Sustainable Forestry Development Research Articles

Influence of endophytic fungi treatments on aluminum contents in Vernicia montana seedlings and soils under different concentrations of aluminum stress

Although leveraging the interaction with endophytic fungi is an efficient and environment-friendly strategy for plants to enhance growth and resistance, how different endophyte species influence host plants’ resilience in adverse conditions remain comparatively unclear. In order to explore the effect of endophytic fungi on the aluminum resistance of woody host plants, Vernicia montana seedlings were subjected to different aluminum concentrations (T0, T1, T2, T3, T4) in this study. The aluminum contents in roots, leaves and rhizospheric soil of V. montana seedlings were determined after applying endophyte suspensions of Pestalotiopsis (NP), Alternaria (LA), Penicillium (QP), Coniothyrium (DC) and Thermophilic (ST) spp. The results showed that aluminum stress treatment, endophytic fungi treatment and their interaction had significant effects on aluminum content in leaves, aluminum content in roots, aluminum content in rhizospheric soil, and the transport and retention rate of aluminum ions in soil-root-leaf. With the increase of aluminum concentrations, the aluminum content in leaves of V. montana increased in the endophyte treatments of LA and ST, decreased in CK, NP and DC, or had marginal variation in QP treatment. Compared with T0, four endophyte treatments of LA, QP, DC and ST significantly reduced root aluminum content under T4 concentration (P < 0.05), contrary to the results of NP treatment. Endophyte treatments significantly increased root aluminum content of V. montana under T1 concentration (P < 0.05). The foliar Al content in fungi-inoculated seedlings was significantly lower than that of the non-inoculated ones under T0 and T3 levels (P < 0.05), the LRR is less than 1, while the opposite trend was observed under T2 and T4 treatments. The aluminum transport coefficient TFsoil-root and TFroot-leaf increased in different proportions under the same aluminum concentration. The findings indicate that the application of endophytic fungi change the aluminum contents and transport from rhizospheric soil, roots to leaves. The specific effects of endophytic fungi vary with the degree of aluminum stress and the fungi genus. The study proves that inoculation of endophytic fungi can improve the aluminum tolerance of host plants, and thereby play an important role in promoting the sustainable development of forestry.

Assessing the change in soil water deficit characteristics from grassland to forestland on the Loess Plateau

Soil moisture is an important factor that affects terrestrial ecosystems and biological growth and development, and water deficit is one of the major environmental factors threatening vegetation restoration on the Loess Plateau. The purpose was to identify the change in the soil water deficit characteristics from grassland to forestland on the Loess Plateau. In this study, we measured the soil water storage and deficit in abandoned grassland, shrubland, pioneer forestland and climax forestland along with vegetation succession in situ monitor. The results showed that the soil water content and the soil water storage with natural vegetation recovery from the abandoned grassland to shrubland and forestland showed a gradual declining trend. While on the contrary, the soil water deficit was increasing during succession, it was more severe in the deep soil than in the shallow soil layers. And the soil water deficit in July and September of the rainy season as well as that the vigorous growing period of plants was more serious than that in May and November, which are in the non-rainy season on the Chinese Loess Plateau. The vegetation types and soil depth were the key factors affecting the soil water deficiency status in the process of vegetation succession. Water-saving measures should be taken during the vigorous growing period of plants especially for those forest with natural restoration ages >50a on the Loess Plateau. The results could have great potential in the sustainable development of forestry and provide a theoretical basis for effective water management and reasonable vegetation restoration in semiarid loess regions.

Interpretation of Soil Characteristics and Preferential Water Flow in Different Forest Covers of Karst Areas of China

