Project

number: 543946-TEMPUS-1-2013-1-ES-TEMPUS-JPHES (2013-4563/001-001)

SUPPORT FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING IN SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY

SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY
(Textbook for basic module)

CHISINAU, 2017
543946 TEMPUS-1-2013-1-ES-TEMPUS-JPHES

"The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an
endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission
cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein."

SUSFOR
Support for Vocational Training in Sustainable Forestry:
A lifelong learning approach

International project coordinator

University of Lleida
(Lleida, Spain)

Authors

Responsible University
State Agrarian University of Moldova (SAUM)

Reviwers:
The contact
The curriculum or its parts can be reproduced in any format for training purposes with prior
agreement. For additional information you may address:
State Agrarian University of Moldova (SAUM)

Victor Sfecla v.sfecla@uasm.md

 FOREWORD

The present curriculum was developed in the framework of the TEMPUD project «Support
for vocational training in sustainable forestry: a lifelong learning approach” 543946 TEMPUS-1-
2013-1-ES-TEMPUS-JPHES (2013-4563) in cooperation of three Russian and two Moldova higher
education institutions, Republican Forestry Agency of the Republic of Buryatia, and European
partner universities from Spain, Austria, Finland, Forest Sciences Center of Catalonia.
Grant holder: University of Lleida (Lleida, Spain).
Project partners:
1. University of Lleida (Lleida, Spain);
2. University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (Vienna, Austria);
3. Forestry Sciences Center of Catalonia (Solsona, Spain);
4. University of Eastern Finland (Joensuu);
5. Republican Forestry Agency, Republic of Buryatia (Ulan-Ude, Republic of Buryatia, Russia);
6. FSBEI HE “Buryat State Academy of Agriculture named after V Philippov” Ulan-Ude, Russia);
7. FSBEI HE “Moscow State Forestry University” (Mytischi, Russia);
8. FSBEI HE “St. Petersburg State Forest Technical University named after S.M. Kirov” (St.
Petersburg, Russia);
9. State Agrarian University of Moldova (Chisinau, Republic of Moldova);
10. Alecu Russo Balti State University (Balti, Republic of Moldova).
Target group: schoolchildren, non-forestry college students, non-forestry specialists, other
learners without forestry education.
Goal: to provide basic training in forestry to non-forestry learners;
Forms of learning: Class-room, distance learning, blended learning
Languages: English, Russian, Romanian
 ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT IN FORESTRY”

Authors
Imeskenova E.G.
Sangadieva I.G.
Ochirova E.L.
Ishigenov I.V.
Bazarova S.S.

CONTENT
Section 1. Basics of sustainable forestry development
Section 2. State and forestry in Russia
Section 3. Legal framework of Forestry in Russia
Section 4. The economic development of forestry
Section 5. Social development of forestry and the use of non-timber forest products
Section 6. Additional uses of forest areas

Keywords: sustainable forestry, forestry, conservation and protection of forests, sustainable

forest management, reproduction of woods, peculiarities of forestry, forest management system,
state program, the legal frameworks, forest plots lease, the social role of forestry, forest resources,
non-timber forest resources, forest recreation, forest tourism

Section 1. Basics of sustainable forestry development

The need for sustainable development of forests and forestry was first drawn attention to at
the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro (1992).
According to the "Forest Principles", developed at the conference, "forest resources and forest lands
should be used to meet the social, economic, environmental, cultural and spiritual needs of present
and future generations."
Sustainable Forestry implies forest management and use of forests and forest lands in order
to maintain their biological diversity, productivity, regeneration capacity, vitality and the ability to
perform relevant ecological, economic and social functions at local, national and global levels in the
present and future.
 According to monitoring the total area of forests in the world covers more than 3.4 billion
hectares or 27% of the world's land area. Russian forests account for more than 20% of the world's
forests, the total area of forest land is 1,143,600,000 hectares, timber reserves - 82.1 billion cubic
meters. and forest land area is 45.2%.
The structure of forestry activities includes forest conservation and forest protection, rational
use and reproduction, taking into account forests for special purpose. Each component implies a set
of measures aimed at the development of the industry, which is generally shown in Figure 1.
These measures determine the value of forestry in sustainable socio-economic development
of society and outline specific features of the object of forest and forestry activity.
The main feature of forestry is a long period of growing, which is 100 years or more for
coniferous and broadleaved species and to 240 years for tall oak of Western Europe. In economic
terms, this limits the flow of investment in comparison with other industries, which have shorter
payback periods. It is difficult to match costs and benefits while planning economic activity for
longer periods of time due to the dynamic socio-economic and scientific-technical changes in the
development of the society

measures to prevent and combat forest fires, forest protection from all
kinds of violations (unauthorized felling, violation of rules of exploitation
Protection of of forests, etc.;
Active measures to combat forest pests and diseases, measures on

forests prevention and localization of various kinds of man-made radioactive

contamination of forest areas, biodiversity preservation, especially of rare
and endangered species of flora and fauna that make up the forest
formations.

All types of use of forest resources and services, including various types
Rational use of of logging in the process of forest exploitation and caring the forest;
Activities of the forest industry and a number of wood processing
forest resources industries and other industries that use non-timber forest resources in
their activities

Reproduction of Reforestation and improvement of forest productivity by improved

species composition, reclamation, care for the forest, creating seed base
forests on the breeding and genetic basis

Fig 1. A set of forestry activities

The ability of forests to reproduction creates the basis for forest management in commercial
forests and thereby enables long-term use of forest resources. Given this characteristic, forestry
specialists developed the requirements raised to the principle of continuous sustainable use of
forests, the essence of which is that we must pass on forest resources to future generations in the
same amount and environmental conditions they are currently available.
 The second feature of the forest is its multi-purpose character. Forests continuously produce
diverse set of socially useful resources, benefits and environmental services (wood products,
rubber, dyes, cork, turpentine, hay, pasture forage, berries, mushrooms, nuts, honey, medicinal
plants, clean natural spring water and others).
The third feature is an organic combination of natural processes of forest growth and
development with the economic activities. In particular, silviculture works, work in forest nurseries,
as well as measures for the cultivation of planting material are carried out in the most favourable
time of the growing season.
With thus properly managed forests with the account of their characteristics as an object of
economic activity have enormous potential for the promotion of sustainable and balanced
development of the economy, providing livelihoods, employment, energy, food and a wide range of
goods and ecosystem services for rural people.

Section 2. State and forestry in Russia

The Constitution of the Russian Federation, the Forest Code of the Russian Federation of
December 4, 2006, other federal laws and regulatory acts of the Russian Federation determine the
powers of the state and forest users in their forest relations.
The state has the sovereign and inalienable right to use and manage the forest and prepares
decrees in forest management, use and conservation in the interests of the public. The system of
forest management is based on the optimal division of jurisdictions between the public
administration of all levels and local authorities.
The structure of forest management at the federal level is shown in Figure 2.

