Motivations behind the forest managers’ decision making about mixed forests in the Czech Republic

Abstract

The practice of planting even-aged spruce monoculture has long tradition in the Czech Republic. Although these stands are due to climate change expected to suffer from increasing severity and frequency of extreme weather events, their conversion has been too slow. Hence, to suggest policies that will effectively support the conversion from spruce monocultures to the recommended mixed stands, the drivers behind forest managers decision making must be understood.In this study we aim to reveal the attitudes of Czech forest managers towards even-aged spruce monocultures and mixed stands and understand the drivers behind their decision making in terms of developing mixed forests. To this end, a questionnaire survey among 52 Czech forest managers was conducted; the enterprises employing the respondents were in charge of 29% of forest land in the Czech Republic. The results showed that forest managers are well-informed about alternative mixed stands and ameliorative and soil-improving species, which they consider not only ecologically advantageous but also economically acceptable. We revealed that the decision making of forest managers is affected by a combination of multiple factors: (a) long-term experience with spruce profitability, particularly the ability to provide not only long-term income but also short term yield; (b) steady high spruce-timber tradability; (c) a steady business-as-usual mindset of forest managers; and (d) missing effective measures for preventing damage by wild ungulates.