Forest Land Management Research Articles

Response of avian cavity nesters and carbon dynamics to forest management and climate change in the Northern Rockies

AbstractForest ecosystem services (e.g., carbon and nutrient cycling, biodiversity, and wood products) in many moisture‐limited systems in the western USA are being impacted by climate change. Maintaining these services, increasing resiliency, and conserving wildlife habitat will depend on climate change adaptive forest management strategies. Studying the impacts of U.S. Forest Service (USFS) land management plans on long‐term carbon cycling and wildlife habitat is imperative for evaluating and implementing adaptive management under climate change. In this study, we present the results of an integrated framework of forest landscape and avifauna niche suitability modeling, applied in the northern Rockies of Idaho (NRI). We report on the interactive effects of climate change, fire, and harvest management on carbon cycling and the distribution of suitable habitat of two avian cavity nesters: Flammulated Owl (Psiloscops flammeolus) and American Three‐toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis). The net ecosystem carbon balance (NECB) of the NRI was predicted to be negative (carbon source) at the end of the century, primarily because of harvest removals on privately managed lands. This was despite increases in net ecosystem productivity stimulated by harvest. In contrast, NECB of USFS land was positive throughout the century. This was a direct result of the Idaho Panhandle National Forest Land Management Plan (Plan) objectives that were implemented via harvest prescriptions. Under climate warming, compositional shifts in Pinus ponderosa and Pseudotsuga menziesii along with increases in mature/old‐growth forest stands were in agreement with the Plan's objectives. These and additional species composition shifts also maintained the realized niche of the Flammulated Owl and increased the potential niche of the American Three‐toed Woodpecker on USFS land by the end of the century. These projections highlight the potential for the NRI to remain viable wildlife habitat in a warming climate and to sequester carbon. The research demonstrates the benefits of an integration modeling framework as a tool to evaluate multi‐objective forest management directives.

Contribution of root decay process on soil infiltration capacity and soil water replenishment of planted forestland in semi-arid regions

Large-scale afforestation has seriously aggravated the consumption of soil water and caused soil desiccation and even the dry soil layers, which has been restricting the survival and sustainability of vegetation in semi-arid areas. How to solve soil water deficit reasonably is an important practical problem we are facing. Here, a field experiment of the decayed roots with different times on soil water infiltration processed was conducted in planted forestland by a double-ring infiltration instrument, to determine the contribution of decayed tree roots on soil water infiltration process and replenishment. Results showed that the decayed process of tree roots in forestland could significantly reduce root density (RD) and increase the relative porosity improved by the roots (RPIR) (P < 0.05). The macropore formed by root decay could not only significantly increase the infiltration rate at each stage (P < 0.05), but also reduce the decrease rate of infiltration rate. Compared with bare land, the decayed roots of the 1–4 yr, the 5–8 yr, and the 9–12 yr increased the amount of soil water replenishment by 37.12%, 217.52%, and 259.85%, respectively. Overall, the decayed tree roots could maintain a relatively high and stable infiltration rate by reduced root density, which increased the effective replenishment of soil water of dry soil layers in forestland. These findings have potential implications for understanding the effect of decay process of tree roots on soil water replenishment, and provide a theoretical basis for the solution to dry soil layers and sustainable management of forestland in semi-arid areas.

Analysing patterns of forest cover change and related land uses in the Tano-Offin forest reserve in Ghana: Implications for forest policy and land management

Forest cover change is a major contributing factor to global environmental change. Whereas several studies have focused on the general land use and land cover dynamics, we focus on analysing forest cover change patterns in a protected landscape taking into consideration how other land categories are increasing at the expense of the forest. In this study, we analyse forest cover change patterns and associated proximate land use factors between 1987 and 2017 using Landsat images from the Tano-Offin Forest Reserve (TOFR) in Ghana. Using the Random Forest machine learning algorithm, we classified the images into forest, developed land, and agricultural land. The study finds that forest cover losses are 1.9 and 1.4 times the amount of forest cover gains in 1987–2002 and 2002–2017, respectively. We find that even though the forest cover is more likely to recover from the agricultural land, land developers mostly targeted the agricultural land. The focus of Ghana's Forest and Wildlife Policy and the underlying process of forest cover change in the TOFR suggest that a country's forest policy should focus on a combination of diverse and spatially explicit proximate factors that are likely to threaten the integrity of forests.

