An increase in tractor logging in recent years and resulting concern regarding skid road compaction led to this investigation of the effects of tractor logging on the physical properties of soils in southwestern Washington. Nine areas of recent tractor logging with adjacent undisturbed mature timber were selected for sampling. Samples were obtained from the undisturbed timber which was used as a control, tractor roads, and tractor cutover on each of these areas. The latter included all of the area not in the major skid road system. The samples consisted of 3‐inch soil cores taken at the surface with a special sampling tool. Soil permeability rate, bulk density and pore space distribution were determined for each sample in the laboratory. Results showed that the soils from the tractor cutover had a 35% loss in permeability rate, a 2.4% increase in bulk density and a 10% decrease in macroscopic pore space when compared to the timber control. The tractor roads showed a 93% loss in permeability, a 15% increase in bulk density and a 53% loss in macroscopic pore space. The areal extent of the tractor skid roads in this study was found to be 26% of the logged area.
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Steinbrenner et al. (1955) studied this question.