scholarly journals Changes in the Assortment and Species Structure of Timber Harvested from the Polish Managed Part of Białowieża Forest

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 3279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dariusz Zastocki ◽  
Hubert Lachowicz ◽  
Jarosław Sadowski ◽  
Tadeusz Moskalik

The subject of the research, which is the Polish managed part of Białowieża Forest together with Białowieża National Park, a remnant of primeval forests, is one of the most valuable forest areas in Europe. This article presents the history of the use of these forests. The assortment and species structure of the harvested timber was analyzed in detail for the Białowieża, Browsk, and Hajnówka Forest Districts from 2008 to 2017. The research is based on data from the State Forests Information System (SILP) and Forest Management Plans (PUL), as well as Nature Conservation Programs (POP). The volume of harvested timber was diversified. In 2011–2013, it was limited by a decision of the Minister of the Environment from 110,000 m3 in 2010 to 48,500 m3. This contributed to the increase of the European spruce bark beetle gradation, causing the death of spruce stands. By an annex to the Forest Management Plan issued in 2016, the Minister of the Environment increased the amount of the timber harvest. In 2017, it amounted to almost 190,000 m3, where 91% of the harvested volume was spruce, but the wood was markedly inferior in technical quality compared to previous years. Such a large increase in harvesting aroused the opposition mainly of environmental organizations and the European Commission. In April 2018, the EU Court of Justice decided that Poland violated EU law by increasing the number of felled trees in Białowieża Forest. After this decision, the Minister of the Environment repealed the earlier decision, the basis for conducting the increased wood harvesting in Białowieża Forest. Changes in the timber harvested in terms of volume, quality, and assortment, are due to the specificity of managing environmentally valuable areas. This relates to the many limitations on commercial forestry, which must take into account the need to protect nature and the legal acts regulating timber harvesting.

1999 ◽  
Vol 150 (12) ◽  
pp. 484-488 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wolf Hockenjos

Concepts of near-natural forestry are in great demand these days. Most German forest administrations and private forest enterprises attach great importance to being as «near-natural» as possible. This should allow them to make the most of biological rationalisation. The concept of near-natural forestry is widely accepted, especially by conservationists. However, it is much too early to analyse how successful near-natural forestry has been to date, and therefore to decide whether an era of genuine near-natural forest management has really begun. Despite wide-spread recognition, near-natural forestry is jeopardised by mechanised timber harvesting, and particularly by the large-timber harvester. The risk is that machines, which are currently just one element of the timber harvest will gain in importance and gradually become the decisive element. The forest would then be forced to meet the needs of machinery, not the other way round. Forests would consequently become so inhospitable that they would bear no resemblance to the sylvan image conjured up by potential visitors. This could mean taking a huge step backwards: from a near-natural forest to a forest dominated by machinery. The model of multipurpose forest management would become less viable, and the forest would become divided into areas for production, and separate areas for recreation and ecology. The consequences of technical intervention need to be carefully considered, if near-natural forestry is not to become a thing of the past.


Forests ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Russell ◽  
Stephanie Patton ◽  
David Wilson ◽  
Grant Domke ◽  
Katie Frerker

The amount of biomass stored in forest ecosystems is a result of past natural disturbances, forest management activities, and current structure and composition such as age class distributions. Although natural disturbances are projected to increase in their frequency and severity on a global scale in the future, forest management and timber harvesting decisions continue to be made at local scales, e.g., the ownership or stand level. This study simulated potential changes in natural disturbance regimes and their interaction with timber harvest goals across the Superior National Forest (SNF) in northeastern Minnesota, USA. Forest biomass stocks and stock changes were simulated for 120 years under three natural disturbance and four harvest scenarios. A volume control approach was used to estimate biomass availability across the SNF and a smaller project area within the SNF (Jeanette Project Area; JPA). Results indicate that under current harvest rates and assuming disturbances were twice that of normal levels resulted in reductions of 2.62 to 10.38% of forest biomass across the four primary forest types in the SNF and JPA, respectively. Under this scenario, total biomass stocks remained consistent after 50 years at current and 50% disturbance rates, but biomass continued to decrease under a 200%-disturbance scenario through 120 years. In comparison, scenarios that assumed both harvest and disturbance were twice that of normal levels and resulted in reductions ranging from 14.18 to 29.85% of forest biomass. These results suggest that both natural disturbances and timber harvesting should be considered to understand their impacts to future forest structure and composition. The implications from simulations like these can provide managers with strategic approaches to determine the economic and ecological outcomes associated with timber harvesting and disturbances.


