Tool For Sustainable Forest Management Research Articles

Multiscale fragmentation of forest types in Spain

This work contributes to the understanding of forest landscape ecology to support large-scale forest planning in Mediterranean forests. It examines the forest condition from a general perspective of habitat fragmentation in Spain. Our objective is to establish a framework for the assessment and comparison of the degree of forest fragmentation by generating reference curves of the Forest Area Density (FAD) metric, by forest type, and identifying multiscale fragmentation profiles at both the pixel and forest type level. To achieve this objective, pixel-level FAD values were produced in the entirety of Spain using a moving-window procedure and considering five scale levels and 20 forest types. Moreover, the results of this study inform useful operational scales and scaling relations, jointly providing a comprehensive national reference framework. We also propose a general theoretical model of fragmentation that derives from the relationship between the shape of the FAD reference curves and the considered scale levels. Based on this model, we define a new multiscale indicator for forest planning: the scale level (i.e., the size of the analysis window) at which the FAD metric takes a mean value of 50%. We expect this new indicator to be a useful tool for sustainable forest management.

Ecological Evaluation of the Sustainability of City Forests

The Košutnjak forest in the city of Belgrade, Serbia, with an area of 259 ha, provides ecological and social benefits to its inhabitants, but its composition has changed in the last 20 years: forest areas have decreased, people have become irresponsible towards the forest and forest soil, and forest degradation is evident. The question is whether the forest has the potential to regenerate and survive. The horizontal assessment of attributes was carried out using data from the official forest database of the administrative unit “Košutnjak (2007–2016)”, which, in conjunction with the basic forest, defines indicators of change, stability, and self-renewal, which assume sustainability and can be a useful tool for sustainable forest management. The attributes and indicators are processed on a three-level alphanumeric scale in Microsoft Excel, and the data collected and analyzed are mapped using ArcGis 9.3. The ability of forests to survive without human intervention was evaluated using the EEFS method of ecological assessment of forest sustainability, which was used for the first time in this study. The results showed that forest change was significant, stability was medium, and self-renewal was low on most sections, so forest sustainability was rated as unlikely. The EEFS method used provided results that can form the basis for a forest management strategy in the city and a platform for the long-term monitoring of forest condition.

Generalized height-diameter models with random effects for natural forests of central Mexico

Background: Tree height is an important variable in forestry, as it is commonly used to estimate volume and biomass, and to evaluate site productivity. In this study, we developed four generalized equations to model height-diameter ( h-d) relationships for coniferous and broadleaf species. For this purpose, we used information from 49 permanent sampling plots located in the natural forests of Puebla, Mexico. Non-linear fixed and mixed-effects modeling approaches were used to fit generalized versions of the Gompertz function to Pinus patula and the Pinus group, the Näslund function to Abies religiosa, and the Curtis function to the Quercus group. Results: Stand variables included in the models were the number of trees per hectare ( N), quadratic mean diameter ( dg), and basal area per hectare ( G). The results showed a model efficiency (EF) = 0.91 and root mean square error (RMSE) = 2.04 for P. patula, as well as an EF = 0.91 and RMSE = 1.63 for the Pinus group. The EF and RMSE for Abies religiosa were 0.88 and 2.21, while for the Quercus group these values were 0.72 and 1.9, respectively. From the mixed-effects model calibration, only a sub-sample of three trees from different quantiles of the diameter distribution is required to make accurate predictions. No stand-level variables related to tree height are included in any of the selected models, thus no additional measurements beyond tree diameter are required. Conclusion: Compared to conventional non-linear least squares (ONLS), mixed-effects models are more flexible and accurate and represent a new tool for sustainable forest management of natural forests in the study area.

What does FSC forest certification contribute to biodiversity conservation in relation to national legislation?