Russian Federation Ministry of Natural Resources and

Ecology

Federal Forestry Agency (Rosleskhoz)

Territorial bodies of Rosleskhoz in Federal Regions (7)

FBI “Russian center of forest
protection” 42 branches
FSCI “Roslesresurs” FBI
“Russia Museum of Forestry”
Fig 1. The federal structure of the forest management
FSBI “Rolesinforg”. 13 FBI “Central base of aviation forest
branches protection “Avialesookhrana”
Educational institutions, forestry technical
schools (19). Institutes of qualification
Forestry Research Institutes upgrading of forestry specialists (2)
(5)
повышения квалификации
специалистов лесного хозяйства
(2)
 The regional level of governance includes: public authorities of subjects of the Russian
Federation, the competent authorities of the executive power of the Russian Federation in the field
of forest relations, forest departments (forest parks) - 1473, forest districts - 7522. The authorities
have necessary and sufficient powers in the area of forest relations, can pass regional laws,
including those that establish:
• the procedure of harvesting non-timber forest food products and medicinal plants;
• the limits and the procedure for harvesting timber for personal needs of citizens;
• the procedure of preparation and collection of non-timber forest resources by citizens for
their own needs;
• rules and standards for forest management in hunting;
• rules of timber harvesting on the basis of the contract of sale of timber plantations;
• rate per unit volume of forest resources and the rate per unit area of forest land for lease
purposes, etc.
The Government empowers regional authorities to refer forests to valuable forests, to
identify specially protection forest areas to establish their boundaries, to refer forests parcels to
commercial forests, reserve forests, establish and modify their boundaries within the limits assigned
to the powers of public authorities.
The Government, citizens and businesses that use wood, are responsible for the condition of
the forests. In state forests, the main type of rental is the right to use forest areas as a form of
public-private partnerships. The State shall guarantee the protection of forests from illegal logging
and other disturbances, improving the system of state forest and fire supervision at all levels.
The Government does not restrict free access of citizens in forests owned by the state to
harvest non-timber food products and medicinal plants for their own needs. It creates favourable
conditions for the stay of citizens in the forests for their leisure and recreation.
Systemic problems that have accumulated in the forestry sector require inter institutional
coordinated cooperation, concerted efforts by public authorities of different levels based on
common targets and objectives. In order to solve existing problems and gain support of the priority
areas in forestry development at the national level "The strategy for development of the forest
sector of the Russian Federation for the period until 2020" and the state program "Development of
forestry for the period of 2013 until 2020" were developed. The measures of state programs
stipulate rational, sustainable use of forests, increase of revenues from the use of forest resources,
timely and high-quality reproduction of forests, conservation of skilled jobs, effective forest
management, as well as the growth of technical and technological production, innovation, and
improved production of main types of forest products. The subjects of the Russian Federation
developed regional programs in the field of forestry, defining the main goals, objectives, scope and
sources of funding for the use, protection, preservation and reproduction of forests.
 3. Legal frameworks of the Russian forestry

Any economic relations connected with forest turnover of forest parcels, forest plantations,
timber and other forest resources, are governed by civil law, i.e. the Civil Code, which specifies the
following organizational and legal forms:
1. Full partnership is made up of members who are engaged in business activities on behalf of
the partnership and are responsible for its obligations with their property.
2. Limited partnership is a partnership where along with the members engaged in
entrepreneurial activities and responsible for the debts of the partnership with their property, there
are one or more members - investors, who bear the risk of losses to the amount of their
contributions and do not participate in the implementation of activities of the partnership.
3. Limited Liability Company is a company whose charter capital is divided into shares and
members of this company. They are not liable for its debts and bear the risk of losses in the value of
their shares.
4. Joint stock company is a society whose charter capital is divided into shares, its members
are not liable for its debts and bear the risk of losses associated with the activities of society, within
the value of their shares.
5. Production cooperative (a workers‘team) is a voluntary association of citizens who joined
to work together on the basis of their personal participation and integration of property
contributions.
Legislation governing forestry in Russia is represented by the Forest Code of the Russian
Federation, federal laws and laws of subjects of the Russian Federation, presidential decrees and
resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation, and also normative legal acts of subjects
of the Russian Federation and local authorities.
Taxes and fees levied on business entities operating in the forestry sector are regulated by the
Tax Code. All business entities are required to pay taxes and fees established by the legislation of
the Russian Federation. In Russia, all taxes and fees are divided into three groups:
1. Federal taxes and fees:
value added tax; corporate income tax; fees for the use of fauna; government duty.
2.Regional taxes:
property tax; transport tax.
3. Local taxes and fees: land tax.

4. Economic forestry development

The sustainable use of forest resources is forecasted or current forest use performed in such
quantities and ways that ensure its continued and indefinite supply.
A truly sustainable forest management, along with the timber harvesting requires measures
on forest reproduction, conservation and protection. i.e. promotes not only economic but also
environmentally sustainable forest use. One of the basic concepts of the Russian system of forestry
is planned (authorized) cut. It is scientifically based volume of reasonable forest use. Is it really so?
The experience shows that in recent decades planned cuts haven’t provided sustainable forest use
even from a purely economic point of view. While determining sustainable forestry it is worthwhile
considering not only the annual growth of wood, but other indicators such as:
• economic availability of forests is justifiability of timber logging and transportation costs in
certain forested areas with the account timber quality and quantity;
• the accuracy of the data on forest resources, including the probability that the data on the volume
of wood, its species composition and quality is overstated;
• established restrictions or those planned to be established in accordance with territorial planning
and the like.
Timber harvesting is arranged in accordance with the Order of the Federal Forestry Agency
(FFA) of August 1, 2011 N 337 "On approval of Timber Harvesting Rules".
Costs with production costs included are divided into basic and overhead. The basic costs
are associated with the production process involving technological operations. Overhead costs are
costs of production management, control and organization of the production.
The profit reflects the company’s operating results and characterizes the degree of utilization
of means of production, the state of equipment and technology, organization of production and
labour, and others.
Forest resources are marketable goods. Their peculiar feature is that it is public property.
The state regulates pricing and the use of revenues from the sale of standing timber. Some of the
rights are transferred by the state to forest management bodies, which should trade forest resources.
Illegal logging is a significant issue and is regulated by Article 260 of the Criminal Code.
Illegal logging is a violation of the law, for example, felling of forest plantations without the
necessary documents, or in volumes exceeding permitted amount or violated species or age
structure, or outside the allowed cut.
Forest fires refer to natural disasters and cause enormous damage both to flora and fauna,
one of the main reasons is the violation of fire safety rules by people. As a result, fires kill plant
vegetation, trees, and the top layer of soil and forest litter. Fire makes trees weaker to oppose forest
pests, causing death of trees.
Forests fires protection and forestry are inextricably linked to each other and regulated by
the forest fire protection legislation. In addition, it is important to perform such activities as
cleaning the forest from dead wood, twigs, debris, construction of special firebreaks. Prevention
and detection of fires is performed with aerial and ground surveillance, and all measures to protect
forests against fire should be provided with special fire-fighting equipment and technology. The
main objective of forest fire is monitoring human activities and the conduct of a man in the woods,
prevention and early action, all of which allows you to keep the integrity of the forestry.

