Effects of post-fire salvage logging and a skid trail treatment on ground cover, soils, and sediment production in the interior western United States

Vegetative regrowth and sediment production rates varied widely among the four study areas. This variation was largely due to differences in rainfall and soil properties, with the more productive sites having more rapid regrowth and thereby a more rapid reduction in sediment production. The susceptibility to surface runoff and erosion after high severity fires suggests that areas disturbed by ground-based salvage logging need additional mitigation practices.