Cutting with protection of regeneration and soils (CPRS) involves cutting all the adult trees in a forest using techniques that protect both the soil and the young trees in the underbush.

To preserve the young shoots and avoid soil damage, machinery operators must take every available precaution and minimize their movements, for example by using regularly spaced trails
	Regularly spaced trails help minimize machinery movements

Where is CPRS used?

CPRS is the most appropriate type of cut for adult forests comprising a single species or a combination of fir, spruce, jack pine, white birch and trembling aspen.

This type of forest is the product of prior logging or major natural disturbances such as fire, insect infestations or windstorms that destroyed the adult trees and caused all the young shoots to begin growing at the same time. The result is a very dense forest composed of huge masses of trees of roughly the same age and size. Such stands are known as “even-aged stands”.

Even-aged stands are well able to regenerate naturally if the young shoots have access to light. CPRS, by removing all the mature trees at the same time, allows the forest canopy to be reconstituted quickly, with species suited to the area. It is applied to less than 1% of the entire public forest every year.

More than 80% of the areas harvested regenerate naturally, without the need for planting. If new growth is insufficient (20%), reforestation or refilling (partial planting) is carried out to create a stand equivalent or superior to the harvested stand.

The features of CPRS

Cutting with protection of regeneration and soils is similar in many respects to the now defunct clear cutting, except that it protects young trees. In CPRS, all adult trees more than 10 cm in diameter are cut, but care is taken not to destroy or crush the natural regeneration or disturb the soil. Four or five years after cutting, new greenery can clearly be seen from the air. The initial desert-like appearance that people find so surprising is only a very short period in the life of the forest, which grows back gradually to form a rich and healthy stand.
		Natural regeneration four years after cutting

The forest is quickly renewed with species suited to the environment because the new shoots are exposed to plenty of light and are monitored carefully. This is the principal advantage of this type of intervention.

The logged areas become a veritable larder for wildlife. Plant-eating animals such as the white-tailed deer and the moose use adult stands for shelter but go to logged areas for their food. Later in the cycle, other species such as the ruffed grouse will appreciate the young forests, which provide both shelter and food.