Study on wind damage grade model for eucalyptus plantation in Guangxi, China

Wind damage is one of the dominant natural disasters that have the greatest impact on the growth of plantations. However, little attention has been paid to the wind damage grade model. Based on eucalyptus plantations from national forest inventory data and field investigations in Guangxi, ten significant factors that are susceptible to wind damage were selected to perform multiple linear regression analysis on wind damage grade model. Through assessing the level of wind damage based on forest characteristic and site conditions, we aimed to reduce the loss of economic benefits caused by wind damage. The results showed that the age group of eucalyptus trees, slope, soil thickness, management grade, and total vegetation coverage had significant effects on the wind damage of eucalyptus trees in this area. Therefore, it is necessary to protect the vegetation coverage of forest land and to strengthen the management of forest land to improve the wind resistance of eucalyptus forests in the future.

Quantifying the Compound Factors of Forest Land Changes in the Pearl River Delta, China

Forestland has been a focus of urbanization research, yet the effect of urbanization on forest land change on an urban agglomeration scale still remains unclear. Screening and quantifying the main factors affecting forest land changes have practical significance for land planning and management. Considering the characteristics of the region and referring to related studies, 26 natural, social, and economic factors were screened in the Pearl River Delta (PRD), where land-use changes are intense. Geographically weighted regression and the relative importance were used to quantify the spatial heterogeneity of these main factors. There was still a large area of deforestation evident in the PRD with its afforestation area of 604.3 km2 (mainly converted from cropland) and a deforestation area of 1544.6 km2 (mainly converted from built-up land). The effects of socio-economic factors were the main factors for these forest land changes, especially the rural population and migration. Deforestation mainly occurs in urban growth boundaries, which will be the focus area for further land management. These main factors have the potential to provide a methodological contribution to land-use changes, and the results of this study can provide a solid theoretical basis for forest land management and urban planning (e.g., balancing expansion of built-up land and ecological protection that advances forest land protection and restoration).

Possibilities of forest property insurance against the risk of fire in Slovakia

Fire is considered one of the major natural hazards that damages European forests and causes losses for forest owner. The forest fires endanger the financial stability of forest enterprises, which may cause their economic decline. One possibility how to cover these losses is to insure forest land against this kind of specific risk of forest land management. The aim of the present paper is to analyse possibilities of forest fire insurance for forest owners and enterprises in the Slovak private insurance market. The market analysis was based on document analysis of general terms and insurance conditions of chosen private insurance companies and interviews with insurance agents. The results show that forest owners and enterprises have only few options for forest property insurance concerning the specific risk of forest fires. Only one commercial insurance company provides such forest fire insurance product for forest owners. This insurance covers material damage to forest land and timber damage.

A simulation of the rainfall-runoff process using artificial neural network and HEC-HMS model in forest lands

Simulation of the runoff-rainfall process in forest lands is essential for forest land management. In this research, a hydrologic modelling system (HEC-HMS) and artificial neural network (ANN) were applied to simulate the rainfall-runoff process (RRP) in forest lands of Kasilian watershed with an area of 68 square kilometres. The HMS model was performed using the secondary data of rainfall and discharge at the climatology and hydrometric stations, the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) for simulating a flow hydrograph, the curve number (CN) method for runoff estimation, and lag time method for flow routing. Further, a multilayer perceptron (MLP) network was used for simulating the rainfall-runoff process. HEC-HMS model was used to optimize the initial loss (IL) values in the rainfall-runoff process as an input. IL reflects the conditions of vegetation, soil infiltration, and antecedent moisture condition (AMC) in soil. Then, IL values and also incremental rainfall were applied as inputs into ANN to simulate the runoff values. The comparison of the results of simulating the RRP in two scenarios, using IL and without IL, showed that the IL parameter has a high effect in increasing the simulation performance of the rainfall-runoff process. Moreover, ANN predictions were more precise in comparison with those of the HMS model. Further, forest lands can significantly increase IL values and decrease runoff generation.