Section 5. Social development of forestry and the use of non-timber forest products
 The socio-economic role of forestry goes far beyond the traditional use for primary
production. Forestry provides employment. It is the source of the economic well-being of the
population and the basis for the cultural and historical environment being formed under the
influence of the culture and customs of peoples. Forestry includes the whole range of important
resources for the sustenance of the population.
In addition, the forest is a rich source of a variety of resources and raw materials for many
industries. Along with the main forestry product such as timber, non-timber products occupy
considerable share of the total raw material harvested. Non-timber products are all forest resources,
except for wood, including the minor (stumps, bark, bark, needles) and tree species that produce
juices, resins, gums during their life time.
The contribution of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) to the forestry sector in most
countries is significant. The use of forest as a source of various products began in ancient times.
Today, the interest in non-timber forest products is increasing worldwide due to the urgency of the
problem for food security of the population of the planet.
Non-timber forest products are divided into the resources of plants, mushrooms and animals.
Plant resources constitute eight groups, two of which (resources of food and technical
plants) are divided into subgroups: medicinal and vitamin rich plants, fodder plants, fat and oil
plant, essential oil bearing plants, nectar bearing plants and poisonous plants.
Food plants make up an extensive and diverse in species composition and economic use
group: fruit, berry and nut plants are grouped by edibility of the product. Vegetable or lettuce
plants, spicy and aromatic plants, plants used for preparing soft drinks and juices, starch bearing
plants and bread plants form another group of food plants.
Technical plants are divided into four distinct subgroups: those used for dyeing and tanning,
fiber plants and special technical plant.
Particular attention is paid to turpentine, berries, nuts and juice.
In areas of forest land, the following types of forest use established: timber harvesting;
harvesting of resin; harvesting of secondary forest resources; minor forest use; use of forests for
game management; forest use for scientific and educational purposes; use of forests for recreational
purposes. Minor forest use include: mowing; grazing livestock and domesticated animals;
placement of hives and apiaries, bee-keeping; harvesting tree sap; harvesting and collection of wild
fruits, berries, nuts, mushrooms and other edible forest resources; harvesting and collection of
medicinal plants and technical raw materials; collecting moss, forest litter, fallen leaves, reeds and
other support forest materials; growing agricultural crops (vegetables, melons, cereals and others);
harvesting and collection of fruits, berries, nuts, mushrooms, medicinal plants and technical raw
materials grown on plantations and cultivated areas; digging trees, shrubs and vines; keeping and
breeding of wildlife in semi-free conditions.
Minor forest use activities are presented in Fi3. 3
 haymaking

grazing of cattle and domesticated animals

beekeeping and honey harvesting

picking berries, fruits, nuts, mushrooms, medicinal plants and technical raw materials on plantations and
cultivated areas

growing agricultural crops (vegetables, melons, cereals, technical crops and others)

gathering moss, forest litter, fallen leaves, reeds and other forest materials

harvesting tree saps (syrups)

Fig 3. Non-timber forest uses

According to UN data the total revenue from non-wood forest products in 2011 worldwide
amounted to 88 billion USD. And the global rate of per capita food consumption in the non-wood
forest products amounted to an average of 10.9 kg.
In addition to the monetary income forests and forestry businesses provide a number of
opportunities for non-monetary income generation, including the use of wood for housing
construction and the manufacture of furniture, the collection of wood for fuel, charcoal production,
food supply, as well as many other uses, including recreation activities.
Development of new markets, such as ecotourism or markets for certified wood products on
the basis of public procurement policies, promotes the growth of employment, diversification of
income, the expansion of expertise, improved productivity, increased competitiveness of goods.

Section 6. Additional features of forest areas

Tourist and recreational forests is a special category of forest land where the main forest
function is their recreational use i.e. parks, urban green areas of cities.
Recreational forest management is one of the parts of the multiple uses of the forest. Forest
recreation means to stay in the forest for recreational purposes. The intense pace of life, increased
amount of information, noise and air pollution, etc. gave rise to the so-called recreational explosion,
people's desire for close and active contact with nature in the form of tourism, as well as in different
types of holiday making.
 Environmental impacts of forest recreation depend on many factors: the type of wood, the
season of the year, the intensity of the recreational load. The impact is determined by types (forms)
of recreation.

Type of recreation is the way in which holidaymakers use the forest and in varying degrees
affect its natural environment with its components soil, vegetation, fauna and water. Road recreation
impacts are those caused by the presence of humans, noise, garbage and other waste. The allocation
of part of the forest area for road building is also considered as an impact. Off-road recreation
impacts are soil compaction, reduced humus layer, soil trampling, living ground cover trampling,
root and undergrowth damage. Harvesting recreation impacts are connected with dramatically
increased trampled areas, higher volume of removed nutrient involved in the biological cycle of
ecosystem.
Mass attendance of recreational forests and the free nature of the use destroy all the
components of forest biogeocenosis from the ground up to the upper tiers. This leads to the problem
that recreational use of forests every year attracts more attention of both scientists and politicians
and the solution of urgent problems of sustainable forest management in peri-urban forests is
becoming international.
Activities in recreational forests include the allocation of the recreational forests with their
reference to the category of green areas, regardless of the group of forests; attachment of forest
green zone to certain parts of the city and their share in their development; forest management
activities such as landscape architecture, landscape logging, forest soils fertilization, removal of
rubbish, replacement of low-value plant crops with the phytoncydes, ornamental plants and
hardwood trees, improvement fire protection measures; construction of road, trail and path network;
installation of small architectural forms, and etc. The recreational function of forests has also an
economic assessment.
Forest tourism consist on a multi-day tour with an overnight stay of a group of people on a
certain route for rest, physical development, learning.
Forest tourism covers all age groups as it reduces physical fatigue, supports disease
prevention and recovery of the physical and spiritual potential of the human being. It takes place in
parks, forest parks forests of green areas as well as suburban and other woods used for recreation
and based on stationary objects of recreation, and also it can be self-arranged. Forest tourism
combines exercise, including sports and utilitarian types such as hunting, fishing, and is carried out
in the forests (water protected and commercial), assigned to the hunting, fishing and ski-sport
businesses.
At the same time, forest tourism is a combination of relaxation with the collection of mushrooms,
berries, gardening in summer cottages.
 In terms of recreational forest management, the most important characteristics of forest
tourism is forest cover, species composition, site class, the variety of landscapes, vegetation, its
layering, phytoncyde character, aesthetics of landscapes, frequency of their variability, wetlands,
topography, availability of mushroom and berry places, ponds, transport and walking trails
availability, improved toilet facilities, medical and geographical features.

Self-test questions:

1. What is sustainable forestry?

2. Identify the main peculiar features of forestry and give their examples.
3. What is the structure of forest management in Russian Federation? Please, name the
powers of public administration in forestry.
4. What documents determine main areas of forestry development in Russian Federation?
5. Could you please, name the main organizational and legal forms in forestry?
6. What Federal law regulates taxation in forestry?
7. What is a planned (authorized) forest cut?
8. Could you please, name the main forest fire protection measures?
9. What is the social role of forestry?
10. What are non-wood forest resources and ways of their provision?
11. Please, give the definition to a concept of recreational tourism.
12. Please, provide examples of forest tourism in your country, region.

