Bug,
Not sure where you are getting this idea about forest soils being eroded and all that is left is rock. I have had the title of soil scientist/hydrologist. Overland flow is rarely if ever recorded in forests. They have high levels of organic matter and are relatively wet. They have a layer of needles, duff and small branches for armoring. The tree canopy intercepts rainfall. Even after a clear cut on the West Side the root mass stays in tact holdingn the surface soil in place for around 7 years.
I have run planting crews of up to 30 people at a time. We had no trouble finding soil to plant in.
The PNW includes eastern WA, eastern OR and Idaho. A lot of people seem to forget about all of those East Side drier forest types that are not clearcut. They are harvested by various types of selection cuts.
The US Forest Service did not exist until 1910. There were minimal regulations for timber cutting on public lands until 1964 and the Multiple Use Sustained Yield Act. In the early 1970s we got a whole group of environmental laws passed. The confusing one for timber sales is the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). It is currently being streamlined specifically to speed up the review of timber sales.
Many States like OR and WA have had their own Forest Practices Acts for decades.
