RT Journal Article
T1 Windthrow in riparian buffers affects the water quality of freshwater ecosystems in the eastern Canadian boreal forest
A1 Guimond, Michel
A1 Grosbois, Guillaume
A1 Waldron, Kaysandra
A1 Montoro Girona, Miguel
AB Despite the wide application of riparian buffers in the managed boreal forest, their long-termeffectiveness as freshwater protection tools remains unknown. Here, we evaluate windthrow incidencein riparian buffers in the eastern Canadian boreal forest and determine the effect of windthrow onthe water quality index of the adjacent freshwater ecosystems. We studied 40 sites—20 riparianbuffers, aged 10 to 20 years after harvesting and 20 control sites within intact riparian environments—distributed among clay and sandy (esker) soils and black spruce (Picea mariana) and jack pine (Pinusbanksiana) stands. We observed more windthrow in the harvested stands (36%) relative to thecontrol sites (16%), regardless of substrate and species. We determined that the most importantfactors explaining windthrow were exposition, harvesting, aquatic environment size, and standcharacteristics. These factors drive wind exposure, speed, and force, which determine post-harvestwindthrow risk. Furthermore, windthrow negatively affected the water quality index of the adjacentaquatic systems, i.e., greater windthrow decreased the protective effect of the riparian buffer. Werecommend increasing the use of partial harvest near riparian environments and adapting riparianbuffers to site conditions to ensure the long-term protection of adjacent freshwater ecosystems.
PB Springer
SN 2045-2322 (electrónico)
YR 2024
FD 2024
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10272/24817
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10272/24817
LA eng
NO Guimond, M., Grosbois, G., Waldron, K., & Montoro Girona, M. (2024). Windthrow in riparian buffers affects the water quality of freshwater ecosystems in the eastern Canadian boreal forest. In Scientific Reports (Vol. 14, Issue 1). Springer Science and Business Media LLC. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-74013-3
NO This project was funded by the regional development funds from the MRC Abitibi awarded to MMG and GG. This project was also funded by Smartforests Canada, a network of monitoring plots for forest management under climate change . The Canadian Forest Services of Natural Resources Canada also provided technical support for the fieldwork and help with data analysis. A scholarship offered by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada was also obtained by MG to provide extra funding.
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Huelva
RD 13 jun 2026