Characterising spatiotemporal vegetation variations using LANDSAT time‐series and Hurst exponent index in the Mekong River Delta

AbstractSpatiotemporal analysis and monitoring of vegetation help us investigate ecological health and guide better forest conservation and land management practices for sustainable development. This paper proposes the use of spatial analysis approaches (i.e., ordinary least squares [OLS] and the Hurst exponent) combined with time‐series analysis using enhanced vegetation index (EVI) data, derived from LANDSAT via the Google Earth Engine, to estimate the trends and sustainability of vegetation dynamics in the Tra Vinh Province in the Mekong River Delta. We also assessed the EVI changes connected to land change issues to examine the influence of land use conversion on vegetation dynamics. Results show that a large portion of the study area was covered by abundant vegetation (over 50% of the total area), and the increased EVI area was about 5.5‐times greater than the area of EVI reduction. Additionally, vegetation sustainability was being seriously compromised (e.g., a decrease in the total area of 8,275 ha) due to several land conversion drivers such as shrimp farming, urbanisation, and industrialisation. Furthermore, results obtained from this research provide insight into the spatiotemporal dynamics of vegetation coverage and reveal the consistency of future vegetation trends. Moreover, the study also quantitatively assessed the positive impacts of Buddhist doctrines on reducing the negative trend of vegetation change in the study area. These findings can lay the ground to formulate sustainable land and environmental plans that meet the 11th, 13th and 15th Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (i.e., the sustainable cities and communities, the climate actions, and the life on land). Besides, the analytical procedure adopted in this study can also be applicable to any other coastal areas that require the accurate assessment of vegetation status over time.

Distribution and altitudinal patterns of carbon and nitrogen storage in various forest ecosystems in the central Yunnan Plateau, China

The carbon (C) pool in forest ecosystems plays a long-term and sustained role in mitigating the impacts of global warming, and the sequestration of C is closely linked to the nitrogen (N) cycle. Accurate estimates C and N storage (SC, SN) of forest can improve our understanding of C and N cycles and help develop sustainable forest management policies in the content of climate change. In this study, the SC and SN of various forest ecosystems dominated respectively by Castanopsis carlesii and Lithocarpus mairei (EB), Pinus yunnanensis (PY), Pinus armandii (PA), Keteleeria evelyniana (KE), and Quercus semecarpifolia (QS) in the central Yunnan Plateau of China, were estimated on the basis of a field inventory to determine the distribution and altitudinal patterns of SC and SN among various forest ecosystems. The results showed that (1) the forest SC ranged from 179.58 ± 20.57 t hm−1 in QS to 365.89 ± 35.03 t hm−1 in EB. Soil, living biomass and litter contributed an average of 64.73%, 31.72% and 2.86% to forest SC, respectively; (2) the forest SN ranged from 4.47 ± 0.94 t ha−1 in PY to 8.91 ± 1.83 t ha−1 in PA. Soil, plants and litter contributed an average of 86.88%, 10.27% and 2.85% to forest SN, respectively; (3) the forest SC and SN decreased apparently with increasing altitude. The result demonstrates that changes in forest types can strongly affect the forest SC and SN. This study provides baseline information for forestland managers regarding forest resource utilization and C management.

Reshaping forest management in Australia to provide nature-based solutions to global challenges

ABSTRACT It is time to move beyond the era of conflict and develop a new shared vision for the management of Australia’s public forests. We need more holistic approaches that encompass all forest values across the landscape, rather than the current approach of dividing public forest management up across different government agencies. More collaborative approaches will be required to galvanise the resources, skills and knowledge that enables this shift in shared governance. Recent bushfires in Australia have heightened concerns that the management of public forest lands has largely failed to ensure the health of forest ecosystems, build resilience, and secure a promised balance between economic, social and environmental values. Investment in efforts to adapt forest management to address climate change has been limited; and empowering and increasing the role of Indigenous Australians in forest management could be significantly improved. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to improve the resilience of regional communities to major shocks and stresses caused by factors that encompass market dynamics, supply-chain disruptions and natural disasters. Three key strategies are proposed to strengthen forest management in Australia: first, establishing new shared governance models that bring together government agencies with Indigenous Australians and actors from the private sector and civil society; second, extending active and adaptive management across forest landscapes that builds resilience in our forests, local communities and society; and third, integrating traditional knowledge with scientific evidence and innovative technologies to enhance forest management for improved resilience and other outcomes.