Forest certification has emerged as a voluntary, market-driven tool for sustainable forest management (SFM). Its legitimacy depends on its ability to achieve its objectives and to retain the support of stakeholders such as NGOs and the companies that adopt it. This study presents a novel approach for assessing the contributions of forest certification to biodiversity conservation, based on Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification in four northern European countries (Finland, Sweden, Estonia, Latvia). In each case, national FSC certification requirements related to specific biodiversity targets were compared with requirements in national legislation. Nearly 80% of the assessed certification requirements were more prescriptive than the national legislation. One-third of these requirements (3–8 per country) were assessed to have a positive contribution to biodiversity conservation, whereas four requirements (up to 2 per country) were assessed to have a low positive contribution. FSC requirements to protect Woodland Key Habitats were identified as having a positive contribution in all four countries, whereas requirements regarding live tree retention in harvests and preserving dead wood had a positive contribution in three countries each. Despite often prescribing similar measures, the other requirements with positive contributions varied between countries depending on the national legislative baseline. The remaining requirements could not be assessed through expert evaluation, indicating the need for additional empirical research to evaluate how the normative requirements translate to impacts in the field, and how the national context may affect their implementation. The approach is globally applicable, repeatable, and provides a basis for designing systematic empirical assessments of the certification impact.

The portrayal of forest certification in national and state newspapers of the United States

Forest certification has emerged as a market-based tool to safeguard the sustainability of the world's forests. Since media can shape public opinion, this study examines media treatment of forest certification in the United States, the world's largest producer and consumer of forest products. This study utilizes 309 print and digital newspaper articles published in the United States between 1989 and 2019 to evaluate which aspects of certification are highlighted, which are favored, and how these vary by region. We found that coverage of forest certification is overwhelmingly positive at both the regional (85%) and national (90.7%) levels. Environmental themes are most discussed nationally (48.8%) and regionally (36%), but thematic emphasis differs regionally. Although the Forest Steward Council is the most covered certification scheme at the national level, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative certification scheme prevails in southern media outlets. The focus of articles related to the American Tree Farm System (ATFS) is mostly sociocultural. This was expected as the ATFS focuses on certifying forestlands of family forest landowners in the United States. Our findings suggest newspaper coverage of forest certification is geographically heterogeneous, with regions establishing their preferred themes and schemes. This research will better situate forest certification as a tool for sustainable forest management in the United States.

Approcci selvicolturali innovativi a sostegno della gestione forestale sostenibile in Calabria

Abstract: We propose several guidelines for sustainable forest management of the main regional forest types based on literature review on silviculture and forest management and taking into account the results from surveys carried out in four test sites located in Calabria (Southern Italy) within the framework of ALForLAB project. The four test sites cover 16% of regional forested area, which included ten of the main silvicultural types. Results highlighted a high variability in stand structure of high forests, while coppice woods were characterised by low structural variablity. The different silvicultural treatments proposed for high forests focused on the maintenance of stand structure complexity where it is already high, and to enhance it where the past management options simplified stand structure. The proposed silvicultural treatments for conifer plantations aimed at progressive renaturalisation. In the regional context coppice management, especially simple coppice with standards, still maintains an important role for fuelwood and charcoal production, poles and posts (chestnut coppice) production, and more recently for forest biomass for energy use. Coppice management, with exception for beech stands and stands within protected areas, can still be maintained with the adoption of suitable tending and thinnings interventions and rotation periods. The management guidelines here proposed for both high forests and coppices represent an important tool for sustainable forest management in Calabria. In addition, they can be an useful and complementary tool for spatial decision support system aimed to Precision Forestry issues.

