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Forest Practices Implementation and Effectiveness 

Monitoring Update 

This report summarizes work completed by ODF Private Forests Monitoring Unit personnel 

since the last Board of Forestry (Board) update in September 2013. 

2015 Legislative Outcomes 

Funding for the program was maintained at the current level. The Department submitted a Water 

Quality Policy Option Package (POP) for a manager of the Monitoring Unit, in addition to a 

Geotechnical Specialist, Road Engineer, and an additional fraction of an FTE of a Forest 

Management Technician. While this POP was advanced as part of the Governor’s Recommended 

Budget, the legislature did not carry it forward. 

Implementation Monitoring 

Forest Practices Act (FPA) Compliance Audit 

Background 

The Board was introduced to the Compliance Audit program in the September 2012 Monitoring 

Unit update1. As per a 2011 Legislative Budget note, the department utilizes private contractors to 

collect audit data and uses that data to determine apparent compliance. The compliance audit 

provides statistically valid rates of compliance of the FPA for forestlands from which timber was 

harvested during the previous two years. The protocol and sampling process allows for reporting 

results at the statewide and FPA regional levels, by industrial, private non-industrial and other (e.g., 

county, state) ownerships, and by rule division. The department reports on FPA compliance as an 

annual Key Performance Measure for the Agency. The department presented the 2013 compliance 

audit report to the Board at the September 3, 2014 meeting2. The department has compiled results 

from the 2014 audit and is finalizing the annual report. This update provides high-level results for 

2014 as compared to 2013. 

FPA Compliance Audit Process 

The compliance audit evaluates a subset of rules based on information provided from field 

measurements made by contractors. The audited rules include road construction and maintenance, 

timber harvesting, some riparian management area measures, measures for other wetlands, and rules 

 

1

 Oregon Department of Forestry. September 2012 Board of Forestry Meeting. Forest Practices Effectiveness 

Monitoring and Compliance Audit Update. Agenda Item 3. 

http://www.oregon.gov/odf/Pages/board/BOF_090512_Meeting.aspx 

2

 Oregon Department of Forestry, September 2014 Board of Forestry Meeting. Forest Practices Act Compliance 

Audit Results. Agenda Item 7. 

http://www.oregon.gov/odf/BOARD/docs/2014_Sept/BOFSR_20140903_07.pdf
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for operations near waters of the state. The 2014 Compliance Audit used the same protocols as the 

2013 audit only differing in the sample-size of 100 notifications vs. 200 in 2013. 

The sampling design randomly selects notifications from the three FPA regions (Northwest, 

Eastern, and Southern Oregon Areas) and three landowner types (private industrial, private nonindustrial, and other, which includes municipally owned, county and State Forests lands). Sampling 

is proportional to the number of notifications indicating some type of timber harvest. Table 1 

indicates the distribution of sample sites in 2014. 

Table 1. Number of notification units sampled in 2014 by area and landowner class, private 

industrial (PI), private non-industrial (PNI), other (includes municipally owned, county and State 

Forests lands). 

Area Total Units 

Units by Landowner Class 

PI PNI Other 

Eastern Oregon 18 9 8 1 

Northwest Oregon 45 30 14 1 

Southern Oregon 37 19 13 5 

Total 100 58 35 7 

FPA Compliance Audit Results 

Results of the 2014 FPA Compliance Audit are similar to those of the 2013 audit. The 2014 

compliance audit resulted in an overall rule-level compliance rate of 96 percent (95% confidence 

interval = 95% - 97%). Table 2 also shows that the rates per region are comparable to 2013 results. 

Table 2. Rule-level Compliance Statewide and by Forest Practices Act (FPA) Regions for 2013 and 

2014. 

 Percent compliant 

2013 2014 

Statewide 96% (96% – 97%) 96% (95% – 97%) 

FPA Area 

Eastern Oregon Area 96% 94% 

Northwest Oregon Area 98% 96% 

Southern Oregon Area 95% 97% 

Overall rule-level compliance rate by ownership was high, between 96 and 98 percent (Table 3). 

The 2014 rates are similar to 2013 results. 
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Table 3. Rule-level Compliance Rates by Ownership Class for 2013 and 2014. 