Forest Land Quality Evaluation and the Protection Zoning of Subtropical Humid Evergreen Broadleaf Forest Region Based on the PSO-TOPSIS Model and the Local Indicator of Spatial Association: A Case Study of Hefeng County, Hubei Province, China

Forest land is the carrier for growing forests. It is of great significance to evaluate the forest land quality scientifically and delineate forestland protection zones reasonably for realizing better forest land management, promoting ecological civilization construction, and coping with global climate change. In this study, taking Hefeng County, Hubei Province, a subtropical humid evergreen broad-leaved forest region in China, as the study area, 14 indicators were selected from four dimensions—climatic conditions, terrain, soil conditions, and socioeconomics—to construct a forest land quality evaluation index system. Based on the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) model, we introduced the Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm to design the evaluation model to evaluate the forest land quality and analyze the distribution of forest land quality in Hefeng. Further, we used the Local Indicator of Spatial Association (LISA) to explore the spatial distribution of forest land quality and delineate the forest land protection zones. The results showed the following: (1) the overall quality of forest land was high, with some variability between regions. The range of Forest Land Quality Index (FLQI) in Hefeng was 0.4091–0.8601, with a mean value of 0.6337. The forest land quality grades were mainly first and second grade, with the higher-grade forest land mainly distributed in the central and southeastern low mountain regions of Zouma, Wuli, and Yanzi. The lower-grade forest land was mainly distributed in the northwestern middle and high mountain regions of Zhongying, Taiping, and Rongmei. (2) The global spatial autocorrelation index of forest land quality in Hefeng County was 0.7562, indicating that the forest land quality in the county had a strong spatial similarity. The spatial distribution of similarity types high-high (HH) and low-low (LL) was more clustered, while the spatial distribution of dissimilarity types high-low (HL) and low-high (LH) was generally dispersed. (3) Based on the LISA of forest land quality, forest land protection zones were divided into three types: key protection zones (KPZs), active protection zones (APZs), and general protection zones (GPZs). The forest land protection zoning basically coincided with the forest land quality. Combining the characteristics of self-correlated types in different forestland protection zones, corresponding management and protection measures were proposed. This showed that the PSO-TOPSIS model can be effectively used for forest land quality evaluation. At the same time, the spatial attributes of forest land were incorporated into the development of forest land protection zoning scheme, which expands the method of forest land protection zoning, and can provide a scientific basis and methodological reference for the reasonable formulation of forest land use planning in Hefeng County, while also serving as a reference for similar regions and countries.

Understanding Factors Affecting Livelihood Strategies of Firewood and Charcoal Producers in the Dry Lands of Ethiopia

This study identifies the determinants that influence the livelihood strategies of firewood and charcoal producers. The paper involves a survey questionnaire of 295 sample households based on snow ball sampling method in the dry lands of Oromia and Afar regions during 2019. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multivariate probit (MVP) model. Results show that 39% of households derived their income from crop and 47% from wood fuel for those households whose livelihoods strategy in farming. Households in agro pastoral livelihood strategy about 58% and 21 % derived their income from wood fuel and crop, respectively. Households whose depend their livelihood strategies on pastoral, 51% generate their income from wood fuel and 29% from wage. The model reveal that sex, age, education, family size, livestock holding, farm size, distance, off-farm activity, relief aid, training, market information, and membership on institution were significantly affected the livelihood strategy of firewood and charcoal producers in the dry lands of Ethiopia. Therefore, firewood and charcoal producer livelihoods are diverse and policy makers need to reflect on the most suitable ways of supporting sustainable use of dry land forest management and socio-economic intervention options. Keywords : Charcoal, Dry land, Ethiopia, Firewood, Livelihood DOI: 10.7176/JETP/11-2-02 Publication date: March 31 st 2021