Soil hydrology seriously affects the prevention of desertification in karst areas. However, water infiltration in the different soil layers of secondary forests and artificial forests in karst areas remains uncertain. This lack of clarity is also the factor that constrains local vegetation restoration. Therefore, monitoring and simulating the priority transport of soil moisture will help us understand the shallow soil moisture transport patterns after artificial vegetation restoration in the local area, providing a reference for more scientific restoration of the ecological environment and enhancement of carbon storage in karst areas. The integration of soil physical property assessments, computed tomography (CT) scanning, dye tracing studies, and HYDRUS-2D modeling was utilized to evaluate and contrast the attributes of soil macropores and the phenomenon of preferential flow across various forestland categories. This approach allowed for a comprehensive analysis of how the soil structure and water movement are influenced by different forest ecosystems and infiltration head simulations (5 mm, 15 mm, 35 mm, and 55 mm) to elucidate the dynamics of water movement across diverse soil types within karst regions, to identify the causes of water leakage due to preferential flow in secondary forests, and to understand the mechanisms of water conservation and reduction in artificial forests adopting a multifaceted approach. This study demonstrated that (1) the soil hydrological capacity of a plantation forest was 20% higher than a natural forest, which may be promoted by the clay content and distribution. (2) Afforestation-enhanced soils in karst regions demonstrate a significant capacity to mitigate the loss of clay particles during episodes of preferential flow and then improve the soil erosion resistance by about 5 times, which can effectively control desertification in karst area. (3) The uniform distribution of macropores in plantation forest soil was conducive to prevent water leakage more effectively than the secondary forest but was incapable of hindering the occurrence of preferential flow. The secondary forest had a very developed preferential flow phenomenon, and soil clay deposition occurred with an increase in depth. (4) Moreover, the results for preferential flow showed that the matrix flow depth did not increase with the increase in water quantity. Short-term and high-intensity heavy rainfall events facilitated the occurrence of preferential flow. Infiltration along the horizontal and vertical directions occurred simultaneously. These results could facilitate a further understanding of the contribution of the plantation to soil amelioration and the prevention of desertification in karst areas, and provide some suggestions for the sustainable development of forestry in karst areas where plantation restoration is an important ingredient.

Enhancing Sustainable Afforestation through Innovative Earth Auger Design: A Simulation Study in Hilly Regions

The objective of this study was to advance sustainable forestry development through the creation of mechanical equipment, taking into account forestry operational methods. A suspended automatic feeding and retracting excavation device for tree pits was engineered, and its interaction with soil was investigated by integrating the Discrete Element Method (DEM) with Multi-Flexible Body Dynamics (MFBD). Based on simulation results, the research explored the impact mechanisms of the machine on soil transportation, working load, and fatigue lifespan of the spiral blades for different terrains and operating conditions. The coupling simulation method demonstrated the potential for designing and testing forestry equipment in specific operating environments, reducing time and resource consumption for field testing. Terrain significantly influenced soil disturbance variability, while the effect of operating direction was minor. Operational parameters should consider soil and water conservation, favoring the formation of fish-scale pits. Field tests in forested areas validate the practicality of the apparatus, providing valuable insights for the operation and equipment design of earth augers in hilly regions.

Estimating Forest Stock Volume Based on Airborne Lidar Data

Abstract. Forest stock volume (FSV) stands as an important indicator in evaluating the potential for carbon sequestration. It is crucial for forest resource management at local, regional, and national scales. In order to achieve an accurate estimation of FSV, this article takes Mengyin County, Shandong Province, China as the research area, builds a random forest (RF) model for four tree species based on airborne Lidar data, and forms a monitoring system of "individual tree - grid - county" granularities. The results demonstrated that all four models exhibited excellent generalization capabilities, with no signs of overfitting. In the test phase, the R2 of the poplar and pine models exceeded 0.9, while the R2 of the cypress model was 0.81, and the rRMSE was controlled within 20%, indicating that the fitting effect of the three tree species models was better; the accuracy of the robinia pseudoacacia model was relatively poor, with R2 of 0.60 and rRMSE of 20.60%. This study provides a feasible method for estimating forest stock volume within the county, which provides strong technical support for forest resource management and planning, and helps promote sustainable forestry development.

The Neurotranscriptome of Monochamus alternatus.

