The relationship between the forest, the soil and the harvesting equipment must be understood if forest companies are to achieve sustainable and environmentally acceptable forest practices. As the soil is both the pavement over which harvesting and site preparation equipment must travel and the growing medium for future harvests, the forest industry must understand the impact of equipment activity on future fibre supply. To provide information on the interaction between forest equipment and the soils, FERIC organized a workshop for forest operations and agency staff, and contractors. More than 80 people attended the workshop that was held in Whitecourt, Alberta on February 26th, 1999. The focus of the presentations was to provide the audience with information and basic soil properties, soil mechanics and vehicle dynamics, and the effects of compaction on soil physical properties. In addition, other presentations included summaries of studies undertaken in western Canada on the impacts of felling and skidding equipment on forest soils, and impacts of harvesting activities and deciduous and coniferous regeneration. Finally, management strategies for minimizing soil degradation were discussed. These Proceedings summarize the presentations during the workshop.