Evaluating Sediment Production by Activities Related to Forest Uses - A Pacific Northwest Perspective

To deal with nonpoint sources of pollution, such as stream sediment produced by erosion from forest management operations, regulations require land managers to reduce onsite erosion to keep the amount of sediment discharged from each project area within acceptable limits. Activities developed to meet these regulations are sometimes referred to as best management practices (BMPs). BMPs are designed to reduce pollutant discharge from a single project but may not solve the larger problem concerning the cumulative effect of multiple projects. Land managers and regulatory agencies are increasingly required to address the cumulative effect of each proposed project within the context of all other projects within a specified area. To evaluate cumulative effects, using appropriate spatial and temporal scales is critical to analyze and evaluate physical and biological responses to interacting events or treatments that are separated in either time, space, or both.