The Japanese pine sawyer Monochamus alternatus serves as the primary vector for pine wilt disease, a devastating pine disease that poses a significant threat to the sustainable development of forestry in the Eurasian region. Currently, trap devices based on informational compounds have played a crucial role in monitoring and controlling the M. alternatus population. However, the specific proteins within M. alternatus involved in recognizing the aforementioned informational compounds remain largely unclear. To elucidate the spatiotemporal distribution of M. alternatus chemosensory-related genes, this study conducted neural transcriptome analyses to investigate gene expression patterns in different body parts during the feeding and mating stages of both male and female beetles. The results revealed that 15 genes in the gustatory receptor (GR) gene family exhibited high expression in the mouthparts, most genes in the odorant binding protein (OBP) gene family exhibited high expression across all body parts, 22 genes in the odorant receptor (OR) gene family exhibited high expression in the antennae, a significant number of genes in the chemosensory protein (CSP) and sensory neuron membrane protein (SNMP) gene families exhibited high expression in both the mouthparts and antennae, and 30 genes in the ionotropic receptors (IR) gene family were expressed in the antennae. Through co-expression analyses, it was observed that 34 genes in the IR gene family were co-expressed across the four developmental stages. The Antenna IR subfamily and IR8a/Ir25a subfamily exhibited relatively high expression levels in the antennae, while the Kainate subfamily, NMDA subfamily, and Divergent subfamily exhibited predominantly high expression in the facial region. MalIR33 is expressed only during the feeding stage of M. alternatus, the MalIR37 gene exhibits specific expression in male beetles, the MalIR34 gene exhibits specific expression during the feeding stage in male beetles, the MalIR8 and MalIR39 genes exhibit specific expression during the feeding stage in female beetles, and MalIR8 is expressed only during two developmental stages in male beetles and during the mating stage in female beetles. The IR gene family exhibits gene-specific expression in different spatiotemporal contexts, laying the foundation for the subsequent selection of functional genes and facilitating the full utilization of host plant volatiles and insect sex pheromones, thereby enabling the development of more efficient attractants.

Spatiotemporal variation and response of gross primary productivity to climate factors in forests in Qiannan state from 2000 to 2020

Accurate estimation of terrestrial gross primary productivity (GPP) is essential for quantifying the carbon exchange between the atmosphere and biosphere. Light use efficiency (LUE) models are widely used to estimate GPP at different spatial scales. However, difficulties in properly determining the maximum LUE (LUEmax) and downregulation of LUEmax into actual LUE result in uncertainties in the LUE-estimated GPP. The recently developed P model, a new LUE model, captures the adaptability of vegetation to the environment and simplifies parameterization. Site-level studies have proven the superior performance of the P model over LUE models. As a representative karst region with significant changes in forest cover in Southwest China, Qiannan is useful for exploring the spatiotemporal variation in forest GPP and its response to climate change for formulating forest management policies to address climate changes, e.g., global warming. Based on remote sensing and meteorological data, this study estimated the forest ecosystem GPP in Qiannan from 2000–2020 via the P model. This study explored the spatiotemporal changes in GPP in the study region over the past 20 years, used the Hurst index to predict future development trends from a time series perspective, and used partial correlation analysis to analyse the spatiotemporal GPP changes over the past 20 years in response to three factors: temperature, precipitation, and vapor pressure deficit (VPD). Our results showed that (1) the total amount of GPP and average GPP in Qiannan over the past 21 years (2000–2020) were 1.9 × 104 ± 2.0 × 103 MgC ha−1 year−1 and 1238.9 ± 107.9 gC m−2 year−1, respectively. The forest GPP generally increased at a rate of 6.1 gC m−2 year−1 from 2000 to 2020 in Qiannan, and this increase mainly occurred in the nongrowing season. (2) From 2000 to 2020, the forest GPP in Qiannan was higher in the southeast and lower in the northwest, indicating significant spatial heterogeneity. In the future, more than 70% of regional forest GPP will experience a weak increase in nonsustainability. (3) In Qiannan, forest GPP was positively correlated with both temperature and precipitation, with partial correlation coefficients of 0.10 and 0.11, respectively. However, the positive response of GPP to precipitation was approximately 70.47%, while that to temperature was 64.05%. Precipitation had a stronger restrictive effect on GPP than did temperature in this region, and GPP exhibited a negative correlation with VPD. The results showed that an increase in VPD inhibits GPP to some extent. Under rapid global change, the P model GPP provides new GPP data for global ecology studies, and the comparison of various stress factors allows for improvement of the GPP model in the future. The results of this study will aid in understanding the dynamic processes of terrestrial carbon. These findings are helpful for estimating and predicting the carbon budget of forest ecosystems in karst regions, clarifying the regional carbon absorption capacity, clarifying the main factors limiting vegetation growth in these regions, promoting sustainable regional forestry development and serving the “dual carbon goal.” This work has important guiding significance for policy formulation to mitigate climate change.

The Function of Root Exudates in the Root Colonization by Beneficial Soil Rhizobacteria.