Landscape ecological enhancement and environmental inequalities in peri-urban areas, using flora as a socio-ecological indicator – The case of the greater Paris area

The peri-urban areas of European metropolises offer a diversity of vegetated spaces – forests, agricultural land, abandoned or preserved natural areas – that receive ecological attention from city dwellers. This attention varies locally depending on the socio-economic characteristics of the population and raises the question of ecological inequalities in accessing different types of landscapes. Once the target of a green belt project that was never carried out, the peri-urban areas of the Paris region have undergone different trajectories according to local biophysical, social and political characteristics. This article shows how these characteristics interconnect and explain the ecological enhancement or abandonment of landscapes in a complex urban region using flora as an indicator. To do so, (1) we build a landscape analysis at different scales, (2) we collect botanical data at 252 sites and analyse it through statistical multivariate analysis, and (3) we correlate the plant communities’ spatial distribution to socio-economic contexts and planning projects. The results show that the socio-political dimension is decisive for understanding how and why vegetated areas are enhanced or abandoned and helps to correlate ecological preservation and socio-economic contexts locally. Flora reflects these dynamics: the type of management of forest or arable lands, as well as a mixed deprivation/luxury effect on flora. Peri-urban vegetated landscapes are a target for local political projects that may lessen environmental inequalities, or conversely and more insidiously, may perpetuate them.

喀斯特山区土地利用方式转变对土壤酶活性及其化学计量特征的影响

土地利用变化引起的土壤理化性质改变会显著影响土壤碳氮磷养分含量及其化学计量特征，然而由于不同研究区域环境异性较大，土壤胞外酶活性及其化学计量特征与各土壤因子间的协同变化规律仍不明确。以喀斯特山区7种典型土地利用方式（马尾松林地、柏树林地、灌木林地、梯田菜地、梯田撂荒地、坡面撂荒地和坡耕地）为研究对象，采用时空互代法研究土地利用方式转变过程中6种土壤胞外酶活性（β-1，4-葡萄糖苷酶、β-1，4-木糖苷酶、纤维素二糖水解酶、β-1，4-N-乙酰葡萄糖苷酶、亮氨酸氨基肽酶和酸性磷酸酶）及其化学计量特征的变化规律，并分析它们与土壤理化因子之间的关系。结果表明坡耕地转变土地利用方式后，土壤养分状况和酶活性得到明显改善，并且土壤微生物通过调节酶的表达和活性提高了磷素的有效性，促进了土壤养分的平衡。总体来看，坡耕地转马尾松和柏树林地后土壤质量改善的效果更加显著，但加剧了土壤磷素的限制。此外，土壤全氮含量、C∶N、N∶P和pH是土壤酶活性变化的主要驱动因素，土壤酶活性与养分含量具有趋同性且受土壤pH的调控。因此，喀斯特地区马尾松和柏树人工林的经营管理过程中应考虑磷素的投入以缓解人工林生态系统的磷限制。;Changes of soil physicochemical properties caused by land use conversion will significantly affect the content of nutrients (carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus) in soil and its stoichiometric characteristics. However, it is still unclear about the synergistic change between soil extracellular enzyme activity as well as its stoichiometric characteristics and soil factors due to the large environmental difference in different study areas. In this study, 7 kinds of typical land use types (Pinus massoniana land, Platycladus orientalis land, shrub land, terrace of vegetable field, terrace of abandoned land, sloped abandoned land, and sloped farmland) were selected as research objects in karst mountainous area. Taking the existing sloped farmland as the reference substance, the variation of 6 kinds of extracellular enzyme activity and its stoichiometric characteristics (β-1,4-glucosidase, cellobiohydrolase, β-1,4-xylosidase, β-1,4-N-acetylglucosaminidase, leucine aminopeptidase and acid phosphatase) were compared before and after the change of land use types using the spatio-temporal contrast method, and the relationship between them and soil physical and chemical factors were also analyzed. The results showed that soil nutrient status and enzyme activity were significantly improved after the conversion of land use type from sloped farmland to other, which not only significantly increased the nutrient content but also promoted the soil nutrient balance, because soil microorganism regulated the expression and activity of enzymes and the availability of phosphorus was greatly improved. In general, land use conversion from the sloped farmland to Pinus massoniana land and Platycladus orientalis land showed similar and best effect of soil quality improvement, whereas it also increased the restriction of soil phosphorus. In addition, soil total nitrogen content, C:N, N:P and pH value were the main factors driving the change of soil extracellular enzyme activity. The change of soil enzyme activity was consistent with that of nutrient content, and was regulated by the power of hydrogen. Therefore, the phosphorus input should be considered in the management of Pinus massoniana and Platycladus orientalis forest land in karst areas for alleviating the phosphorus restriction of artificial forest ecosystem.

