The minerals in the water where the logs rested played an important part in the color of the finished lumber. Many factors can harm the quality of the logs; oxygen, direct sunlight and pests. However, while resting underneath the water they were being protected from these enemies. After centuries, the sunken treasure has finally been recovered.
Deadhead hunting Photo Credit. DeadHead Lumber Company has been focused on reclaiming the sunken logs from Maine rivers and lakes. Because the weather on northern Maine lakes and rivers changes so quickly and dramatically, many of the rafts transporting the logs were either lost or abandoned during the storms. The rivers and lakes served as highways for moving the logs from forest operations to sawmills. It is now estimated that one out of every ten logs that floated on the commercial waterways sank to the bottom, before reaching their destination in North America.
Before the railroads reached the north woods, loggers went into the forests in the winter and cut down trees with axes or cross-cut saws and dragged the logs to the river banks of the closest river. In addition to end coating, hardwood mills may choose to either air dry lumber for some time or implement a pre-dry process before kiln drying.
Lumber is placed in a pre-dry building and fans continuously blow across the stacks of wood. This step is taken before subjecting the boards to a more aggressive drying environment the kiln. Sprinkling logs with water Sprinkling log decks with water is done in various parts of the country to help protect lumber from developing defects before it is kiln-dried.
A large lawn sprinkler-type unit is used by lumber mills to keep stacks of lumber wet, especially during hotter times of the year. Water evaporation helps keep the logs slightly cooler, slowing down the instance of fungal growth.
When logs are very wet, it is more difficult for fungus to get established because they need oxygen for growth; it is also harder for insects to lay eggs. In the West, some pine-producing mills will also use this method to retard blue staining, which commonly can be seen on lumber in the summer months.
A regional strategy to protect lumber from discoloration At some eastern mills, birch, maple, and pine logs that are to be sawn into boards earmarked as specialty products are frozen to ensure white colour. The short logs from winter-cut timber are placed in ground depressions and sprayed with water to form a coating of ice. The frozen log decks are covered with sawdust, wood shavings, or other available insulating material so that the wood remains frozen well into the summer months when further processing will commence.
A special note to mill personnel Hats off to all mill personnel who work very hard to complete the pre-kiln processing of lumber, meet the challenges of seasonal changes and use all methods economically possible to protect boards against developing defects end splits and discoloration, to name a few. Not to mention using proven strategies to stop mold and fungal growth and insect infestation from invading good quality lumber.
Readers now have a sample of the challenges and complex decision-making processes awaiting a kiln operator. However, when all of the necessary tools are used and critical regimens followed, the efforts of mill personnel will be rewarded by producing the best-grade lumber possible.
Ron Smith is a sales manager for Wagner Meters and has 28 years of experience in instrumentation and measurement systems in different industries. In previous positions, he has served as a regional sales manager, products and projects manager, and sales manager with manufactures involved in measurement instrumentation.
Your email address will not be published. Exact matches only. Just like terrestrial forests, aquatic habitat can be enhanced with structural diversity. A log wedged into a river bottom provides shelter from the currents. The log changes the flow pattern of the river to create eddies that bring in food and washes away fine silts, allowing formation of gravel beds. These gravel beds are crucial for anadromous fish spawning, allowing a place for eggs and young fry to hatch and develop without immediately getting washed away to sea.
Logs in creek systems are significant sources of habitat quality, and when most of these logs are removed from a system, it could have detrimental effects on fish populations, not to mention other countless riverine species and the geomorphology of the river itself.
Another way to look at terrestrial timber harvest practices is that the harvest lands are in the business of tree production. Trees are harvested, replanted, and harvested again in calculated cycles.
Old growth forests are rarely if ever cut due to environmental regulations that reserve critical habitat for listed species.
The timber industry has the practice of logging now called forestry down to a very distinct science, and is constantly working with regulatory agencies on environmental impacts at local, state, and federal levels. Pulling logs from watersheds will prompt a string of environmental regulations if operations occur within the United States. This is a likely reason underwater logging companies may take their business to places beyond U. There are levels of agencies a sub aquatic harvester will work with, from local city or county departments to state and federal agencies.
These agencies are responsible for upholding environmental laws and guiding the harvester through the process. In , the impacts of removing logs from watersheds were determined to be significant enough to require the applicant to undergo California Environmental Quality Act CEQA evaluation. The CEQA process is in place to minimize negative environmental consequences by evaluating potential impacts and providing mitigations measures while delivering information to the public.
Agencies that oversee these regulations are the Fish and Wildlife Service, U. For a summary of the legal processes that involve watershed alterations, check out the Guide to Watershed Project Permitting. The focus is on California, but provides a good review of federal guidelines as well.
The science that specifically addresses underwater logging is lacking, meaning the long-term effects on aquatic ecosystems can be hypothesized but not fully understood. To deem one method of timber harvest as more sustainable than another is mainly a marketing strategy, because there is no reliable method currently in place to quantify the concept of sustainability.
If there is no way to systematically test an idea, then companies are free to use the rhetoric to their benefit without being required to show evidence. Thus, instead of asking how sustainable a product is, perhaps the consumer should ask different questions that relate specifically to their personal needs or concerns. If this article has you interested in wood furniture, check out these pieces made from cypress wood.
A Quick Update June 6, Read more. Site Map. How Do Trees Get Underwater? Log Condition Decades Later As counterintuitive as it may seem, sinker logs provide excellent quality wood products. Extracting Underwater Logs There are two types of underwater logs to harvest: the escaped logs from previous operations and the dead trees still rooted to the bottom. Riverbed to Floorboards: Marketing the Lumber After the time and effort are put forth to extract the sinker logs, there are additional production costs before the wood is ready to sell.
Underwater Logging and the Environment Boards cut from recovered logs are touted as sustainable or environmentally friendly, largely because they are not harvested from terrestrial forests. Rules of the River: Regulating Underwater Logging Pulling logs from watersheds will prompt a string of environmental regulations if operations occur within the United States.
Conclusion The science that specifically addresses underwater logging is lacking, meaning the long-term effects on aquatic ecosystems can be hypothesized but not fully understood. Bio Latest Posts. Danielle started as a field biologist in
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