Soil-beneficial microbes in the rhizosphere play important roles in improving plant growth and health. Root exudates play key roles in plant-microbe interactions and rhizobacterial colonization. This review describes the factors influencing the dynamic interactions between root exudates and the soil microbiome in the rhizosphere, including plant genotype, plant development, and environmental abiotic and biotic factors. We also discuss the roles of specific metabolic mechanisms, regulators, and signals of beneficial soil bacteria in terms of colonization ability. We highlight the latest research progress on the roles of root exudates in regulating beneficial rhizobacterial colonization. Organic acids, amino acids, sugars, sugar alcohols, flavonoids, phenolic compounds, volatiles, and other secondary metabolites are discussed in detail. Finally, we propose future research objectives that will help us better understand the role of root exudates in root colonization by rhizobacteria and promote the sustainable development of agriculture and forestry.

Directions For Sustainable Development of Forestry with Low Greenhouse Gas Emissions

In the context of increasing anthropogenic pressure, climate-smart forestry is one of the approaches to achieving the goals of its sustainable development. The basic component of sustainable development of forestry is movement in accordance with the trajectory of scientific and technological development of the industry. The work analyzed the scientific research of scientists, as a result of which the directions of advanced research carried out for the sustainable development of forestry with low greenhouse gas emissions were established. Next, in the identified areas, a predictive expert-analytical assessment of the prospects for technologies for sustainable development of forestry in the Russian Federation with low greenhouse gas emissions was carried out. It has been proven that the highest priority technologies include technologies for assessing the vulnerability of forest ecosystems to climate change and technologies for increasing the productivity of the depositing capacity of forest ecosystems. The overall result of the bibliometric study confirms the high scientific interest in conducting research on the identified priority technologies.

Journey of Indian forestry and its development from past to modern era

The history of Indian forest is closely linked with political history. The epics Ramayana and Mahabharata give an attractive description of forests. The Dandakaranya, the Khanadavban and the Nandanvan come from them. Ancient Hindu culture is said to have evolved in Aryans. Literatures are not however scientific treaties. Nevertheless, they give a glimpse into dim and distant past. They are an indication of the level of significance the forests had in the cultural life of people. The dense forests of India have been found to have protected the land in the past, but population grew, the forest began to deplete. However, historically, the people of India have respected forests, and many religious ceremonies focused on trees and plants. Gautama Buddha preached that people should plant trees every five years, and sacred groves were marked around temples. Chandra Gupta Maurya and Ashoka also recognized the importance of forests and implemented polices for their protection and growth. During the British colonial period, the forests were gradually appropriated for revenue generation, but after India gained independence in 1947, a new Forest Policy was established to protect the forests and retain a third of India’s land area under forest cover. Forests have been playing a vital role in meeting the demands of domestic and in meeting the demand which ushered in a total mismatch between demand and supply. Over the following years, people’s attitudes towards forests changed, leading to significant development in forestry in India. More emphasis is given to conservation and management of forests, which contributes to sustainable development of forestry in India. A large number of forest-based industries were set up, which contributed immensely towards the economic growth of the country.

Energy, exergy and exergo-economic analysis of a novel SOFC based CHP system integrated with organic Rankine cycle and biomass co-gasification

This paper proposes a novel SOFC based cogeneration system, consisting of biomass co-gasification, SOFC power generation and ORC waste heat recovery, to achieve the efficient and clean utilization of poultry litter. Based on the conceptual design, the energy, exergy and exergo-economic analysis are conducted, including sensitivity analysis, uncertainty analysis and multi-objective optimization. Results show that when using straw as the co-gasification biomass with poultry litter, the highest energy utilization efficiency of 44.70 % is obtained with the electricity and heat production of 162.02 kW and 52.41 kW, respectively. The biomass gasifier and the SOFC stack have the highest exergy destruction, accounting for 24.43 % and 19.99 % of the total. Sensitivity analysis presents complex results concerning mass fraction of poultry litter, water content, equivalent air ratio and water-carbon ratio, etc. The optimal solution for the current optimization problem is obtained. When poultry litter mass fraction is fixed at 25 %, TSOFC = 852 °C and uf = 0.73, the exergy efficiency is obtained as 41.95 % and the overall exergy cost per unit is obtained as 42.35 $/GJ. This paper investigates a novel cogeneration system relying on the biomass co-gasification of poultry litter, providing a new solution for poultry litter treatment and sustainable development of agriculture, forestry and husbandry.

