Editing Plantation (section)

== Ecological impact ==
Probably the most critical factor a plantation has on the local environment is the site where the plantation is established. In Brazil, coffee plantations would use slash-and-burn agriculture, tearing down rainforests and planting coffee trees that depleted the nutrients in soil.<ref>{{Cite news |title=How Coffee Influenced The Course Of History |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/04/24/178625554/how-coffee-influenced-the-course-of-history |access-date=2022-12-07 |work=NPR |language=en}}</ref> Once the soil had been sapped, growers would move on to another place. If a natural forest is cleared for a planted forest, then a reduction in [[biodiversity]] and [[loss of habitat]] will likely result. In some cases, their establishment may involve draining [[wetland]]s to replace mixed [[hardwood]]s that formerly predominated with pine species.
If a plantation is established on abandoned agricultural land or highly degraded land, it can increase both habitat and biodiversity. A planted forest can be profitably established on lands that will not support agriculture or suffer from a lack of natural regeneration.

The tree species used in a plantation are also an important factor. Where non-native varieties or species are grown, few native faunas are adapted to exploit these, and further [[biodiversity loss]] occurs. However, even non-native tree species may serve as [[Wildlife corridor|corridors]] for wildlife and act as a buffer for native forests, reducing [[edge effect]].

Once a plantation is established, managing it becomes an important environmental factor. The most critical aspect of management is the rotation period. Plantations harvested on more extended rotation periods (30 years or more) can provide similar benefits to a naturally regenerated forest managed for wood production on a similar rotation. This is especially true if native species are used. In the case of exotic species, the habitat can be improved significantly if the impact is mitigated by measures such as leaving blocks of native species in the plantation or retaining corridors of natural forest. In Brazil, similar measures are required by government regulation.