Risk Assessment & Management Flashcards

A forester is evaluating chronic wasting disease (CWD) risk in a forest management plan that includes managed deer hunting. Which management action MOST directly reduces CWD transmission risk?

Answer: Increasing hunting pressure to reduce deer density below CWD transmission thresholds

Reducing deer population density below the density-dependent transmission threshold is the most evidence-based management intervention for slowing CWD spread in affected areas.

Which remote sensing product is MOST useful for identifying areas of recent bark beetle-caused tree mortality at a landscape scale for risk mapping?

Answer: Landsat-based normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) change detection

NDVI change detection using Landsat time-series data effectively captures the spectral shift from healthy green canopy to red and gray attack phases of bark beetle mortality across large landscapes.

Under NEPA, which level of environmental review is MOST appropriate for a forest management action with uncertain but potentially significant environmental impacts?

Answer: Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)

An EIS is required for federal actions that may significantly affect the quality of the human environment, providing the most thorough analysis for decisions with major or highly uncertain environmental impacts.

Which of the following CORRECTLY describes the relationship between 'sensitivity' and 'adaptive capacity' in forest climate vulnerability assessments?

Answer: High sensitivity increases vulnerability, while high adaptive capacity decreases it

In the IPCC vulnerability framework used in forestry, sensitivity describes how much a system is affected by climate stressors, while adaptive capacity describes its ability to adjust, making them inversely related to overall vulnerability.

A logging operation near a fish-bearing stream requires a risk assessment for fine sediment delivery. Which site factor has the GREATEST influence on sediment delivery risk to the stream?

Answer: Slope gradient and distance from disturbed area to the stream channel

Slope gradient directly drives erosion potential and sediment transport energy, while proximity to the stream channel determines how much sediment actually reaches the water rather than being deposited upslope.

In stochastic risk modeling for forest carbon projects, Monte Carlo simulation is used primarily to:

Answer: Quantify the probability distribution of outcomes across a range of uncertain input variables

Monte Carlo simulation runs thousands of iterations with randomly sampled input values to produce probability distributions of outcomes, enabling quantification of risk and uncertainty in forest carbon projections.

A forester preparing a risk management plan for a harvesting operation on a slope with erodible soils should prioritize which of the following Best Management Practices (BMPs) to protect water quality?

Answer: Installing water bars and broad-based dips on skid trails and haul roads before the rainy season

Water bars and broad-based dips installed on trails and roads divert runoff before it can concentrate and cause erosion, making them the highest-priority BMP for slope stabilization on erodible sites.