 Percent compliant 

 2013 2014 

Ownership Class 

Other 98% 98% 

Private Industrial 96% 96% 

Private Non-Industrial 94% 96% 

Compliance Rates by Rule Division 

At a rule division basis, compliance was generally high (Table 4) in 2014. The highest compliance 

was found with rules dealing with vegetation retention along streams. High compliance was also 

found with rules dealing with road construction and those dealing with operations near the waters of 

the state. The lowest compliance rates were found with rules involving written plan requirements 

and rules dealing with the protection of other wetlands. These may indicate a need for further 

emphasis on small wetlands, although this rule division had a small sample size. The pattern of 

compliance by rule division is consistent with 2013. We cannot determine if the difference reflect a 

trend with two years of data. 

Table 4. Compliance Rates by Rule Division for 2013 and 2014. 

 Percent Compliant 

Rule Division Description 2013 2013 

Several Written plans 75% 83% 

625 Road Construction and Maintenance 97% 98% 

630 Harvesting 95% 93% 

640 Vegetation Retention Along Streams 98% 99% 

655 Protection for Other Wetlands 72% 83% 

660 Operations Near Waters of the State 99% 98% 

Scale of resource impacts 

The scale of resource impacts resulting in sediment delivery was mostly within the lowest 

damage classification (≤1 cubic yard sediment). Of the 149 locations contributing sediment to 

Waters of the State, 68% contributed less than 1 cubic yard of sediment. These events frequently 

involved trace amounts of sediment found in or adjacent to streams. Three events that 

contributed more than 10 cubic yards of sediment to streams were associated with roads. One 

event exceeding 100 cubic yards was associated with a road failure on a steep slope. 

The bulk of this delivery was to small water bodies. In 97% of these cases, sediment was 

delivered to Small type-N streams. Delivery to wetlands >1/4 acre and those <1/4 acre 

accounted for the other 3%. There were no instances of sediment delivery recorded directly to 

fish bearing streams in the 2014 effort. 
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FPA Compliance Audit Results: Values Created 

The department uses data derived from the compliance audit process in several ways. The 

information serves as a good starting point for focused training, both internally and externally. 

Multiple trainings done in conjunction with the Oregon Professional Loggers program and other 

stakeholders, such as Regional Forests Practices Committees, have been provided opportunities to 

review the findings and review FPA standards for individual topics as indicated by the results. For 

timberlands and mills engaged in forest certification processes, the audit results provide useful 

information during periodic review of management measures on timber source lands. 

Future Outlook 

The FPA Compliance Audit provides a monitoring system that supports efforts for continuous 

improvement by the agency, industry and landowners alike. The department plans to keep the same 

protocol in place for the next two audits, 2015 and 2016, to evaluate variance in compliance and 

trends in response. 

Changes in results are expected because of changes in written plan rules, notification system, and 

focused training efforts that result from findings in previous years. For example, lower compliance 

with written plans may improve in coming years because of the 2013 FPA rule change involving 

written plan requirements, as well as the implementation of the electronic notification system. 

The department plans to modify the audit based on results, e.g., replacing rule divisions that have 

consistently high results, with divisions that have not been audited. These changes will be done 

with input from the internal and external review committees. 

Leave Tree & Downed Wood Compliance Report 

In 2014, the Department finalized the Technical Report for the monitoring study on compliance 

with the leave tree and downed wood statutes (ORS 527.676). Results of the study were 

presented to the Board of Forestry in April 20143. 

Overall compliance with ORS 527.676 was high, about 97%. However, possible issues relating 

to the Department’s ability to determine compliance were identified. Compliance could not be 

determined for 8% of the study sample harvest units because leave tree areas were located 

outside of mapped unit boundaries and adjacent to similar stands of trees. Leave trees should be 

retained within the unit boundaries, thus when they are located outside of the mapped unit 

boundary and adjacent to similar stands, the Department did not feel that they could determine 

which trees were intended to be associated with the harvest unit. The Board of Forestry directed 

the Department to explore opportunities to improve efficiency and effectiveness of ORS 527.676 

with the Regional Forest Practices Committees (RFPC). This work will be scheduled as RFPC 

and staff workload allows. The riparian and bald eagle rule analyses are the current priority work 

topics with staff and the Committees. 