Assessment of Chain-of-Custody Certification in the Czech and Slovak Republic

Forest certification is a voluntary verification tool that has been gaining importance within the global sustainability issues as an independent verification tool for sustainable forest management and wood processing industry and as an influencer in private and public purchasing policies and a component of emerging wood harvesting and trade legality schemes. This study focuses on the chain-of-custody (CoC) component of forest certification. A survey of CoC certified companies in the Czech Republic and Slovakia was carried out to explore the understanding of the concept and role of forest and CoC certification as an environmental, economic, and social tool. It aimed to determine expectations following from the implementation of CoC certification by companies and to identify difficulties in existing certified wood product supply chains and costs related to purchase and sales of certified forest products, respectively. Results indicate that respondents demonstrated a high level of understanding of the CoC concept and that they link forest certification mainly to the issues of legality, tracing the origin source of supply and promotion of sustainable utilisation of wood. The main expected benefits are linked to the improvement of an external company image followed by penetration of new markets and increase of sales volume. CoC is not considered a tool to improve internal company performance and efficiency. The key problems connected to certified supply chains relate to the sufficient quantity of certified forest products, low margins and overpriced certified material inputs. Respondents reported none or minimum price premiums for their certified products over non-certified alternatives. Several differences related to the understanding of the sustainable forest management concept and the level of price premium paid for certified inputs were identified between the PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) and FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified companies as well as between the different forest products sectors.

Impact of traditional beekeeping on Mgori Village Land Forest Reserve in Singida District, Tanzania

A study was conducted in villages around Mgori Village Land Forest Reserve (VLFR), Singida District in Tanzania to assess the impact of traditional beekeeping on the condition of forest resources. Data collection involved participatory rural appraisal, questionnaire survey and forest inventory. Data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences and Ms Excel. The Shannon-Wiener index was used to analyse evenness in species diversity. Results indicated that the majority of households practice traditional beekeeping using log hives. There is no proper management system of traditional beekeeping apart from regular forest patrols. The majority (82%) of respondents viewed traditional beekeeping as an effective way of managing forest resources as it helps to protect the forest against destruction and results in increased plant productivity through pollination. Results further showed that although not statistically significant (p>0.05), sites where beekeeping was practiced had more stems per hectare (ha) for dbh ≤10 cm compared to sites where there was no beekeeping implying high regeneration of species due to minimal disturbances in beekeeping sites. Forest destruction, decreasing bee forages and drought were identified to be the main threats to traditional beekeeping. If well implemented, traditional beekeeping can be a tool for sustainable forest management. The need to promote best beekeeping practices which contribute to sustainable forest management in the area and beyond is recommended.

Data-intensive modeling of forest dynamics

Forest dynamics are highly dimensional phenomena that are not fully understood theoretically. Forest inventory datasets offer unprecedented opportunities to model these dynamics, but they are analytically challenging due to high dimensionality and sampling irregularities across years. We develop a data-intensive methodology for predicting forest stand dynamics using such datasets. Our methodology involves the following steps: 1) computing stand level characteristics from individual tree measurements, 2) reducing the characteristic dimensionality through analyses of their correlations, 3) parameterizing transition matrices for each uncorrelated dimension using Gibbs sampling, and 4) deriving predictions of forest developments at different timescales. Applying our methodology to a forest inventory database from Quebec, Canada, we discovered that four uncorrelated dimensions were required to describe the stand structure: the biomass, biodiversity, shade tolerance index and stand age. We were able to successfully estimate transition matrices for each of these dimensions. The model predicted substantial short-term increases in biomass and longer-term increases in the average age of trees, biodiversity, and shade intolerant species. Using highly dimensional and irregularly sampled forest inventory data, our original data-intensive methodology provides both descriptions of the short-term dynamics as well as predictions of forest development on a longer timescale. This method can be applied in other contexts such as conservation and silviculture, and can be delivered as an efficient tool for sustainable forest management.

Forestry under Climate Change. Is Time a Tool for Sustainable Forest Management?

