Wind River Experimental Forest

The Wind River Experimental Forest is an ecological and silvicultural research in Stabler, Washington, in the United States. Founded in 1902 as a tree nursery, and functioning as an experimental forest since 1932, it is "known as the cradle of forest research in the Pacific Northwest". [http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/exforests/windriver.shtml] The site is probably best known for the Wind River Canopy Crane Research Facility (WRCCRF), a 285-foot-high freestanding tower crane supporting an 8-person gondola allowing scientist to view the forest canopy from above. The crane is roughly the height of a 25-story building. The tallest trees in the forest are about 220 feet.

Many studies at Wind River continue for decades. This long-term research has resulted in important and original findings about forest ecology and management.

Location

It is located west of the Cascade Range in the south-central area of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, north of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. It is about a 1.5-hour drive east of Vancouver, Washington, in the Mount Adams Ranger District.

The WRCCRF

The WRCCRF was established in 1994 and erected in 1995 as a cooperative scientific and educational venture among the University of Washington (UW) College of Forest Resources, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) Pacific Northwest Research Station, and the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. The crane is a Liebherr 550 HC freestanding tower crane with a load jib extension purchased from Morrow Crane Company, Inc., of Salem, Oregon.

According to an article by Sandra Hines, "While scientists have studied the tropical rain forest canopy for years with cranes, this is the first extensive study of the temperate forest canopy." UW professor Jerry Franklin (who Hines describes as "the guiding force behind the crane") says that the study demonstrates that temperate conifer forests are better at banking carbon than any other ecosystem in the world, certainly more than tropical forests on a per unit area basis, at least 178 tons per acre (40 kg/m². [http://www.washington.edu/alumni/columns/dec04/overthetop01.html] This finding could have significant impact on strategies to fight global warming.

Administration

It is administered cooperatively by the USFS Pacific Northwest Research Station and Gifford Pinchot National Forest, and is one of ten experimental areas associated with the United States Department of Agriculture's Pacific Northwest Research Station.

The experimental forest has two administrative units: the Trout Creek and Panther Creek divisions. The Trout Creek division has old-growth forests, stands that originated after large wildfires in the first third of the 20th century, and young stands regenerated after clearcuts in the last half of the 20th century. The Panther Creek division has mature stands that grew after a fire in the early 1840s and young stands from more recent clearcuts.

External links

* [http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/exforests/wind-river/index.shtml Official USDA Research Station site] . Accessed April 30, 2008. The content of this site is in the public domain.
* [http://depts.washington.edu/wrccrf/ Official WWCCRF site] . Accessed December 8, 2004.
* Hines, Sandra, " [http://www.washington.edu/alumni/columns/dec04/overthetop01.html Over the Top] ". Originally published"Columns: the University of Washington Alumni Magazine", December 2004, 20-25. This is the reference on the founding date.