 

3

 Report can be found at: 

http://www.oregon.gov/odf/PRIVATE_FORESTS/docs/Leave%20Tree%20Downed%20Wood

%20Report%20Final%20April%202014.pdf
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Voluntary Measures in the Coast Range 

The Oregon Plan for Salmon and Watersheds was developed to help recover salmon and improve 

watersheds throughout the state. The Oregon Plan emphasizes the importance of voluntary 

restoration efforts to benefit salmon. Since the establishment of the Oregon Plan, private forest 

landowners have voluntarily conducted thousands of restoration projects and contributed 

millions of dollars to salmon and watershed restoration. The Private Forests Monitoring 

Program, the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB), the Oregon Forest Research 

Institute (OFRI) and representatives of forest landowners and operators to conduct a 

collaborative study on reported voluntary measures on forestlands in the Oregon Coast Range. 

The main of objectives of the study are to: 

1) Tell the story of voluntary measures on forestlands in Oregon. 

2) Identify barriers to the implementation and reporting of voluntary measures. 

3) Describe voluntary measures that are most frequently implemented by forest landowners. 

To accomplish objectives 1 and 3, the study will summarize information reported to the Oregon 

Watershed Restoration Inventory (OWRI) database. OWRI is the primary repository for 

information on voluntary projects that were done in association with the Oregon Plan. The study 

will also survey forestland owners on what they perceive as barriers to implementing and 

reporting voluntary projects (objective 2). 

The anticipated benefits of the study are: 

1) Increased awareness and support of voluntary measures by forestland owners and 

stakeholder groups. 

2) Improved access to technical assistance, reporting opportunities, financial and other 

assistance to help with implementing future restoration work by forestland owners. 

3) Increased implementation and reporting of voluntary measures by forestland owners. 

Effectiveness Monitoring 

RipStream Project 

The main objective of the Riparian Function and Stream Temperature (RipStream) project is to 

evaluate the effectiveness of FPA forest practices rules and State Forests management strategies at 

protecting stream temperatures within and immediately below harvest units and promoting desired 

riparian structure. Most of the focus to date, including the ongoing riparian rule analysis process, 

has been on the effectiveness of FPA and the State Forest Northwest Forest Management Plan 

(NWFMP) riparian protections for stream temperature. Stream temperature analyses are essentially 

complete, and are in different stages of preparation for publication. Analyses to address riparian 

structure and large wood recruitment questions remain to be completed. Completed work since the 

September 2013 Board meeting has largely focused on developing the stream temperature 
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predictive analysis and developing estimates of predicted temperature and shade changes for 

alternative harvest strategies for the riparian rule analysis process; however, substantial progress has 

been made on downstream temperature analyses. 

Accomplishments since the September 2013 presentation to the Board include: 

1) Fulfilment of a cooperative agreement with Oregon State University for the development of 

a descriptive model of the downstream temperature dynamics and related stream 

characteristics observed in the RipStream data. Principle Investigator: Dr. Ivan Arismendi 

(June 2015). 

2) Completion of a contract with Oregon State University for the provision of statistical 

assistance in the development of the stream temperature predictive model. Principle 

Investigator: Dr. Lisa Madsen, Department of Statistics (June 2013). 

3) Submission and acceptance (pending minor revisions) of a downstream temperature 

manuscript for publication in Hydrological Processes. The manuscript describes a physical 

basis for stream temperature change downstream of harvest, using RipStream data. Lead 

author - Dr. Lawrence (Mick) Davis of D3 Scientific (July 2015). 

4) Development of the stream temperature predictive model. Model development was assisted 

by statisticians from OSU and forest industry, RipStream external review team members, 

scientists from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and others. The model was used 

to develop estimates of predicted temperature change that would result from different 

simulated harvest approaches (April 2015). Work has begun on writing the stream 

temperature predictive model analysis as a manuscript for publication. Principle Investigator 

– Dr. Jeremy Groom, OSU Dept. of Statistics (formerly Oregon Department of Forestry). 

5) Progress on preparing the Numeric Criteria temperature analysis and the five-year postharvest analysis for publication. The Board has been appraised of these findings at earlier 

meetings. Principle Investigator – Dr. Jeremy Groom (formerly Oregon Department of 

Forestry). 

6) Peer-reviewed publication in the Federal PNW-GTR-880 of the case-study of large wood 

recruitment for a State Forests RipStream site using the OSU Streamwood model. Authors 

include Dr. Mark Meleason of ODF State Forests, Dr. Jeremy Groom (formerly Oregon 

Department of Forestry), and Liz Dent (Oregon Department of Forestry). 

7) Oral presentation of the RipStream rule analysis process as an example of the 

ODF/DEQ/Board of Forestry adaptive management cycle. Presenter: Dr. Jeremy Groom 

(formerly Oregon Department of Forestry) (Society of American Foresters, Salt Lake City, 

UT, October 2014). 

