Forestry & Wildland Resources

When wildfire strikes a community, it can leave a path of destruction, and a chance for renewal. During the fire and in the immediate aftermath, residents and officials focus on protection and stabilization efforts. However, the availability of resources to support community recovery and promote resilience to future fires over the longer-term is less certain. Three Cal Poly Humboldt professors are studying how communities recover from wildfires over time.

Once again proving their plant prowess, Cal Poly Humboldt students won big at a national plant identification competition.

Humboldt State University has once again received recertification for its contribution to the study of fire ecology. HSU joins only eight other universities in the country in receiving the AFE certification for contributing to the field of fire ecology.

Reinforcing Humboldt State’s commitment to the community and environmental sustainability, HSU President Tom Jackson, Jr. joined K-12 teachers from across the state to tour a lumber mill in Scotia last Saturday.

Environmental Science & Management Professor Kerry Byrne, Biology Professor John Steele, Forestry Professor Lucy Kerhoulas, and graduate student Christopher Ramponi won awards that recognize the accomplishments of HSU’s excellent newer faculty members and students.

Humboldt State University science students and alumni know their plants.

The results are in from a four-year, $5.88-million biomass study led by researchers at Humboldt State University.

Humboldt State University is on the verge of receiving an 884-acre forest near campus, which will be used for research and field experiences. The effort is possible due to a generous donation from R.H. Emmerson & Son LLC, as well as major grants from state and federal agencies.

In a forest 3,000 miles away, two Humboldt State students explored the ecological mysteries of seedlings and leaves for a prestigious internship through Harvard University.

A massive tree die-off in California’s forests and a burgeoning biomass energy industry may seem like circumstances that point toward an obvious solution, but the environmental implications of more biomass energy have yet to be fully explored.