Changing climate conditions are known to influence forest tree growth response and the CO2 cycle. Dendroclimatological research has shown that the climate signal, species composition, and growth trends have changed in different types of forest ecosystems during the last century. Under current and demonstrated changes in climate variability at the geographic, regional, and local levels tree growth shows also variability and trends that can be non-stationary during time even at relatively short distance between sites. In forest planning and management, yield tables, site quality indices, age class, rate of growth, and spatial distribution are some of the most used tools and parameters. However, these methods do not involve climate variability during time although climate is the main driver in trends of forest and tree growth. Previous research warns about the risk that forest management under changing climatic conditions could amplify their negative effects. For example, changing climate conditions may impact on temperature and/or precipitation thresholds critical to forest tree growth. Forest biomass, resilience, and CO2 storage may be damaged unless forest planning and management implement the relationships between climate variability and trends of tree growth. A positive aspect is that, periods of favorable climate conditions may allow harvesting higher amount of wood mass and storing more CO2 than traditional planning methods. And, the average length of both favorable and adverse periods appears to occur within the validity period of a forest management plan. Here, we show a conceptual development to implement climate variability in forest management in the view of continuing the research.

Community Based Forest Management as a Tool for Sustainable Forest Management in Cross River State, Nigeria

Community-Based Forest Management (CBFM) in Cross River State (CRS) was investigated with a view to understanding its efficiency and effectiveness as a tool for sustainable forest management in the State. Four sets of questionnaire were administered to forestry officials; forest edge communities; timber dealers/sawmillers; and relevant Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs).Three-stage sampling technique was adopted to sample six communities. The stages of sampling included: senatorial districts, Local Government Areas and communities. Data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics. The performance of CBFM was assessed against the ATO/ITTO’s Criteria and Indicators for the Sustainable Management of African Natural Tropical Forests. Results show that the average size of community forests was between 101 and over 1000 ha per community. The level of awareness about community forest management was about 96% while 86% of the respondents participated in CBFM activities. The most significant gain of CBFM has been the meaningful partnership between the Cross River State Forestry Commission (CRSFC) and the forest edge communities in protecting and managing the forest resources. The existing benefit- sharing formula of CBFM proceeds is 1:4 in favour of government for governmentestablished plantations, while communities have 7:3 of proceeds derived from community forests. The current sharing formula for the products obtained from reserved natural forests is 1:1. We suggest that a mutually acceptable formula should be worked out among the stakeholders. Some of the problems and challenges confronting the implementation of CBFM in the state include: inadequate encouragement and cooperation among some members of the communities; inadequate incentives (seedlings, etc) and equipment (farm tools, etc); and capacity building; insufficient monitoring and evaluation by the relevant staff of the Forestry Commission. CBFM has done fairly well in certain aspects of sustainable forest management. However, aspects of maintenance of multiple functions of forests; creation of enabling environment; state economic and fiscal policies, policy to encourage forestry enterprises; effective monitoring and evaluation of forest management policy and adequate mechanisms for law enforcement have to be taken more seriously if CBFM would serve as a veritable tool for sustainable forest management in Cross river State, Nigeria Key words: Stakeholders’ participation, benefit sharing, forest resources, sustainability

Tree-ring analysis of an African long-lived pioneer species as a tool for sustainable forest management

Improved forest management in the tropics is hampered by the limited availability of quantitative data, especially in tropical Africa. Important management parameters such as the minimum logging diameter (MLD), the associated biological rotation age (BRA) and the timing of silvicultural treatments are too often based on merchantable dimensions and state regulations instead of ecological data and tree growth. This study combines inventory data and bootstrapped tree-ring curves of natural and planted trees of the long-lived pioneer species Terminalia superba Engl. & Diels. A growth-oriented MLD was calculated, and the need and timing of silvicultural treatments was estimated based on the analysis of growth releases and suppressions. Study sites were situated in the Congolese Mayombe forest and western Ivory Coast. Tree rings from 41 natural forest trees (stem discs) and 29 plantation trees (increment cores) were measured, along with diameter and height measurements. Planted and natural forests showed considerable differences in mean growth rate and growth curves. More than 50% of the trees nevertheless reached the canopy without growth releases or suppressions, confirming that T. superba does not require intensive management. The growth-oriented MLD not only differs considerably between sites but bootstrapping revealed large differences within forest regions/types. Furthermore, volume-based MLD and BRA are on average larger than basal area-based calculations. The modified monocyclic management system is suggested, especially for planted forests with light-demanding, fast-growing tree species. One small-scale thinning during the juvenile phase is recommended before a final harvest that includes all trees above the growth-oriented MLD. The introduction of sustainable management for T. superba therefore primarily depends on forest type and cannot be generalized at the species level.

