Translocation of deadwood in ecological compensation: A novel way to compensate for habitat loss.

Restoration of degraded habitat is frequently used in ecological compensation. However, ecological restoration suffers from innate problems of long delivery times of features shown to be good proxies for biodiversity, e.g., large dead trees. We tested a possible way to circumvent this problem; the translocation of hard-to-come deadwood substrates from an impact area to a compensation area. Following translocation, deadwood density in the compensation area was locally equivalent to the impact area, around 20 m3 ha-1, a threshold for supporting high biodiversity of rare and red-listed species. However, deadwood composition differed between the impact and compensation area, showing a need to include more deadwood types, e.g., late decomposition deadwood, in the translocation scheme. To guide future compensation efforts, the cost for translocation at different spatial scales was calculated. We conclude that translocation of deadwood could provide a cost-efficient new tool for ecological compensation/restoration but that the method needs refinement.

Quad Bike Riders' Attitudes toward and Use of Safety Technologies.

Worldwide, the number of quad bike-related injuries and fatalities has increased over the last 30 years and, although quad bike safety has become increasingly important over the last decade, greater understanding of the risks associated with these vehicles is required. This study aimed to improve understanding of the interrelationships between risk perception, risk management, and the use of safety technologies in quad bike operation. A total of 70 quad bike riders were interviewed in two sets of interviews: one targeting riders visiting two forestry fairs, and the other targeting riders with quad bikes equipped with ROPS. The interviews showed that the quad bike riders had a tendency for externalization of risk. This result possibly derives from the articulation and allocation of blame; the majority of respondents saw the problem of quad bike safety as a result of faulty rider behavior, thus shifting focus away from the technology as well as from themselves. This also applies to many of the interviewed ROPS owners, as one of their prime motivators in acquiring ROPS was to improve the safety of others rather than their own safety.

Double-Sided Mechanical Shocks Provoke Larger Seated Postural Reactions Compared With Single-Sided Mechanical Shocks.

STUDY DESIGN: Human volunteers were exposed experimentally to single-sided mechanical shocks (SSMS) and double-sided mechanical shocks (DSMS) while seated. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to describe and contrast seated postural reactions due to SSMS or DSMS in healthy male adults. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Mechanical shocks to the body, caused when driving on irregular terrain, are suggested to be hazardous to the spine and may be associated with the reported musculoskeletal pain of the back and neck among professional drivers. However, very little is known about the characteristics of seated postural reactions and the biomechanical effects caused by mechanical shocks. METHODS: Twenty healthy male subjects (18-43 years old) were exposed while seated to 5 SSMS and 15 DSMS in lateral directions. The second acceleration in the DSMS was in the opposite direction to the first acceleration and was fast, medium, or slow depending on the speed of direction change. Surface electromyography (EMG) was recorded in muscles of the upper neck, trapezius, erector spinae, and external oblique, while kinematics were recorded with inertial sensors placed at the neck, trunk, and pelvis. Muscle activity was normalized to maximum voluntary contractions (MVCs). RESULTS: The EMG amplitudes were significantly higher (0.6-1%; P < 0.001) for the fast DSMS than all other shocks. Range of motion (ROM) of the neck and trunk was greater during the DSMS than the SSMS. Evoked muscle activity was less than 2% MVC in the trapezius, less than 10% MVC in the erector spinae and upper neck, while the activity exceeded 10% MVC in the external oblique muscles. CONCLUSION: Fast DSMS in lateral directions appear more demanding than SSMS, demonstrating augmented seated postural reactions. However, the present mechanical shocks employed did not seem to induce postural reactions with regard to ROM or muscle activity of a magnitude likely to cause musculoskeletal overload. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4.

Accident rates and types among self-employed private forest owners.

Half of all Swedish forests are owned by private individuals, and at least 215,000 people work in these privately owned forest holdings. However, only lethal accidents are systematically monitored among self-employed forest workers. Therefore, data from the registries of the Swedish Work Environment Authority, the Labor Insurance Organization and the regional University Hospital in Umeå were gathered to allow us to perform a more in-depth assessment of the rate and types of accidents that occurred among private forest owners. We found large differences between the registries in the type and number of accidents that were reported. We encountered difficulties in defining "self-employed forest worker" and also in determining whether the accidents that did occur happened during work or leisure time. Consequently, the estimates for the accident rate that we obtained varied from 32 to > or = 4300 injured persons per year in Sweden, depending on the registry that was consulted, the definition of the sample population that was used, and the accident severity definition that was employed. Nevertheless, the different registries gave a consistent picture of the types of accidents that occur while individuals are participating in self-employed forestry work. Severe accidents were relatively common, as self-employed forestry work fatalities constituted 7% of the total number of fatalities in the work authority registry. Falling trees were associated with many of these fatal accidents as well as with accidents that resulted in severe non-fatal injuries. Thus, unsafe work methods appeared more related to the occurrence of an accident than the equipment that was being used at the time of the accident (e.g., a chainsaw). Improvement of the workers' skills should therefore be considered to be an important prevention measure that should be undertaken in this field. The challenges in improving the safety in these smallest of companies, which fall somewhere between the purview of occupational and consumer safety, are exemplified and discussed.

Relationships between observed and perceived deviations from normative work procedures.

Deviations from anticipated courses of events are often associated with accidents, while the effects of deviations that decrease productivity but do not obviously lead to human injury are less clear. A systemic approach to production and safety is introduced, and it is proposed that production deviations have effects that may lead to safety violations and personal injury. In addition, the relationship between observed and perceived production deviations from 12 senior (60-79 years old) males' routine work using three firewood processing machines is analysed. For simple machine work, perceived deviations were positively related to observed deviations per work cycle and inversely correlated to the perception of work efficiency. For more complex machine work it was more difficult to match observers' and operators' perceptions of deviations. Despite challenges in the production deviation concept, this approach offers a holistic understanding of the performance of human-machine-environment systems and complements assessments of deviations from safe working practice.

Accidents in family forestry's firewood production.

Firewood is commonly used around the world, but little is known about the work involved in its production and associated accidents. The objectives were to identify relationships between accidents and time exposure, workers' age and sex, equipment used and work activities in family forestry's firewood production. Data from a postal survey in Northern Sweden were compared to a database of injuries in the same region. Most accidents occurred to 50-69 year old men, who also worked most hours. No significant differences in sex and age were found between expected and recorded accident frequencies when calculated from total work hours; however, when calculated using numbers of active persons significant differences were found for both age and sex. Frequency of accidents per unit worked time was higher for machine involving activities than for other activities. Accidents that occurred when using wedge splitter machines were responsible for most of this overrepresentation. Fingers were the most commonly injured body parts. Mean accident rate for the equipment used was 87 accidents per million work hours, and the rate was highest for wedge splitters (122 accidents per million work hours). Exposure to elevated risks due to violation of safety procedures is discussed, as well as possible preventative measures.