Author(s):  
V. Yilmaz ◽  
C. Serifoglu ◽  
O. Gungor

In Turkey, forest management plans are produced by terrestrial surveying techniques for 10 or 20 year periods, which can be considered quite long to maintain the sustainability of forests. For a successful forest management plan, it is necessary to collect accurate information about the stand parameters and store them in dynamic and robust databases. The position, number, height and closure of trees are among the most important stand parameters required for a forest management plan. Determining the position of each single tree is challenging in such an area consisting of too many interlocking trees. Hence, in this study, an object-based tree detection methodology has been developed in MATLAB programming language to determine the position of each tree top in a highly closed area. The developed algorithm uses the Canopy Height Model (CHM), which is computed from the Digital Terrain Model (DTM) and Digital Surface Model (DSM) generated by using the point cloud extracted from the images taken from a UAS (Unmanned Aerial System). The heights of trees have been determined by using the CHM. The closure of the trees has been determined with the written MATLAB script. The results show that the developed tree detection methodology detected more than 70% of the trees successfully. It can also be concluded that the stand parameters may be determined by using the UAS-based point clouds depending on the characteristics of the study area. In addition, determination of the stand parameters by using point clouds reduces the time needed to produce forest management plans.


2000 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 135-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Shockley ◽  
A.J. Martin

Abstract Forest management plans were examined for a random population of nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) landowners in eight counties in northeast Wisconsin. Implementation rates of practices (i.e., percentages of practices within each management plan that were completed, in progress, or not done), were estimated for each NIPF landowner. Only NIPF landowners participating in forest management assistance programs (Wisconsin's state forest tax law programs, or the federal Stewardship Incentive Program) were considered for the study. A total of 464 forest management plans were examined to determine numbers and types of practices prescribed, rates of implementation, and cost-sharing utilization. The results indicated that 78% of practices mandated by law within the state's tax law programs were either completed or were in progress. Other findings show that 36% of recommended practices within the state's tax law programs were either completed or were in progress. The results of the Stewardship Incentive Program study indicated that 21% of practices prescribed in those plans were either completed or were in progress. Commercial timber harvests were the most widely prescribed mandatory practices while planting prescriptions occupied the majority of recommended practices. Cost-sharing was used on 22% of mandatory tax law practices, 6.5% of recommended tax law practices, and 7% of practices in the Stewardship Incentive Program. North. J. Appl. For. 17(4):135–140.


2016 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
pp. 382-393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolyn R. Reid ◽  
Shaun A. Watmough

The issue of calcium (Ca) decline in surface waters of eastern Canada is an emerging concern that may be made worse by timber harvesting. In the Muskoka River Watershed (MRW) in Ontario, the mean lake Ca concentration in 104 lakes decreased by 30% since the 1980s, with the rate of decrease slowing over time consistent with changes in lake sulfate (SO4) as the region recovers from acid deposition. Recent data suggested that smaller lakes, at higher elevation, in smaller catchments with higher runoff that are minimally impacted by the influence of roads and agriculture are associated with lower Ca concentrations and thus are the lakes most at risk of amplified Ca depletion. Using proposed annual allowable harvest cuts from 10-year forest management plans, 38% of 364 lakes assessed in the MRW will fall below a reported critical 1 mg·L–1 Ca threshold compared with just 8% in the absence of future harvesting. It is concluded that Ca decline poses a serious threat to aquatic ecosystems and should be taken into consideration in future forest management plans.


2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (12) ◽  
pp. 2370-2383 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mauricio A. Acuna ◽  
Cristian D. Palma ◽  
Wenbin Cui ◽  
David L. Martell ◽  
Andres Weintraub

Forest management planners usually treat potential fire loss estimates as exogenous parameters in their timber production planning processes. When they do so, they do not account for the fact that forest access road construction, timber harvesting, and silvicultural activities can alter a landscape’s vegetation or fuel composition, and they ignore the possibility that such activities may influence future fire losses. We develop an integrated fire and forest management planning methodology that accounts for and exploits such interactions. Our methodology is based on fire occurrence, suppression, and spread models, a fire protection value model that identifies crucial stands, the harvesting of which can have a significant influence on the spread of fires across the landscape, and a spatially explicit timber harvest scheduling model. We illustrate its use by applying it to a forest management unit in the boreal forest region of the province of Alberta in western Canada. We found that for our study area, integrated fire – forest management planning based on our methodology could result in an 8.1% increase in net present value when compared with traditional planning in which fire loss is treated as an exogenous factor.


