Evaluating Abiotic Factors Related to Forest Diseases: Tool for Sustainable Forest Management

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The influence of abiotic factors in the development of a disease is recognized in plant pathology. An abiotic factor may be the direct cause of a disease or may determinate the importance of an infectious disease or may be a key factor in forest decline diseases. Numerous studies have related forest diseases with abiotic factors around the world and for different forest species (Baccalla et al., 1998; Bernier & Lewis, 1999; Demchick & Sharpe, 2000; Dezzeo et al., 1997; Hennon et al., 1990; Horsley et al., 2000; Maciaszek, 1996). Statistical techniques coupled with geographical information systems have fostered the development of predictive host habitat distribution models. The habitat-association approach can be used to generate risk maps, an important tool for developing forest management criteria (Fernandez & Solla, 2006; Meentemeyer et al., 2004; Van Staden et al., 2004; Venette & Cohen, 2006). Many techniques with varying complexity were developed: rule based habitat models (Schadt et al., 2002a), niche modeling (Meentmayer et al., 2008, Rotemberry et al. 2006), neutral landscape models (With, 1997; With & King, 1997), etc. This chapter aimed to describe some usefully methods for evaluating abiotic factors in relation to forest diseases at landscape scale and for developing risk models as tool for forest management. The methods described in this chapter were used for modeling Phytophthora disease risk in Austrocedrus chilensis [(D. Don) Pic. Serm. & Bizzarri] forests of Patagonia (La Manna et al., 2008b, 2012).