Helicopter Logging Method for Reduced Impact Timber Harvesting Operations*

Year 2016, Volume: 2 Issue: 1, 48 - 53, 18.11.2016

Abdullah E. Akay , Ebru Bilici

Abstract

Traditional timber harvesting methods can result in
serious impacts on vegetation structures, soil properties, and biodiversity in
forested areas. Helicopter logging provides important advantages of
implementing environmentally friendly harvesting techniques. However, the cost
of helicopter logging can be much higher than that of ground-based logging due
to high equipment costs, maintenance costs, the cost of flight crew, and fuel
costs. Thus, the helicopter logging operation should be carefully planned to
implement cost effective and environmentally friendly logging operations. In
this study, the stages of helicopter logging and operational factors were first
described, and then the operation cost, environmental concerns, and safety
practices in helicopter logging were discussed. It can be concluded that the
helicopter logging can be effectively used for extraction of timbers especially
from environmentally sensitive areas where road construction and logging
operations are restricted. In fact, helicopter logging may be the only option
to solve timber extraction problems in difficult terrains with steep slope.     

Keywords

Forest harvesting, Reduced impact logging, Helicopter logging

References

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