Current challenges for sustainable forestry management in Ukraine: production, taxation and investments issues

Ukraine's forestry has been experiencing systemic political, economic, social, and environmental problems for many years. This article aims to find new ways to balance production, taxation, and forestry investment to ensure sustainable development. We sought answers to three main questions: Does the modern mechanism of state regulation and forestry financing in Ukraine meet sustainability requirements? What changes will the critical problems of forest ecosystems arise in Ukraine in the long run? What are the prospects for the development of investment in forestry in Ukraine? To answer these questions, we conducted exploratory analyses of taxation and investment in forestry management. Then, we developed a multifactorial forecasting model to predict forest ecosystems' restoration state by 2035. Using the model, we characterized the relationship between ecological and economic factors for reforestation in the border regions of Ukraine. Finally, we analyzed the coefficients of forest capacity, yield and dynamics of afforestation. According to the results, we proposed: 1) to separate the functions of standard-setting and forest inventory from the function of forest land management; 2) to separate the function of economic activity and control over the implementation of forestry development plans; 3) to stimulate public control and increase effective monitoring of anthropogenic load, forest use and rehabilitation; 4) to improve the organizational and institutional management mechanism as a component of forest production which is the key to improving the forestry sustainability.

Study on the impact of livelihood capital on farmers’ choice of forestland management mode —a case study of Fujian province

Based on the survey data of 300 households in Fujian province, the system of farmers’ choice of forestland management mode was constructed by using the framework of sustainable livelihood analysis, and the impact of livelihood capital on farmers’ choice of forestland management mode was analyzed by using binary logistic model. The research shows that the factors of livelihood capital have different impact on the choice of forestland management mode. On this basis, the author puts forward some countermeasures to encourage farmers to improve their livelihood capital capacity, develop scale management and reduce their dependence on forestland income.

FORMATION OF THE TOURIST AND RECREATIONAL FOREST POTENTIAL: METHODOLOGICAL AND STRATEGIC GUIDELINES FOR SYSTEM ASSESSMENT

The current state of spatial and territorial development of recreational nature management in Ukraine is characterized by the fact that the country has significant natural resource potential, unique recreational resources, as well as a valuable natural reserve fund. This proves that the possibility for further development and forestland use for recreational purposes, and the formation of spatial-territorial recreational systems with the involvement of forestlands can be widely developed. At the same time, this is a prerequisite for the active development of market relations in the field of recreational and tourist management, since the diversity and uniqueness of forest resource potential creates the opportunity to gain competitive advantages in using separate recreational resources that will provide high demand and prices for them. From these perspectives, the purpose of the paper is to deepen economic assessment of recreational forest resource potential for ensuring the formation of territorial forest resource assets (natural capital) in the context of strategic guidelines for sustainable forestry spatial development. The main principles of formation of the territorial and recreational forest resource potential (capital) have been considered in this paper. Also, it should be taken into account that, at present, the methods of economic (cost) estimation of certain types of natural resources, which are involved in economic activity and recreational activities, are well-developed and widely used. Therefore it should be noted that the problem of an integrated system assessment of territorial forest resource capital is relevant for the recreational use of forest lands, since it is necessary to evaluate, as far as possible, and more fully, all of its components, for the effective decision-making in the management mechanism. The scheme of the system assessment of the territorial and recreational forest potential (TRFP) has been developed and represented. The main objectives of ecosystem management of forest areas in the context of providing balanced recreational forestland management have been determined. It was concluded that comprehensive and system assessment of recreational forest resource capital based on the application of the natural capital methodology and the concept of total economic value (value) should become an effective lever in the market-oriented mechanism of forest management in the spatial and territorial format. The article identifies theoretical and conceptual guidelines for system assessment of territorial forest capital in the context of spatial development strategies.