Work over the next year will include continued progress on temperature analysis publications and 

preparation for continued analysis of the riparian desired future condition and large wood 

recruitment analysis. 

The RipStream study and the Department benefit from the long-term commitment of its external 

review committee. This committee is comprised of individuals from the forestland owner 

community, forest industry representatives, Oregon State University, U.S. Forest Service, Oregon 
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Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Department of Environmental Quality. This committee 

has advised the Department on RipStream since the inception of the project and will continue to be 

used for scientific and technical matters relating to the riparian rule process and other analyses. 

Riparian Rule Analysis 

The monitoring group was charged with the remaining critical steps in the riparian rule analysis (see 

rule analysis process, June 2013 Board materials, Consent Agenda Item I): 

• Determine if proposed alternatives reflect available scientific information. 

• Review science on applicability of alternatives.

• Evaluate alternatives in terms of restrictions on practices; provide input on alternatives.

• Select alternative(s) to carry into rule language development and/or voluntary measure(s).

• Analyze the geographic scope of proposed rules.

This work and the compliance audit are the highest priority topics for the effectiveness and 

implementation monitoring personnel. 

The Board’s riparian rule analysis is based on findings of degradation concerning DEQ’s 

Protecting Cold Water (PCW) criterion. The Department regularly met with the Regional Forest 

Practices Committees, Committee for Family Forestlands, and stakeholders to develop 

prescriptions that met the PCW to the maximum extent practicable. Since September 2013, the 

Department has interacted with the Board as follows: 

• Presented results of the Systematic Review (November 2013). 

• Discussed preliminary results and emerging policy issues (April 2014). 

• Held Board Workshop on: latest science; policy and legal roles and decision spaces; 

stakeholder perspectives; Board discussion (June 2014, with workshop summary 

presented in September 2014). 

• Provided an update on the Riparian Rule Analysis and associated adjusted timeline 

(November 2014). 

• Presented methods for evaluating riparian prescriptions and their geographic extent (April 

2015). 

• Provided partial results for evaluating riparian prescriptions (June 2015). 

• Presented additional results for evaluating riparian prescriptions, considerations for Board 

decisions and policy analysis framework, and prescription packages (July 2015). 

Trask Watershed Study Road Sediment Analysis 

The Department serves as a cooperator along with the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. 

Forest Service, the U.S. Geological Service, Weyerhaeuser, and Oregon State University in 
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carrying out the Trask Watershed Study. The study is a multidisciplinary endeavor to examine 

the effects of timber harvest on the aquatic environment at multiple scales. A component of the 

study, the Road Sediment Analysis, examines changes in turbidity and delivery of sediment to 

streams before harvest, after road construction/reconstruction, and following harvest. The Road 

Sediment Analysis (sediment study) began in the winter of 2010; data collection was completed 

during the spring of 2013 and included a winter’s worth of data collection for each of the phases 

described. ODF Private Forests personnel provided technical oversight, administered grant 

requirements, provided field staff and coordinated other field data collection efforts. 

The sediment study is an intensive data collection effort involving five stream crossings 

distributed across state forestland (3) and private industrial land (2). Water samples from storm 

and non-storm periods were collected with automated samplers above and below crossings and 

were analyzed for total suspended solids (sediment) and turbidity. Funding for the project was 

provided by the Oregon Forest Industries Council, Weyerhaeuser, and the National Council for 

Air and Stream Improvement. Oregon Department of Forestry technicians installed and 

maintained the samplers and processed all samples for turbidity and sediment. 

Dr. Ivan Arismendi, of Oregon State University’s Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, has 

submitted a manuscript describing this analysis and the subsequent findings to Water Resources 

Research (April 2015). The study found increases in turbidity and sediment at some road 

crossings. However, the level of these increases were well below thresholds that have been found 

to be detrimental to any local, known organisms. The largest increases in turbidity and sediment 

were found at the control crossing, and are coincident with the falling of an alder between the 

two sample stations above and below the road. The alder’s demise resulted in stream channel 

disturbance. One crossing, surrounded by the footprint of a clearcut harvest without a buffer, 

resulted in diminished sediment and turbidity levels between the above crossing and below 

crossing stations, post-harvest and post-road improvement. We anticipate publishing these results 

prior to the next Monitoring Update to the Board. 