Ecotourism as a Tool for Sustainable Forest Management in Sri Lanka

Official Journal of the Institute of Environmental Professionals Sri Lanka. Full text articles available. The journal publishes original research and review articles on environmental studies relevant to Sri Lanka and other tropical regions. The scope of the Journal encompasses the diversity of current research on broad categories of environmental science.

Input–output nutrient budgets as a diagnostic tool for sustainable forest management

Maintaining, and if possible increasing, soil fertility is a major goal for sustainable forest management, because it determines to a large extent the site's capacity for wood production. As, generally, forest soils are poor, and the demand for wood is still increasing, the boundary of resilience of each ecosystem must be known. Several cases must be identified: the case of natural or native species forests, either planted or not, which are extensively managed and the case of intensively managed plantations. In this paper, input–output budgets are calculated according to temporal and spatial scales. The measurement of the main inputs and outputs is discussed. When all the fluxes entering and leaving the selected compartment are measured, the budget provides a realistic picture of the direction of change in soil fertility. In other cases, the validity of the budget has to be considered according to the proposed hypothesis. A balanced budget means that the element considered is not depleted from the soil. This does not mean that no changes occur in the ecosystem. A positive budget means that the element considered is accumulating in the system, which is not always favorable. A negative budget means the element considered is depleted in the system, but it has to be related to the available soil reserves and to the rate of flux into available pool to be a real index of risk for the ecosystem. Information from several case studies shows the interest of these budgets because (i) they are able to characterize depletion before the direct analysis of the system would be able to indicate it, and (ii) they give useful quantitative data for recommendations applicable to forest management. These budgets have the disadvantage of being labor-intensive and expensive. They are also site-specific and give little direct information for identifying the mechanisms of nutrient tranformations within the ecosystem. The relationships between forest production and nutrient availability are not sufficiently known to be able to quantify the variation in production when nutrient depletion is observed. On account of the difficulty in calculating such a budget, the most efficient strategy could be the following: (i) calculate budgets in a representative network of sites; (ii) relate the individual budgets to more easily available parameters; and (iii) propose more simple indicators for managers. Land classification and the potential impact of forest management is required for giving appropriate recommendations to managers.

Certification and Labelling as a New Tool for Sustainable Forest Management

Sustainable management of the world's forests has emerged as a major forestry issue on the international agenda. Certification and labelling have caught the attention of the international community as a tool to bring forest management toward sustainability. Certification is the third party assessment of a product or service to show that it is in compliance with a specific standard. In-depth interviews were used in this study of Victorian timber industry stakeholders to determine their current views on certification and labelling. It was found that knowledge levels of certification and labelling varied enormously among respondents. Those with the greatest knowledge see the introduction of certification and labelling as being inevitable if overseas markets are to be maintained. Those with a lesser knowledge displayed tentative support for the concept. All stakeholders envisage that when used appropriately, this tool will lead to improved forest management practices by increasing the pressure on producers to use acceptable and environmentally sound procedures within the forest management unit. Results of this study indicate that many stakeholders believe in the potential of certification and labelling, but at this stage express a variety of viewpoints as how to best go about it. In order for certification and labelling to be appropriate workable tools for sustainable forest management in Victoria, mechanisms for its implementation need to be pursued. Furthermore, the use of certification and labelling as marketing tools will depend on such issues as the effectiveness of product labelling and consumers' willingness to pay.