Glossary

Forest plots rent is one of the specific types of lease, a form of forest use on the basis of the
contract. Forest areas cannot be transferred to the ownership of the tenant at the end of the lease
term, no redemption of the leased areas is allowed.
Reproduction of forests includes activities on reforestation and better productivity by
improving species composition, hydromelioration, forest maintenance, creation of a seed-breeding
pool on the genetic basis, and other activities.
State program is a targeted program of planning organizational, industrial-technological,
social activities, interconnected by timing and aimed at achieving a common goal set by the state
and a solution, balanced by financial and other resources.
Forest protection includes forest pest and disease control measures, man-made radioactive
contamination of forest areas prevention and localization measures, biodiversity conservation
activities, in particular conservation of rare and endangered species of flora and fauna that make up
the forest.
Forest Code of the Russian Federation is the main legislative act regulating relations in the
field of forest management in Russia.
Forest tourism is a multi-day tour with an overnight stay of group of people aimed at having
rest, physical development, learning.
Forestry is a branch of economy including conservation and protection of forests, their
rational use and reproduction, taking into account special purpose forests.
Non-timber forest resources are forest resources, resources of scattered trees and adjacent
lands from which products of biological origin except timber which can be harvested, and which
form the base for various services.
Illegal logging is timber without license or in excess of authorized volume or in violation of
the species or age structure, or outside the planned cutting area.
Forest protection requires measures to prevent and combat forest fires, forest protection from
all kinds of violations (unauthorized felling, violation of rules of exploitation of forests, etc.).
 Joint Stock Company is a society whose charter capital is divided into shares; its members are
not liable for its debts and bear the risk of losses associated with the activities of society, within the
value of their shares.
Production cooperative (a workers ‘team) is a voluntary association of citizens who joined to
work together on the basis of their personal participation and integration of property contributions
The rational use of forest resources involves all types of forest resources use and related
services, including various types of logging, caring, processing activities as well as the activities
related to non-timber resources and services use.
Recreational forest management is the management of forest areas for the cultural,
recreational, tourist and sports purposes.
Tradable forest resources are wood and non-wood forest products (food, forage, technical,
medical, water).
The system of forest management implies activities of public administration and municipal
authorities to ensure the rational use, reproduction, conservation and protection of forests.
The social role of forests is to provide employment, material well-being of the population
and the formation of cultural and historical environment that influenced the culture and customs of
entire peoples.
The sustainable use of forest resources is the forecasted or current forest use in quantities
and in ways that ensure its continued and long-term use.
Sustainable forestry involves forest management and use of forests and forest lands in order to
preserve their biological diversity, productivity, regeneration capacity, vitality and ability to perform
present and future important ecological, economic and social functions, at local, national and global
levels.
Economic availability of forests is justifiability of timber logging and transportation costs in
certain forested areas with the account timber quality and quantity).

REFERENCES
A) legal and regulatory documents
1. Federal Law of the Russian Federation of June 29, 2015 N 206-FL "On amendments to the Forest
Code of the Russian Federation and certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation in terms of
improving the regulation of forest relations" website of the Russian newspaper [electronic resource]
Mode of access: http://www.rg.ru/2015/07/08/les-dok.html
2. The Forest Code of the Russian Federation of 04.12.2006 200-FL (ed. By 13.07.2015)
3. Forest Code of the Republic of Moldova on June 21, 1996 №887-XIII (ed. From 26.12.2012, №
304)
4. Order of the Federal Forestry Agency (FFA) of August 1, 2011 N 337 "On approval of the rules
of timber harvesting." Registered in the Ministry of Justice on December 30, 2011 Registration N
22883
5. Russian Federation Government Resolution of 04.15.2014, N 318 "On approval of the Russian
Federation state program" Forestry Development for 2013-2020". Website of the Russian
newspaper [electronic resource] Mode of access: http://www.rg.ru/2014/04/24/lesxoz-site-dok.html
6. Resolution of the Russian Government of 18.10.2012, N 21 "On application by the courts of
legislation on liability for violations in the field of environmental protection and nature"
7. Resolution of the Russian Government dated 08.05.2007, N 273 "On the calculation of the
damages caused to forests due to forest law violation"
8. Instructions of attorney general of 06.06.2014 № 307/36 «On strengthening the prosecutorial
supervision over the implementation of the law in the prevention, detection, investigation of crimes
in the field of forest management"
B) Basic and additional readings
1. Akhmadeeva M.M. Production economics at the enterprises of forestry and forest business/M.M.
Akhmadeeva.- Yoshkar-Ola: Mari State Technical University, 2009 - 364 pp.
2. Bolshakov N.M. Recreational forest use / Bolshakov N.M. - Publisher: Syktyvkar: SLIZ, 2006 -
12 pp.
3. Volkova Y.V. The main directions of the national forest policy in the Russian Federation //
Modern high technologies. 2013. № 10. p.282-283
4. Golubev V, Zarodov A, Korosov A., et al. A new approach to the calculation of the annual
allowable cut // Sustainable forest management. 2014. № 40 (3)., p. 5-12
5. Drapalyuk, O.I. Vectors of interaction between government and business in forestry //Socio-
economic phenomena and processes. 2013. № 12 (058). p. 33-37
6. Intensive forestry: the duty or a recognized need? Interview of workshop participants on the
intensive forestry JSC Ltd "International Paper" //Sustainable forest management. 2015. № 41 (1).
p. 34-41
7. Karakchieva, I.V. Problems of forest management in Russia – allowable cut // Modern high
technologies. 2010. №. 9. p. 144-147. – Access mode: http://elibrary.ru /full_text.asp?id=15485860
8. Karpachevsky M.L. Foundations of sustainable forest management: Training manual for higher
schools //World Wildlife Fund (WWF). 2009. №. 143.
9. Kobyakov K. Continuing sustainable use of forest or AAC? // Sustainable forest management.
2014. № 40 (3). p. 13-20.
10. Moiseev N.A. Economy of Forestry: Training manual 2nd ed.. and ext. M.: FSEI VPO MSFU.
2012. 399 pp.
11. Orlov T.T. Common rules for organization of forestry. M.: Provided on demand, 2013. 55 pp.
12. Puntsukova S.D. Creation of the economic mechanism for sustainable forest management in
regions with environmental restrictions. Novosibirsk: Nauka. 2012. 264 pp.
13. Russell, Jesse Forestry. M .: Book on Demand. 2013. 130 pp.
14. RafailovM.K. On implementation in forest economy sector of the provisions of the Federal
Law "On the strategic planning in the Russian Federation" //Forestry information. 2015. № 1. p. 5-1
15. Romaniuk B.D. Regulatory Requirements for economically sound forest management model
standards. Intensive sustainable forestry: barriers and prospects: Proc. M.: World Wildlife Fund
(WWF). 2013. 214 pp.
16. Studenikina A.V., Zinoviev I.S. Burning issues of the development of forest policy at the
federal and regional level // Modern technologies. 2014. № 7. p. 150-151
17. The state of world forests in 2012. Enhancing social and economic benefits provided by forests.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Rome. 2014.
18. Syunev V.S., Sokolov A.I., Kilpelyaynen S.A., Lukashevich V.M, Pekkoev A.N, Sukhanov
Yu.V. Intensive forestry. Petrozavodsk: Petrozavodsk State University. 2014. 173 pp.
19.Trushevskiy P.V. Russian forest legislation innovations during 2013-2014 [electronic
resource] /Site of Journal LesPromInform. 2015. № 108. Access:
http://lesprominform.ru/jarchive/articles/itemshow/3987
20. Fetischeva Z.I. Economics of Forest Industries: Training manual. M.: SEI HPE MSFU. 2007.
412 pp.
21. Chistilina M.A. Public and private partnerships in forestry on the example of the construction
of forest roads [Electronic resource] // Proceedings of the higher educational institutions. Series:
Economics, finance, and operations management. 2014. № 1 (19). p. 63-68.
22. Schwartz E.A., Shmatko N.M., Kobyakov R.N. The analysis of the state program
"Development of Forestry for the years of 2013-2020" and the recommendations for its
improvement // Sustainable forest management. 2015. № 41 (1). p. 2-9.
23.Schwartz E.L., Shmatko N.M., Problems and prospects of implementation of intensive, cost-
effective, environmentally sustainable and socially responsible forest management [electronic
resource] //Journal LesPromInform site number. 2015. 109 Access: http://lesprominform.ru
/jarchive/articles/itemshow/4000
24. Shmatkov N.M. Intensive sustainable forestry: barriers and prospects: Proc.; World Wildlife
Fund (WWF). M.: WWF Russia, 2013. 214 pp.
25. Shmatkov NM Examples of domestic experience of sustainable forest management: ~ Sat.
Articles. M .: WWF Russia, 2013. 240 pp.
26. Shmatkov N.M. Examples of national experience of sustainable forest management [Proc.]
World Wilflife Fund. Moscow: [WWF Russia], 2013. - 239 pp.
27. Shmatkov N.M. The strategy of forest management system and environmental standards
development for medium taiga forest area in order to implement a model of sustainable intensive
forestry. Materials of Roundtable., March 18, 2013, St. Petersburg. M.: World Wildlife Fund
(WWF), 2013. 120 pp.
28. Yaroshenko A.Y. The main enemy of the forester - AAC // Sustainable forest management.
2014. № 40 (3). p. 2-4.
29..Yaroshenko Y.A. Russian forests: Is there a balance between the withdrawal and recovery:
[Electronic resource] // Journal LesPromInform site number. 2015. 109 Access:
http://lesprominform.ru/ jarchive /articles /itemshow /4043
30.Yaroshenko Y.A. Promising areas of the Russian forestry growth [electronic resource] Journal
LesPromInform site number. 2014. 101 Access:
http://lesprominform.ru/jarchive/articles/itemshow/3649
31.Yaroshenko A.Y. Forestry –as a key tool for nature conservation. [Electronic resource] // Journal
LesPromInform site number 2015 107 Access: http://lesprominform.ru /jarchive /articles/
itemshow /3956
32.The official website of the Federal Forestry Agency [electronic resource] Access mode:
http://www.rosleshoz.gov.ru/
33.The Russian forest portal [electronic resource] Access: http://lessovet.ru/
 FOREST AND WATER RESOURCES