СТИМУЛИРОВАНИЕ УСТОЙЧИВОГО РАЗВИТИЯ ЛЕСНОЙ ЭКОСИСТЕМЫ В УСЛОВИЯХ БОРЬБЫ С КЛИМАТИЧЕСКИМИ ИЗМЕНЕНИЯМИ

This article reveals the problems and ways to solve them related to the sustainable development of forestry in the face of climate change. Vector global trends, such as global climate change and the growth of anthropogenic pressure, entail a huge negative impact on the environment, in the form of degradation of natural ecosystems and a reduction in their biological diversity. The processes of depletion of natural mineral resources, water, land, and forest resources increase the likelihood of environmental disasters, as well as lead to hazardous natural phenomena with a subsequent negative effect on the economic and social components of the life of the population in a country or region. The forest ecosystem, as a global natural phenomenon and part of the economy of nature management, not only satisfies the resource needs of mankind, but is also of great importance for maintaining the integrity and maintaining the sustainability of the existence of the biosphere in the processes of sequestration and storage of carbon and, consequently, in reducing the greenhouse effect and mitigating the effects of climate change. Our analysis of the forest ecosystem is based on an indicative in the form of nature-adapted solutions in the field of sustainable development. As part of the study, based on the analysis of literary sources, the main reasons hindering the sustainable development of forestry were identified. The need to create conditions in the form of conceptual foundations for the sustainable development of "nature-like" forestry, such as: sustainable economic development, sustainable development of the environment and culture, is noted.

Multi-Omics Analysis of Gene and microRNA Expression in Diploid and Autotetraploid Poplar under Drought Stress by Transcriptome, microRNA, and Degradome Sequencing

Drought-induced forest death has become a global phenomenon, which is hindering the development of sustainable forestry. Polyploidy breeding has been considered as an effective method of genetic improvement for tree stress resistance. However, the response mechanisms of tetraploid poplars to drought stress are unclear. In this study, based on high-throughput sequencing of transcriptome, small RNA, and degradome for these samples, which selected three genotypes of tetraploid poplars and their counterpart diploids for drought stress and rewatering trial in the experiment, we performed multi-omics analyses to investigate the distinction in drought resistance between tetraploid and diploid. A total of 3391 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were found from the Dro-Di vs. CK-Di, 3753 DEGs from the Re-Di vs. Dro-Di, 3857 DEGs from the Dro-Te vs. CK-Te, and 4177 DEGs from the Re-Te vs. Dro-Te. Of the above DEGs, 1646 common-DEGs were identified significantly related to drought-stress response, 2034 common-DEGs related to rewater response, 158 and 114 common-DEGs showed opposite expression patterns between diploid and tetraploid, implying that these DEGs might play important roles in response to drought stress as a result of differences in ploidy. Additionally, 586 known miRNAs and 72 novel miRNAs were identified through analysis of 18 small RNA libraries, among which eight common-miRNAs were significantly related to drought-stress response, and four were related to rewater response. The degradome sequencing analysis revealed that 154 target transcripts for 24 drought-stress-associated differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRs), and 90 for 12 rewatering-associated DEmiRs were identified in the tetraploid based on both degradome and TargetFinder analyses. These findings provide valuable information for further functional characterization of genes and miRNAs in response to drought stress in Populus polyploidy, and potentially contribute to drought-resistant breeding of polypoid in the future.

Isolation of endophytic fungi from Cotoneaster multiflorus and screening of drought-tolerant fungi and evaluation of their growth-promoting effects.

