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Aquatic Health and Biodiversity of Central Appalachian Forests (webinar)
January 25, 2022 @ 12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
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January 25, 2022
12:30 – 2:00 p.m. ET
Approved for 1.5 Category 1 SAF continuing education credits (CFE)
The Central Appalachian ecoregion spans the Appalachian, Allegheny, and Blue Ridge Mountain ranges in northwestern North Carolina to southern Pennsylvania. This ecoregion consists of many geologic variations and contains the largest drainage divide in the eastern U.S. between the Atlantic Slope and Mississippi Valley rivers. Forests in this region host a diverse amount of plant and animal species. This diversity is exceptionally high due to two main factors: lack of glaciation in the southern reaches of this region, and there is a high variability of microclimates. Additionally, this region is one of the richest temperate freshwater regions in the world and it contains parts of the Ohio, Tennessee, Cumberland, and Mobile River drainages, which are global hotspots for freshwater fish and invertebrates.
While the forests in Central Appalachia provide valuable ecosystem services, they are threatened by several human-caused factors. One of these threats includes hydrologic alteration and degradation, leading to reduced quality of aquatic habitats. Forestry best management practices are used to ensure the protection of water quality during silviculture operations. Many states provide guidelines that are voluntary, quasi-regulatory, or regulatory.
This webinar will focus on the biodiversity of aquatic systems in Central Appalachian forests, highlight the importance of good water quality, and discuss ways to mitigate threats to water quality by using the recently updated NC BMP manual for forestry.