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION

1. THE ROLE OF WATER IN FOREST LIFE

1.1. Water – forest determinant factor.
1.2. The requirements of forest species for humidity.

2. THE HYDROLOGICAL FUNCTION OF THE FOREST

2.1. The forest action on the amount of precipitations.
2.2. The influence of forest on the groundwater reserves
2.3. The action of the forest on the atmospheric humidity regime.

3. THE FOREST AND THE QUALITY OF WATER

QUESTIONS TO SELF EVALUATION

GLOSSARY

LIST OF REFERENCES
 INTRODUCTION
The water problem is a key issue that has an immense importance, in present-day
environments at the planet level. In many globe regions, , not only in traditionally lacking water
deserts, but also in industrial districts with temperate climate, the problems of drinking water and
water for technical purposes have simultaneously become very serious. The problem of clean water
also arose mainly due to the high levels of pollutions.
Moreover, some researchers claim that in addition to periodic (economic, financial,
industrial, etc.) crises faced by humanity future generations will face beginning with this century,
the most feared crises affecting the global development and the world peace - drinking water
scarcity accompanied by the food crisis.
Engels wrote: “People who started deforestation in Mesopotamia, Greece, Asia Minor and
elsewhere, in order to get arable land, have never dreamed that they marked the beginning of the
desolation of these countries, depriving them of forests and, as a result, of humidity gathering
centres.”
On the other hand, an aspect that becomes alarming is that since the last 25 years of the past
century, the water outflows, from over 145 large rivers in the world, decreased by 1/5 (20 %),
primarily as a consequence of the climate change [1].
Thus, according to calculations, an increase of over 25% of water necessities, between 1990
and 2025, represents the “water economic crisis”. The countries that will find themselves in this
situation may have sufficient water resources, but they will face serious problems in terms of
financial capacity and solutions for water needs.
According to the forecasts (World Water Vision), in 2025 more than 4 billion of people
(more than half of the world population) will live in countries suffering from water shortage and
more than 40 % of renewable water resources will be used for regions with absolute poverty of
water and 2/3 of the world population will be under water stress [1].However, according to the same
estimation, in 2050, due to the increase of water levels in the oceans and seas (with approx. 1
meter), without adopting appropriate measures approx. 118 mil inhabitants will be under the risk of
being flooded.
In order to avoid this situation, a rational solution of these global problems can be achieved
through development and implementation of a large complex of measures, including the use of
natural factors that regulate the hydrological regime.
Forest is one of the active factors, which regulates the humidity stocks and acts in the
direction of water purification and protection.
 The impact of forest upon humidity began to be researched more than 1,000 years ago,
today's research in this area is carried out in several countries, especially in the USA, Germany, and
Japan etc.
Nowadays the attention to the relationship between forests and water increased at the
international level. The interactions between forests and water, and the benefits provided by the
forests for water supply are various. By intercepting precipitation, evaporation from vegetative
surfaces, transpiration of soil moisture, capturing the fog water and maintaining the water
infiltration into the soil, the forests influence the amount of the available water.
The forests (depending on their destination) can be conventionally divided into three
categories: water protection forests; water regulation forests; soil protection forests (despite the fact
that forests perform each of the mentioned functions to a greater or minor extent).
Water protection forests are providing continuous and uniform influx of water into the
rivers, lakes and other water ponds and those protecting natural water ponds against pollution and
contamination.
Water regulation forests prevent floods and swamps and contribute to a better drainage of
the soil.
Soil protection forests are the forests that protect against soil collapses, washing (wind and
aquatic erosion) and shelter the fields and the inhabited regions from negative consequences of the
atmospheric precipitation.
The mission of the experts in this domain is reduced to determining the role of the forests in
the fluid balance and the interdependence between forest and humidity.
The fluid balance is comprised of influx of precipitation and the consumption of different
types of evaporation and drainage, its accumulation by the forestry plant community
(phytocoenosis) and the use of soil microorganisms.
This issue has two aspects:
1. The influence of the forest upon precipitation (vertical precipitation and horizontal
precipitation).
2. The influence of the forest on the distribution of precipitation.
 1. THE ROLE OF WATER IN FOREST LIFE
1.1. Water – a determinant factor for the forest.
Humidity–the amount of water vaporin the air is a crucial factor that essentially influences
the existence and the ecological processes taking place in the forest biocenosis. This factor is
closely related to the forest regeneration processes, especially in its initial stages, the development
and the productivity of the trees, the nature and the whole existence of the forest.
The water vastly determines the distribution of the forest, as it relates to the thermal limit
and xeric limits beyond which the forest cannot be planted (in Romania this constitutes 400-500
mm).Water has both physiological and physical influence on the forest.
The physiological importance of the water:
 It is the link between plants and soil, the path by which the minerals enter the body of the
plants and through which the circulation of the nutrients is insured;
 Water, along with heat and air are required for seed germination;
 it has a major role in the photosynthesis process;
 it supports the life of the cytoplasm;
 allows auto-regulation of plant tissues and organs.
The precipitation provides not only water for plants, but also food, as it conveys minerals
and nitric acid, ammonia, etc. from the atmosphere into the soil. It also can contain harmful
substances for the forest. Thus, the precipitation plays an important role in the physiological
processes of the forest.
Precipitations, especially in winter, physically influence the forest, which can be either
positive or negative.
The snow has beneficial effects as it can:
o increase the ground water reserve;
o protect the soil and seedlings against frost;
o delay the vegetation process and, in such a way, the late frosts do not destroy the juvenile