In the context of climate change and human factors, the drought problem is a particularly serious one, and environmental pollution caused by the abuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides is increasingly serious. Endophytic fungi can be used as a protection option, which is ecologically friendly, to alleviate abiotic stresses on plants, promote plant growth, and promote the sustainable development of agriculture and forestry. Therefore, it is of great significance to screen and isolate endophytic fungi that are beneficial to crops from plants in special habitats. In this study, endophytic fungi were isolated from Cotoneaster multiflorus, and drought-tolerant endophytic fungi were screened by simulating drought stress with different concentrations of PEG-6000, and the growth-promoting effects of these drought-tolerant strains were evaluated. A total of 113 strains of endophytic fungi were isolated and purified from different tissues of C. multiflorus. After simulated drought stress, 25 endophytic fungi showed strong drought tolerance. After ITS sequence identification, they belonged to 7 genera and 12 species, including Aspergillus, Fusarium, Colletotrichum, Penicillium, Diaporthe, Geotrichum, and Metarhizium. According to the identification and drought stress results, 12 strains of endophytic fungi with better drought tolerance were selected to study their abilities of dissolving inorganic phosphorus and potassium feldspar powder and producing indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). It was found that the amount of dissolved phosphorus in 7 strains of endophytic fungi was significantly higher than that of CK, and the content of soluble phosphorus was 101.98-414.51 μg. ml-1; 6 endophytic fungi had significantly higher potassium solubilization than CK, and the content of water-soluble potassium ranged from 19.17 to 30.94 mg·l-1; 6 strains have the ability to produce IAA, and the yield of IAA ranged between 0.04 and 0.42 mg. ml-1. This study for the first time identified the existence of endophytic fungi with drought tolerance and growth-promoting function in C. multiflorus, which could provide new direction for plant drought tolerance and growth promotion fungi strain resources. It also provides a theoretical basis for the subsequent application of endophytic fungi of C. multiflorus in agricultural and forestry production to improve plant tolerance.

Formation of the environmental and economic basis of the balanced development of the forest sector

The study is devoted to the study of the formation of the ecological and economic foundations of the balanced development of the forest sector. The work examines key aspects of the state of forestry, and also identifies factors affecting the economic and environmental sustainability of this sector. The article analyzes the current state of forestry, highlights the main environmental problems associated with the exploitation of forest resources, and also considers the possibilities of their rational use. In particular, the research is focused on the identification of optimal strategies for forest use, which would contribute to ensuring a balance between economic needs and preservation of the natural environment. An integrated approach to the management of forest resources is considered, taking into account economic, ecological and social aspects. The application of the latest technologies, the creation of ecological reclamation programs and support for the sustainable development of forestry are key components of the proposed strategies. Therefore, the article highlights the need and possible ways of forming ecological and economic foundations for the balanced development of the forest sector with a view to increasing the efficiency of the use of forest resources and preserving the ecological balance.

A Transition-Matrix Growth Model and Equilibrium Curve for Natural Forests in Jiangxi Province

Researchers build growth models to predict the growth of forest stands and propose management measures to improve the overall quality of these stands. In this study, data collected from 91 sample plots from the eighth (2010) and ninth (2015) Chinese National Forest Inventories in Jiangxi Province were used to establish a transition-matrix growth model. Then, 12 potential equilibrium curves were set to guide forest management, and a transition-matrix growth model was used to predict stand growth in Jiangxi Province. In each 10-year management period, trees with diameters that exceeded the equilibrium curve were cut down. The results show that species diversity (H1), size diversity (H2), and basal area (B) have statistically significant influences on growth, mortality, and recruitment. Moreover, the high accuracy of the transition-matrix growth model is demonstrated. According to the simulation results, B = 35 m2/ha, the maximum diameter of retained trees Dmax = 45 cm and the adjacent diameter ratio q = 1.7 constitute the optimal equilibrium curve to guide forest management. The diameter distribution guided by the equilibrium curve is reverse J-shaped and is associated with significant increases in the hardwood stock volume and current annual growth. Under the guidance of the equilibrium curve, the forests in Jiangxi Province can be reasonably managed, produce more high-economic-value timber, and achieve a more stable species composition. This study will help maximize the ecological and economic benefits of forests and provide a reference for the realization of the sustainable development of forestry. Furthermore, the results can be used to improve the facility and accuracy of natural forest harvesting.

Mapping the soil organic matter content in a typical black-soil area using optical data, radar data and environmental covariates

Soil organic matter (SOM) plays an extremely important role in soil formation, soil fertility, environmental protection and the sustainable development of agriculture and forestry, especially in areas with fertile black soil. Remote sensing technology has unique advantages in SOM mapping and can quickly and accurately obtain SOM spatial distribution maps at a low cost. However, the current methods available for fusing radar data, optical data and environmental covariates for use in SOM mapping are far from sufficient. The study area is Youyi Farm, a typical black-soil area in Northeast China. Multiyear monthly composites of the bare-soil periods (April and May) from 2019 to 2022 in the study area were created in the Google Earth Engine (GEE), including VH-polarized and VV-polarized Sentinel-1 radar data, 10 spectral bands of Sentinel-2 data, elevation and slope terms representing terrain covariates, and multiyear average precipitation and temperature data representing climate covariates. SOM was mapped in the study area based on 188 cultivated-layer (0–20 cm) sampling points combined with a random forest regression algorithm, and the SOM mapping accuracies of different strategies were evaluated. The results show that 1) the SOM mapping accuracy obtained using Sentinel-1 data combined with Sentinel-2 data was improved slightly compared to that obtained using Sentinel-2 data only, with improvements observed mainly in the prediction accuracies of areas with SOM contents below 5 %; 2) the highest accuracy was obtained by using the May composite image, while the April and May composite images reduced the accuracy; 3) adding environmental covariates greatly improved the SOM mapping accuracy, with the highest R2 being 0.696 and the lowest RMSE being 0.712 %; and 4) the importance of climate covariates was found to be higher than that of terrain covariates. This study expands the existing SOM mapping research using radar and optical data and evaluates the effects of different environmental covariates on the SOM mapping results.

