Prevention

Prevention is a management strategy we are beginning to further understand. To prevent losses to forest pests, we must follow a few guiding principles (Nebeker and Hedden 1984). These principles include (1) matching the tree species to the right site—trees planted on the wrong sites seldom have the vigor necessary to deter or withstand attack; (2) controlling stand density—if a stand’s basal area exceeds the site index, then the stand should be thinned to the appropriate level; (3) promptly salvaging all lightning-struck, logging-damaged, diseased, and high-risk trees, and harvesting overmature trees when pest activity is low; (4) planting trees only in their natural range—planting species outside their range and offsite causes additional stress that increases their susceptibility to attack; (5) minimizing site and stand disturbances—exercising care in use of heavy equipment, road layout, culvert location, and other construction projects since changes in drainage result in tree stress; and (6) harvesting all mature trees at, or shortly after, rotation age. The use of good silvicultural practices reduces the likelihood of insect attack. Good silviculture can reduce losses  (Belanger and Malac 1980).

It is hoped that practitioners of forest resource protection will welcome movement toward prevention rather than relying only on suppression strategies and tactics. An example of using prevention stategies concerns southern pine beetle management. In 2001, the USDA Forest Service allocated funds to cooperating State agencies for southern pine beetle prevention work. Prior to this, funds had been allocated only for suppression. The move to initiate prevention efforts came as a result of Forest Service efforts to develop nationwide risk maps and to utilize these maps in setting priorities for addressing problems associated with changing forest health conditions. Together with planning, prevention can help alleviate need for further time and money allocated for controlling pests.