plants;
o protect plants against toxic gases (atmospheric pollutants). Gas release from industrial
enterprises and transport are affecting the whole atmosphere, peripheral forests and
plantations suffer from chemical poisoning, especially the young plants that are still weaker.
The seedlings, young coppice, or their parts are protected under the snow but the parts of the
plants located higher than the snow cover suffer from poisoning the top of the fir conifers
 are rapidly changing their colour and die. Thus, the coating of snow can serve as one of the
important means to finding the causes of poisoning the forest;
o protect young trees from damage during the process of forest tree cutting;
o increase the distance of dissemination of seeds by slipping on the frozen snow surface;
o thermal protection of the plant or some of its parts (roots, the lower part of the stem, etc.);
o achieving natural stratification of seeds of woody species (the Siberian cedar, etc.),
especially in the northern remote areas.
Rainfalls during the summer can also have a negative influence on the forests, being more often a
physical factor.
Negative influences:
 the rainfall can cause the erosion of the fertile soil layer, especially in the thinned forests or
those under exploitation – regeneration;
 the hail has a destructive effect on the regeneration of open ground. Often accompanied by
strong winds, the action of these two factors can serious damages the forests. The wounds
on trees caused by hail, contribute to their physiological underdevelopment and become
favourable places for the appearance and development of fungi (e.g. in the case of phage the
hail favours the genesis of cancer Nectria galligena);
 the droughts during the growing season can affect (depending on their duration) the tree
growth and the forest production in that year and in the following one;
 the droughts could compromise powerful natural and artificial regeneration, mostly on an
open ground, causing the drying of the trees and even the full drying of the thinned and old
forests;
 the hoarfrost has a great importance because of the effect it exercises over stalks of
vegetation and young spindles. The hoarfrost is very damaging for the seedlings during the
spring, after they started the vegetation. It destroys young seedlings parties, stalks and leaves
produced in that period;
 the ice fog is often manifested during the cold season due to the sublimation of water
vapour directly on the cooled items. Depending on its intensity, it can cause great damages
by breaking branches. The trees like birch, ash and white acacia suffer more because of
frost. It presents a great danger for the conifers with long needles, which form a dense
crown. But this can be beneficial and contributing to the natural trees pruning by removing
deadwood that breaks easily;
 the snow might break branches, bend slender stems or trigger avalanches because of which
often suffer coniferous trees;
  the snow can cause fractures and crashes (often catastrophic) especially for the young
conifer trees (Ex: April 1977-35 % of the area Suceava DS has been affected, a volume of
wood necessary for over five years for Suceava has been destroyed by the snow in one day)
[2].
In the past 3-4 decades of the last century it appeared another aspect of the influence of
moisture on the forest, the flooding action when setting up artificial basins, particularly when
creating large water reserves. Various wood species react differently to flood. The oak and spruce do
not support flood lasting for a long period of time. However, the willow adapted very well to the
floods, forming numerous adventitious roots on the stem, a partial immersion under the water is
also beneficial for the black alder.
Lack of water induced specific adaptations of the forests trees:
 formations to reduce water loss: multilayered epidermis, thick cuticle coating often bristles
in the trenches or pits stomata location, twisting tube-shaped leaves, reduced number or size
of the leaves, stems or stalks uptake by leaves functions, the transformation of leaves into
needles etc.;
 for enhancing the efficient use of water resources: development of shallow depth but highly
branched root system, exploiting wide volume of soil; or deep rooting to reach deep soil
water layer or groundwater);
 for water reserve accumulation: accumulation through aquifer leaf tissue or stem;

1.2. The demands of forest species for humidity

There are different opinions concerning the determining the amount of water used
annually by forests. In this regard the minimum annual rainfall required to forests ranges from 179
up to 700 mm.
The best forests in the Central Europe grow in regions with annual rainfall of 600-700mm.
But researchers are often taking into consideration the canopy trees retain, water infiltration
(penetration) and evaporation, they conclude that the real need of the forest is less; de facto forest
uses an amount of water around 150-175mm annually, which accounts about half of the average
annual need of moisture for crops [3].
There is a wide range of wood species with different moisture requirements; especially in
the case we take a broader geographic area. On our planet grow trees that make up the subtropical
and tropical mangrove forests on marine coasts, which are permanently under the action of tidal
flows. Or, for example, there is a swamp cypress, a “native” of the internal water basins of the
subtropics and, on the other hand, there are the inhabitants of the deserts and semi-deserts, such as
saxaul and pistachios. These are the extremes but there is also a large group of woody species that
occupies an intermediate position, and here we should differentiate them, these species being
subdivided into smaller branches of classification.
The group of wood species exigent to the moisture requirements consists of:
 Hydrophila - with stringent requirements towards humidity
 Mesophyte - with average requirements towards humidity
 Xerophyte - low humidity requirements
 Euriphile - very high tolerance to the moisture regime.

Table 1. The classification of forest species depending on their requirements to moisture. [2]
Xerophyte species Mesophyte species Hygrophila species Euriphile
species
Downy oak Spruce Cypress Birch
Grayish oak Larch White willow Buckthorn
Austrian oak Fir tree Black alder Juniper
Hungarian oak Beech White alder Scotch pine
Acacia Holm Euro-american poplar
Field maple Linden White poplar
Oriental hornbeam Hornbeam Black poplar
Sycamore Downy ash
Common ash
Elm
Maple

However, some researchers draw attention to the fact that some woody species have wide
ecological amplitude related to humidity. The classic example is the common pine (the Scotch
pine): it is often the only inhabitant of the arid sands; in this case these are xerophytes. But this
species may be also encountered in peat lands with excessive humidity (Table 1).