2021 ◽  
Vol 496 ◽  
pp. 119363
Author(s):  
Czerepko Janusz ◽  
Gawryś Radosław ◽  
Mańk Kamil ◽  
Janek Magdalena ◽  
Tabor Jan ◽  
...  

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C Wilson ◽  
Michael A Kilgore ◽  
Stephanie A Snyder

Abstract Virtually all states have developed best management practices (BMPs) to mitigate potential adverse effects associated with timber harvesting. This study examined how BMP implementation on Minnesota’s family forest lands varied according to whether the land had a forest management plan, the timber sale was administered by a forester, or a written timber harvesting contract was used. Analysis of field monitoring data from 174 commercial timber harvesting sites on family forest lands found that BMP implementation is only modestly influenced by a forest management plan, supervising forester, or timber harvesting contract. Supervision of a forester had the greatest influence, with six guidelines implemented differently. In contrast, differences were found for just two BMPs with a forest management plan and only one with a written timber harvesting contract. When timber sales were administered by a forester, forest management guidelines generally related to management of the land-water interface were implemented to a higher standard, with significant increases observed for avoidance of infrastructure in filter strips, use of water diversion and erosion control structures, avoiding unnecessary wetland and waterbody crossings, and slash management. Higher timber utilization efficiency (within leave tree guidelines) was also found when a professional forester supervised the timber sale. Study Implications: We examine how BMP implementation on family forest lands varies with three types of supervisory and planning assistance: a forest management plan for the property, sale administration by a professional forester, and a written timber harvesting contract. Field monitoring data from 174 commercial timber harvests on family forest lands indicate that BMP implementation is only modestly influenced by any single form of assistance. Supervision by a forester had the greatest influence, increasing use of four guidelines related to management of the land-water interface. Results may help to inform best practices for landowner assistance and planning.


2018 ◽  
pp. 54-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Basnyat ◽  
T. Treue ◽  
R. K. Pokharel

Following a case study approach, this paper explains how scientific forest management plans were developed and implemented in community forests of a mid-hill district in Nepal. Field observations were carried over a period of two years (December 2014 to December 2016) in two community forests. User group members, forest officials, forest technicians and executive committee members were consulted. The plans were prepared simply by compiling the administrative requirements where management prescriptions were defined either based on forest technicians’ knowledge or taken directly from the guidelines with little reference to the actual site quality, management objectives, and forest stand conditions. Apart from harvesting of trees, users hardly implemented the plans’ silvicultural prescriptions and forest restoration activities. Moreover, forest officials administratively reduced the number of trees that users could harvest to around half of what the plans allow. Accordingly, forest user groups face a paradoxical forest administration that promotes timber harvesting according to so-called scientific principles, which it then brushes aside to satisfy bureaucratic demands. The study concludes that the concept of scientific forestry is merely used as a “brand” or a seemingly sound “narrative” in community forestry, while it is of little practical relevance because administrative decisions are more powerful in guiding forest management decisions. Hence, the study suggests a replacement of the current schizophrenic mix of so-called “scientific forest management” and sweeping administrative orders with adaptive management practices in community forests. Banko JanakariA Journal of Forestry Information for Nepal Special Issue No. 4, 2018, Page : 54-64


2012 ◽  
Vol 50 (No. 7) ◽  
pp. 327-337
Author(s):  
J. Sequens ◽  
M. Křepela ◽  
D. Zahradník

In changing growth conditions, methodical procedures should concentrate on the investigation of processes currently under way in forests. Many studies have shown that present models of forest growth parameters differ from previous surveys as far as for instance the height is concerned. Causes of these phenomena have not been satisfactorily explained although various hypotheses are investigated. In our study, we present partial results of the investigation of height growth within a sixty-five-year period, based on the analysis of data obtained from seven forest management plans in the management-plan area of Kostelec nad Černými lesy (Kostelec n. Č. l.) and continuous measurements on pilot research plots in the period of 1965–1994. The comparison of mean height growth curves obtained by the curve fitting of the values of empirical data signifies by their different course and increasing kurtosis a dependence on the calendar year when the measure was taken. It signifies an increasing height growth trend of both species in the given area.


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