Establishment of the conservation level for forestland and the standards for efficient development

The research objective of this study is to derive the standards for efficient development and the conservation level for the eco-friendly development and the demarcation of forestland among the rural areas. The problems of the classification were discussed through the literature review. To solve the problems, the evaluation criteria were suggested through the Delphi survey and the AHP method. The result of this study showed that the classification criteria for forestland have not been developed from the past framework. Moreover, the classification of the zoning among the rural areas is affected by the distinction between reverse forestland and semi-reserve forestland according to &#65378;Forest law&#65379; in 1985. As a result of the Delphi and AHP survey, the derived items for the evaluation of the conservation level and the efficient development were significantly different from the evaluation indexes for the land suitability assessment and the classification criteria of the forestland under the &#65378;Forest Land Management Law&#65379;. The necessity of reorganizing the classification system for the zoning in the rural areas is brought up as a significant topic by presenting the current issues on classification for the forestland through the legislation analysis. Finally, the evaluation standards from the statistics will contribute to the improvement of eco-friendly standards for developing the forestland and the classification of the zoning in the rural areas.

Understanding the key characteristics and challenges of pine barrens restoration: insights from a Delphi survey of forest land managers and researchers

Pine barrens are open‐canopy ecological communities once prevalent on sandy soils across the northern Great Lakes Region of the United States and Canada, though fire suppression and plantation forestry have now reduced them to a few isolated areas. Efforts to restore pine barrens are underway on some public lands, but lack of knowledge on the social and ecological issues and challenges that affect these projects impedes fuller progress. As a precursor to designing a public preference survey for pine barrens restoration, we sought input from those with expert knowledge about pine barrens. Using a three‐round modified Delphi survey, forest land managers and researchers identified the key characteristics of pine barrens and important current and future management challenges. Key characteristics were related to fire, landscape structure, plant and animal species, soils, and social themes. Current and future challenges were related to landscape, invasive species, social, economic, climate change, and science themes. Four social issues (education, fire acceptance, fire risk, aesthetics) were rated among the top current challenges but none of them maintained prominence as future challenges. Potential explanations for this shift are that the experts felt these social concerns would be resolved in time or that other issues, such as development pressures and budgets for carrying out restoration, would become greater future challenges. Our approach can be used by managers and researchers to better understand the ecosystems they seek to restore and to communicate with public stakeholders about restoration efforts.

The coloniality of private forest lands: Harvesting levels, land grants, and neoliberalism on Vancouver Island

This paper examines how colonial land grants and the neoliberalization of forestry policy have enabled an aggressive harvesting regime on a massive tract of private land on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. We detail the intensity of industrial logging activities of three forestry companies—Island Timberlands, TimberWest, and Western Forest Products—on private land on Vancouver Island. We draw on 11 years of harvesting volume records from the public British Columbia Harvest Billing System to examine the rate of harvest on private land by the aforementioned companies. The paper maps the harvesting volumes we report in relation to forest land ownership and the boundaries of land grants to demonstrate the enduring settler‐colonial character of fee simple forest land and industrial harvesting activities. We argue that neoliberal legislation introduced in 2003 deregulated forestry operations on private lands, facilitating the harvesting regimes we detail. We further suggest that settler‐colonial enclosures set in motion by the Esquimalt &amp; Nanaimo Railway Company land grants starting in 1884 have been foundational to the establishment and management of private forest lands on Vancouver Island and continue to represent barriers for Indigenous communities as they assert their rights and title to private forest land.