Research on the Impact of Cooperative Membership on Forest Farmer Household Income and Assets—Case Study from Liaoning Herbal Medicine Planting Cooperatives, China

Improving the income and assets of forest farmers is the basis for realizing the sustainable development of forestry. In this paper, we tested the impact of membership in herbal medicine planting cooperatives on forest farmer household income and assets using the propensity score matching (PSM) method and household surveys of the study area. The results showed that cooperative membership can greatly improve forest farmer household income and assets; the higher the accumulation of forest farmer household social capital and human capital, the more farmers were inclined to participate in cooperatives. Householders who were migrant workers were more likely to make the decision to participate in cooperatives compared with those without migrant work experiences. The results of ATT further verified the conclusion that cooperative membership can significantly improve income and assets, which increased by 7.04% and 4.19%, respectively. In addition, according to the survey, the current development of cooperatives in the forestry area experienced problems such as inconsistent quantitative and qualitative development, insufficient driving force, irregular operating mode, inaccurate policy support, and inadequate guidance mechanisms. This paper focused on innovating cooperation mechanisms, enriching joint forms, enhancing driving capacity, stimulating internal driving forces, strengthening system construction, improving standards, enhancing guidance services, and strengthening institutional guarantees. These recommendations have been put forward to guide policy for sustainable forest development.

Рациональное лесопользование в России: проблемы и перспективы совершенствования организационно-правового механизма

The solution to the problem of preserving forests on the planet depends on the efforts of the entire world community. An important place in this issue is given to legal mechanisms that consolidate the mutual obligations of states, as well as the norms of domestic legislation to ensure the sustainable development of forests and forestry. The article analyzes the current state and practice of implementing the international legal regime, as well as the provisions of domestic forest legislation in terms of organizational and legal support for improving the efficiency of economic use of forests on the territory of the Russian Federation. The problems and prospects of the implementation of certain regulatory instruments that ensure the implementation by the Russian Federation of state policy in the field of forestry development are shown. In particular, the author substantiates the decisive role of the state in building mechanisms for rationalizing the use of forests, taking into account the use of a set of administrative and economic incentive measures for economic entities. It is necessary to move from a resource-oriented approach to an ecosystem one in the development of the forest economy, allowing to harmonize the interests of the state, society and business in the use of forest resources while maintaining acceptable rates of socio-economic development of the country.

Research on Sustainable High-Quality Forestry Development in China—From Measurements, Dynamic Evolution, and Regional Differences

Following the new development philosophy, this research elaborates the connotation of sustainable high-quality forestry development and constructs an evaluation index system based on the connotation. The entropy-based TOPSIS method was used to measure the forestry development level from 2005 to 2021 in China. On this basis, the kernel density estimation, spatial association analysis, Markov chain, and Gini index were used to analyze the evolution characteristics in time and space and regional differences in China’s forestry development from multiple angles and levels. The results show that, first, although the overall sustainable high-quality development level of China’s forestry tends to rise, and the level ranking of each province is relatively stable, the development level varies greatly from province to province; second, the development level in the central, eastern, and western regions shows an upward trend, and in the northeast region, it rose first and then fell, presenting a decreasing step distribution of from the eastern, central, northeast, to western regions; third, the regional differences are the main reasons for the development difference in China’s forestry, with the largest difference in the east, followed by the west, central, and northeast regions; fourth, sustainable high-quality forestry development in various provinces has a great effect in terms of spatial agglomeration, and the spatial lag has a significant impact on the transfer of sustainable high-quality forestry development; however, there are still some difficulties in achieving progress in its development.