Modeling forest stewardship in Goukdi’n: An assessment of carbon, wildlife habitat, and fire resilience in a university forest

Author

Benjamin Stock, Humboldt State UniversityFollow

Graduation Date

Fall 2025

Document Type

Thesis

Program

Master of Science degree with a major in Natural Resources, option Forestry, Watershed, & Wildland Sciences

Committee Chair Name

John-Pascal Berrill

Committee Chair Affiliation

Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff

Second Committee Member Name

Daniel Lipe

Second Committee Member Affiliation

Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff

Third Committee Member Name

Christa Dagley

Third Committee Member Affiliation

Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff

Keywords

Coast redwood forests, Forest carbon modeling, Carbon sequestration, Fire resilience, Wildlife habitat, Forest Vegetation Simulator, Prescribed fire, Structural heterogeneity, Indigenous stewardship, Tribal co-management, Wiyot Tribe, Goukdi’n, Northern California, Humboldt County, University forests

Subject Categories

Forestry

Abstract

This thesis presents a forest management plan for Goukdi’n (also known as the Jacoby Creek Forest University Tract), a coast redwood–tanoak–Douglas-fir forest within the ancestral homelands of the Wiyot Tribe. This project addresses the need for a forest stewardship approach that supports ecological resilience, cultural values, and long-term forest health in a landscape shaped by industrial logging, fire exclusion, and decades of under-management. To evaluate potential management pathways, forest growth modeling was conducted using the USFS Forest Vegetation Simulator (FVS) to compare three management prescriptions focused on carbon storage, fire resilience, and structural heterogeneity and a no-action alternative. Model outputs assess canopy structure, fire risk, and future stand trajectories over a 100-year planning period. Single-tree selection maintains continuous forest cover and supports financial performance but yielded only moderate carbon storage and did not substantially reduce fire risk. Group selection with reserves had better wildlife habitat and carbon outcomes but produced higher fire risk. Variable density thinning reduced fire risk and promoted heterogeneity but stored less carbon. Blending management approaches can best optimize the achievement of future conditions. The findings emphasize the importance of adaptive management, field-based monitoring, and collaboration with the Wiyot Tribe to guide future stewardship. This plan provides a framework for operational decision-making while highlighting opportunities for co-management, Tribal access, and educational engagement.

Citation Style

APA

Recommended Citation

Stock, Benjamin, "Modeling forest stewardship in Goukdi’n: An assessment of carbon, wildlife habitat, and fire resilience in a university forest" (2025). Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects. 2506.
https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/etd/2506