July
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302:30 July
241:30 July
212:29 July
158:Humbaba
142:Culture
96:Harvest
23:or the
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56:Brazil
361:(PDF)
198:(PDF)
491:2024
465:2024
435:ISSN
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