2. THE HYDROLOGICAL FUNCTION OF THE FOREST

The popular conceptions about the forest as a “water battery” and the negative consequences
of its destruction were shared by many state officials and institutions working on certifying laws on
forest and water protection in European countries from the ancient times.
One of the first decrees, which gathered together these two natural resources, was „the
Decree on water and forests”, developed in France in 1215. Later, in 1382, in the Switzerland began
to be identified forests under protection for preventing snow avalanches in the mountains, and later,
in 1483 - a special „forest law” was emitted that stipulated the retention of forests on mountain
slopes in order to regulate the water leaks. In the sixteenth century in France, Italy, Austria, are
issued decrees limiting the deforestation to support and improve the hydrological regime of
mountain torrents [3].
The influence of the forest on the hydrology is quite diverse. The trees retain some of
rainfall and decrease the quantity of water reaching the soil surface, thus contributing to soil drying.
Moreover, the litter and forest canopy that shade the soil reduce the physical evaporation of water
from the soil, also contributes to the lack of wind in the forest. The forest transpiration offers
moisture, so that the forest influences on the atmospheric humidity, not only over the land occupied
by it, but also abroad, in such a way, it influences the microclimate of non-wooded lands from the
neighbourhood.
The woody vegetation developed radical system of roots which enhancers the ability of the
soil to absorb the water. The refining action is intensified due to the wind that sways the trees and
the decomposition of some of the roots and the cavities formed in their place. These micro-relief
and uneven surface reduces the surface runoff water, favouring the water penetration into the soil,
and a part of the water from the rainfall runs into the groundwater and provide the rivers with water.
The water soaked through the forest canopy and flows on tree trunk washing various
substances as: atmospheric dust, pollen, products of insect activity, which penetrate into the soil.
The forest ecosystems constitute a serious obstacle for the acid rains, thus diminishing their quantity
that falls into the water basins.

2.1 The action of forest upon the amount of precipitation

In assessing the impact of the forest upon atmospheric precipitation two aspects of this issue
are usually highlighted. The first of them is related to the search of an answer to the question, if
forest contributes to the fall of additional precipitation, secondly, forest action upon the process of
redistribution of the precipitations. The most discussed and less studied, at the same time, is the
question about the forest action upon the fall of precipitation. This question has a fundamental
importance in assessing the role of precipitation for water protection (forest action upon the volume
of water flows).
Parallel measurements of precipitation at stations located in forests and fields certify that
above the forest they fall 25-30% more than in open neighbourhood places. On this basis, E.
Ebermayer stated the hypothesis about increasing precipitation under the action of the dampening
cooling effect, caused by the forest that grow in land height [4].
This point of view is shared by other researchers who believe that due to forest influence
precipitation is oftener formed, as long as the entire forest foliage forms a huge surface for
evaporation. But, concerning the forest influence upon the amount of precipitation, there are also
opinions expressing doubts about such an effect.
 At the same time, the assumption is stated, that forests are not the reason of heavy
precipitation, but, on the contrary, a good insurance with moisture caused by other factors,
constitutes the cause of the massive spread of forests in one or another region.
Indeed, it should not be excluded the role, played by forest in the intra-continental humidity
circuit, considering not only its huge evaporation surface, but also its non-uniformity, original in its
way of this surface, that contribute to the formation of turbulence currents above the forest.
Condensation or horizontal precipitation (sometimes called hidden precipitation, or
generally - sediment fog) to which droplets of fog, dew, frost, ice and other similar phenomena are
assigned, also have a considerable importance in hydric balance of forest plantations.
Many such rainfalls are deposited in the tropical and mountain forests, where the dew formation
occurs even in hot and dry weather.
A lot of dew is deposited in the temperate forests and, during winter, the trees are rarely
dressed in a thick layer of ice (frost), which sometimes gathers in such large quantities.
The main role in the performance of forest hydrology is played by its ability to retain a
significant amount of precipitation in its canopy and litter.
Precipitation falling in forests only partially reaches the surface. Some of them are retained in the
crown of trees and other plants and are returned to the atmosphere, thus increasing the total water
consumption of the forests. The following opinion circulates, concerning the fact that namely due to
rainfall retained in the crown, the total forest humidity consumption increases.
A special role in the retention of rainfall is played by forest litter that can hold an amount of
water that exceeds far the mass of the litter itself, so it protects the soil from drying out.
For centuries it was considered that forest accumulates more snow than the lands free of forests,
because the layer of snow in the forests is usually more massive.
Another aspect of the water balance of the forest is the evapotranspiration. The elimination
of water can be of three types: evaporation of water retained by the crown; water evaporation from
the soil surface; transpiration (the evaporation of water from the plant body)[3].
The difference between the evapotranspiration of the forests and that of the unforested land is the
topic of discussions that continues for several decades, discussions in which each side
contradictorily argues.
The research also shows that in fact the forest conditions actually lead to diminishing the
evapotranspiration not only within themselves, but also on unforested lands surrounding the
forests, for example on agricultural protection forest belts.
However, the evaporation intensity in the woods is influenced by: the presence of litter the
density of stands, the degree of soil compaction and sometimes the greater depth of the
groundwater.
 2.2. The influence of forest on the groundwater reserves
For a long time it was considered that if forests protect the soil from drying, at that time they
contribute also to the accumulation of groundwater. However, already in the second half of the last
century the facts evidencing the vice versa became known. Consequently, the pine plantings in 1848
on slightly swampy lowland in France ceased further swamping, but the local springs, another time
rich in water, began to dry up. Meanwhile, after the deforestation of a pine plantation from a less
wet neighbouring locality, a swampy process started. Also, there are statements about why the
Pontic marshes, not far from Rome, were once drained by planting eucalyptus on these surfaces.
At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the next century, the researcher П.В.
Отоцкий in forest areas and not wooden spaces from a number of regions, characterized by a
variety of geological and climate conditions soil from Russia, Ukraine, then from France, had
almost everywhere recorded a lower level of groundwater in forested areas compared to
neighbouring open unforested ones [3,5].
The author of the research considers that the extensive sweat of the vegetation in the forest
causes a powerful process of sucking water from the soil and groundwater deposits. „The forest is
everywhere forest - he concluded - everywhere it drinks a lot and evaporates more moisture and as a
result - everywhere is observed more or less lowering of groundwater level, which lies at the scope
of the root system, at a depth of 17-18m”. This deficit, he considers, usually is covered to some
extent on the account of moisture from the adjacent open spaces, partially from the surface sources
(some accumulations of snow on the outskirts of forests), but to a greater extent from the
underground waters. As a result, a temporary decline occurs in the groundwater from the peripheral
area surrounding the forest.
But other subsequent parallel measurements of the groundwater in the woods and fields, in
different countries, have sometimes led to different results concerning the groundwater levels, the
groundwater under forests being higher even than in the adjacent areas without forests.
Thus, the data of the hydro geological observations promoted in different time and different
places, attested a different ratio between the levels of the groundwater in forests and in the open
sectors, although the groundwater in the forest areas are usually at bigger depths than those from
laying out in the areas without forest.
Analysing the works of followers who consider forests as a system to evaporate moisture,
we should draw your attention to the fact that they all the changes in the groundwater levels are
considered out of touch with the general hydro-geological conditions of the localities. The lowering
of groundwater levels is seen as a result of pumping water by sweating woods. The groundwater is
conceived in this case as fixed (immovable), as if they are located in closed, isolated basins, the
water supply of which depends solely on precipitation and evaporation. The groundwater level
changes that occur in nature because of their inflow and spill out beyond the limits of their sector
generally are not taken into account. In reality groundwater is almost constantly moving, its speed
depends on the reserves and geological conditions. It usually moves in the direction of tilt, coming
to the surface in the aspect of springs or narrowing layers in hollows, meadow river and other
natural profiles or artificial village, leading to the gradual depletion of their reserves of groundwater
and the lowering of its level, which are more visible during the long absence of rainfall.
The protection forest belts trap snow carried by the wind also contributes to dampening the
soil and replenish of the groundwater. But they are subjected to stronger action of wind, compared
with the massive forests, and therefore the amount of water evaporation and transpiration of woody
vegetation in them should increase. This cannot cause a more rapid depletion of water in this
protection forest belts in summer. Therefore, windbreaks, apparently possesses two opposite
qualities: helping to moisten the soil and groundwater accumulation, they also produce more
moisture and sweat. So, the combination of these contrary features causes confusion in assessing the
action of forests on groundwater.
High permeability of the soil under the forest protection belts (up to 213mm / hr), the ability
to retain the water field (about 570mm) in a layer of 4m thick soil while for the duration of an
overwhelming melting of the snow in spring create conditions for a deeper water infiltration from
the limits of more populated root layers. Forest protection belts preserve, at their borders, a
considerable amount of snow, contributing to influx of groundwater in the soil. The forest
protection belts cause an obvious action on groundwater levels, particularly on phreatic waters. At a
higher extent, the level of groundwater often rises in more compact woods, which usually
accumulate a lot of snow. The permeable forest protection belts have little influence on this
accumulation. Water, originated from the melting snow, is pouring into the surroundings of these
forest protection belts, causes a rise in the level of groundwater and that from the spaces between
forest rows. As a result, forest protection belts continuously contribute to the water supply of the
land covered by forests, together with the spaces between them.
When discussing about the causes lowering the groundwater levels under the forest
protection belts it should be noted that these occur within the bands of wide rows, where the trees
and the soil are relatively better protected from evaporation from the periphery or in narrower strips.
If the perspiration of the moisture would be the main factor on which depends the groundwater
level, then we could expect a greater lowering of their levels at the periphery of the forest belts or
on the base of narrow strip, but not in the middle wide strips, such as determined by measurements.
Recognizing forests as powerful agents of increasing atmospheric humidity we must not just
talk about their local moistening effect, but also about their action from the distance.
In 1911 Г.Н. Высоцкий, considering that due to the fact that forests are some powerful
evaporators that contribute to an increased water active quantity and enhanced moisture circuit,
submits a scheme, based on the assumption of forest moist transgressive action. According to her,
humidity that arrives in Russia from the west and north, falling multiple times as rainfall is
transferred farther and farther into the depths of the country, gradually moistening its territory, that
in fact there is a transgression of them deep in the continent. Thus, the hydro climatic role of the
forests, according to the author, is that they, as some high moisture evaporators, support their
transgression in the depths of the continent. This moisture transgressive hypothesis of the land by
means of forests would point the way for resolving the contradiction that has emerged between the
spread vision about the protective role of water played by forests and the conclusion regarding a
greater evaporation and the drying of the forest of soils, which were reached within other
researches.