Water Quality Pesticide Management Team (WQPMT) 

The Water Quality Pesticide Management Team (WQPMT) is comprised of state agencies 

responsible for water quality and natural resource management in Oregon: Oregon Department 

of Agriculture (ODA), Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Oregon Health 

Authority, Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, Oregon State University, and Oregon 

Department of Forestry. With ODA in the lead role, the team developed a Pesticide 

Management Plan, which was approved by the Environmental Protection Agency, with the main 

goal of reducing ground and surface water contamination from pesticides currently registered 

and used in Oregon. This approach aligns closely with FPA rules that direct the department to 

work with partners to conduct monitoring and evaluation of the chemical and other petroleum 

product rules. 

One of the main tools for completing this work is DEQ’s Pesticide Stewardship Partnership, or 

PSP. Currently there are eight PSP areas across Oregon. A ninth watershed was recently 

selected on the Middle Rogue, near Medford. A PSP is a non-regulatory and collaborative 
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approach that works with local partners to reduce contamination from current use pesticides. 

Three of the nine PSPs represent some amount of private forestland and one PSP area has a 

significant amount of private forests. Part of ODF’s role in the forested areas is to provide 

technical information on reforestation approaches and connect local stewardship foresters and 

landowners with the WQPMT. In 2014, the team met with local private industrial forestland 

representatives from the South Yamhill PSP. The purpose of the meeting was to share results 

from past seasons of sampling efforts and engage in a dialogue that led to further refinement of 

the annual sampling schedule and testing for two additional analytes based on input from the 

landowners. 

Results of water quality data are evaluated based on the Pesticide Management Plan, which 

describes prioritizing education and outreach based on pesticide detection frequency and, using 

non-regulatory EPA benchmarks, pesticide concentration relative to benchmark. Detections 

from forested areas are usually prioritized on the lower end of the scale with respect to detection 

frequency and concentration, where education and/or continued monitoring are the expected 

responses. 

For the 2013-2015 biennium, more than 1100 water samples were collected; the team presented 

information about the PSP program at dozens of forums; conducted eight waste pesticide 

collection events across that state that removed over 145,000 pounds of unused pesticides 

(including older legacy pesticides such as DDT); and provided three technical assistance grants 

aimed at working with local partners and pesticide users to improve water quality. 

Implementation and Effectiveness Monitoring: Updating the Monitoring Strategy 

The Private Forests’ Monitoring Strategy4 has guided the Division’s monitoring priorities since it 

was updated in 2002. The Strategy established a prioritized list of monitoring questions categorized 

by general issues and monitoring type (effectiveness, implementation, etc.). The questions were 

drawn from the previous monitoring strategy, Oregon Plan for Salmon and Watersheds Workplan, 

the Forest Practices Advisory Committee final report, and citizen and stakeholder group input in 

1994 and 2000. 

The Department developed a draft work plan for how to update the strategy, and the Board 

approved this work plan at their January 2015 meeting. Staff have gathered input from stakeholders 

and partner agencies on the suite of questions to consider in the strategy, and how to prioritize these 

questions. The next phase of the process consists of working with these groups to prioritize the 

questions in a documented and consistent manner, and then solicit their input on the draft strategy 

once we have completed it. We anticipate bringing the strategy to the Board in spring 2016. 

 

4

 Oregon Department of Forestry - Forest Practices Monitoring Program Strategic Plan. April 2002. 

http://cms.oregon.gov/odf/privateforests/docs/monitoringstrategicplan.pdf
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Other Monitoring Information 

Numerous personnel changes for the Monitoring Unit have occurred over the last two years. The 

Unit added a third Monitoring Specialist, Dr. Daniel Olson, and a Monitoring Technician, Michael 

Thompson. The Monitoring Coordinator, Dr. Jeremy Groom, has left ODF to enroll in graduate 

school. The department plans to recruit for that position, following an evaluation of position needs 

and priorities. The department plans to continue to work with Dr. Groom to complete several 

RipStream stream temperature publications. 

Unit personnel also: 

• Developed and participated in a workshop on Department principles and guidelines for 

working at the interface between science and values in policy-making processes. 

• Represented the Department on the interagency water-monitoring group, Stream Team. 

• Administered a contract for, and assisted implementation of, State Forests’ consultant to 

conduct a Systematic Review of hypotheses on Marbled Murrelets. 

• Gave presentations (both talks and posters) at professional society meetings (Society of 

American Foresters, American Water Resources Association).