The College of Forestry

The research mission of the College of Forestry, through its research arm, the Forest Research Laboratory, is to conduct well-coordinated, problem-solving research that provides knowledge for the integrated management of forest resources for multiple values and products that meet society's needs, with special attention to social and economic benefits. Research is conducted by the college's four departments in five general areas: forest regeneration; forest ecology, culture, and productivity; protecting forests and watersheds; evaluating forest uses and practices; wood processing and products performance. Important research issues being addressed by forestry and forest products scientists include insuring the sustainability of forest resources, understanding the complex structure and function of forest systems, insuring that forest operations and wood products manufacturing are environmentally and socially acceptable and economically feasible, understanding the genetics of forest tree species, and understanding the complex mechanical and chemical characteristics of wood.

DEPARTMENT OF FOREST ENGINEERING (541) 737-4952 http://www.cof.orst.edu/cof/fe/

The mission of the Forest Engineering Department is to provide society with the knowledge, methods and skills to plan for and carry out economical and environmentally sound forest resource operations. Forest engineering research provides new knowledge about how forest operations perform technologically, economically and environmentally. A companion goal is to prepare scientists for careers in research through graduate education in the Departments logging engineering, forest operations, and forest hydrology graduate programs.

Some key questions that department faculty are focusing on, often in collaboration with scientists for other units, include:

• Given the increased complexity of analyzing policy and management alternatives at the watershed and landscape level, can sophisticated planning and modeling tools be developed to enable such analyses across multiple ownership's and for multiple landscape attributes? Attributes of interest might include quality of wildlife and aquatic habitats, forest structure, landslides and erosion processes, and timber production.
• Given society's voracious demand for wood and their simultaneous desire to reduce harvesting intensity and environmental impacts, can cost-effective alternative silvicultural and operational management strategies be developed that will provide for these multiple resource goals?
• As society's concern for protecting fish and wildlife habitats, clean water, and site productivity increases, as is often manifested in increased regulations, what knowledge is necessary to understand natural disturbance processes in forested and global ecosystems, and the impacts of management activities on these processes, so that negative impacts can be or minimized or mitigated?
• How do we develop innovative approaches to applying new mapping, measurement, and data management technology to improve the cost-effectiveness of forest management activities while perhaps minimizing environmental impacts?

In addition, the Department commits considerable energy to Aresearch service activities, including providing scientific information to policy makers to assist in their formulation and evaluation of forest management policy. FE faculty also convey research findings to public audiences via Extension education and other outreach activities.

DEPARTMENT OF WOOD SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
(541) 737-4257
http://woodscience.oregonstate.edu

The mission of the Department of Wood Science and Engineering is to educate students to be responsible professionals, conduct distinctive problem-solving and fundamental research and to disseminate objective, timely information that will extend renewable forest resources to meet society's growing demands for forest products, and maximize the economic benefits of forest products for the citizens of Oregon and the world.

Our research program is targeted at the following objectives:

• Expand wood science knowledge base, especially in: the relationship between silvicultural/environmental factor on tree growth and wood properties; manipulation of wood fiber properties for advanced composite materials.
• Improve product manufacturing efficiency and adding value to forest-based products, including computer-aided manufacturing, drying efficiency, characterizing and minimizing environmental impacts of production; environmental marketing strategies.
• Develop innovative new processes and products, especially with engineered wood composite materials; wood treatment methods; and exploring the potential for useful pharmaceuticals form wood residues.
• Extend service life of wood-based products through active preservation of wood products, discovery of new biocides/treatment methods, and better understanding of the fungal biodeterioration process.
• Increasing efficiency in the use of wood-based materials, especially through a better understanding of the benefits and limitations of wood as an engineering material; improved engineering design methodologies to reduce costs while maintaining safety.

DEPARTMENT OF FOREST RESOURCES 280 Peavy Hall (541) 737-4951 http://www.cof.orst.edu/cof/fr/

Goals of the research program in the Forest Resources Department are threefold:

• Develop and disseminate knowledge and information pursuant to the intelligent management, utilization,
  protection, and sustainability of forests and related resources.
• Investigate and report the socioeconomic implications of changes in forest conditions and associated natural resources.
• Provide a reservoir of knowledge and expertise in the disciplines of forest biometrics, economics, policy, forest ecology and silviculture, landscape planning and analysis, remote sensing and GIS, wildland recreation, social science, and natural resources education.

Our focus is Forest Land Management but we also address questions surrounding recreational use of natural resources, waterway regulation, lake and stream ecology, and forest economics. Much of our work involves integrated assessments of land use, with an eye toward helping policy makers and the general public make more informed decisions about natural resources.

DEPARTMENT OF FOREST SCIENCE (541) 737-6552 http://www.cof.orst.edu/cof/fs/

The Department of Forest Science has four major functions: (a) research, (b) resident instruction at the graduate level, (c) extension and (d) continuing education. The goals of the Department are:

• An Informed Public - Describe to the people of Oregon, the region and others, the fundamentals of forest structure, growth and change, to aid in making sound public policy decisions about the management of forest resources.
• A Reservoir of Knowledge - Maintain expertise and provide educational opportunities in forest biology with emphasis in forest ecology, forest genetics, forest physiology, silviculture, integrated forest protection, and agroforestry.
• Healthy Forests in a Pleasant Environment - Develop for the long-term, sustainable, energy efficient, environmentally sound systems for producing benefits from the forest lands of Oregon, the Pacific Northwest and other parts of the world.
• An Integrated Program - Develop integrated programs with other departments, universities, agencies, and industries to study and solve complex, contemporary forestry problems.
• Resident Instruction: Forest Science graduates will be specialists (MF and MS level) and scientists (Ph.D.) with sufficient depth in forest biology and breadth in the management of forest resources to make effective contributions to the solution of the most significant contemporary problems in natural resource management. Educational programs will be tailored to meet the objectives of the student, consistent with the standards and the philosophy of the department's research program. Students are an integral part of the department's research program.
• Research: The research program of the Department is conducted under the aegis of the Forestry Research Laboratory as directed by State Statute (ORS 526.215). It is funded in part through the Oregon Legislature (about 35%) through numerous contracts, grants, and cooperative funds of various origins (about 65%).

The Department's long-term research goals are to:

• Understand the physical and biological processes of unmanaged and managed forest systems.
• Determine responses of forest species, ecosystems and landscapes to management and disturbance.
• Link forest outputs (i.e. timber, wildlife, recreation, etc.) to forest processes (i.e. growth, nutrient cycling, etc.)
• Seek integrated solutions to forest problems.

These goals are attained through research in four problem areas:

• Forest processes, culture, and productivity
• Forest health and protection
• Reforestation, forest regeneration, and forest restoration
• Forest landscape integrity.