2.3 The influence of the forest on the atmospheric moisture regime

Earth atmosphere always contains water vapours that are formed during the evaporation of
the water from the oceans, seas, water basins, from the soil surface and plant transpiration.
The forest generates significant changes in the atmospheric and edaphic moisture regime
and its environment both in and outside its limits at a considerable distance.
The water consumption of the forest varies depending on the composition of the forest, its
natural setting, composition and age. It increases with the age, peaks when the diameter of the trees
is between 10 and 20 cm (simultaneously with the culmination of the growth in height) and then
gradually decreases [4].
Generally, the air and soil humidity inside the forest is different from that of an open field.
 The humidity is higher than on an open ground, the maximum difference is during the
summer and minimal during the winter.
 The vertical distribution of the relative humidity in the forest has some peculiarities: before
sunrise it is almost equal at all levels of the stand, then, after the sunrise the surface of the
canopy is heated and there is a layer drier on the top, where the temperature rises, the
humidity on the lower layer remains higher; As the sun rises, intensifying the exchange of
moisture turbulent vertical gap shrinks, leaving two peaks, one on the ground and one on
the canopy; in the evening a strong evaporation from the forest floor is to be felt, the effect
caused by the decreasing temperature, the relative humidity increases, big differences on
vertical line are recorded.
 Soil moisture varies in time according to its depth, there are several characteristic areas: an
area with high humidity, the top soil at the beginning of the growing season, a second area
where the humidity drops rapidly and lasts until early July, the third area of de-juicing (due
to water absorption by roots of the trees) that are amplified in July and lasts until September
and a final area of partial recovery of the soil moisture on the top, in the first half of August,
 during the sub maximal rain; in the open space of the ground the humidity is lower during
the whole period of vegetation.
During the summer it is cool in the forest and there the air seems to be moist, and the soil
moisture is also higher. This could be explained by evaporation that is stronger in the forest,
and high humidity expressed by high relative air humidity prevents the intensive evaporation
under the canopy of the forest, and the plants soaked by rain dry slowly. Despite of having the
feeling that the air is more moist than that of a local open area, the vapour content (the absolute
humidity) usually is not higher, or is only slightly higher, as in the sectors without forests.
If we analyse the absolute humidity, then it can be concluded that the general amount of
water evaporated is not higher than in the areas without woods. At the same time, the water vapours
in the woods, under the canopy, are dispersed less as in the open areas, where the wind is stronger
and more powerful and turbulent and mixes the air layers.
Regarding the relative humidity, it is always higher in the forest than in the field, because
of the lower temperature. This means that the air in the forest is closest to the state of saturation
with water vapour than on the open adjacent sectors. The research shows that only in July, August
and September the relative humidity in the forest is slightly higher than in open areas and with 4-6
% higher as on the glades and cut forest sectors.
Thus, the difference between the absolute humidity in different forest plantations and I
open sectors is not high. Due to the fact that the temperature of the air is lower in the forest, its
relative humidity is clearly higher than the humidity of the adjacent non-wooded areas, sometimes
with 8 - 10%, and in some days even with 12 - 15 %.

3. FOREST AND WATER QUALITY

Water plays a very important role in the human life because it meets our physiological,
hygienic, household, recreational and other needs. From a physiological point of view, we need
water in order to regulate the body temperature, to transport substances through blood, to eliminate
the metabolites, etc. But for most of the human needs we require pure water. It is almost impossible
to find in nature chemically pure water, it usually contains many minerals and organic substances
dissolved or suspended in it.
Water, depending on its composition, can have negative effects which may manifest not
only because of its consumption. Therefore, sanitary and epidemiological requirements are strictly
defined and the water quality is continuously monitored.
 The main source for supplying water basins is the atmosphere. Water from the atmosphere
reaches the ground surface in the form of precipitations; the runoff reaches the river and forms the
hydrographical network. Long distances significantly change the chemical composition of the
water, its organoleptic characteristic and the bacteriological parameters.
If the precipitations are falling on forested areas and are passing over the crest, the water
is enriched with various substances, the quantity and quality of which depends on the age and type
of the trees. Having reached the ground, the water interacts with the litter and also enriches with
minerals and organic substances.
A greater role on the water quality has the soil and rocks that underlie it, they will provide
water the mineral characteristic. The main source of ions are soluble salts from the soil, which
provide SO2-, HCO3-, Mg2+, Cl-, Na+, K+, etc. Along with the water penetration into the soil, the
amount of salt increases and the concentration of organic substances decrease.
The researches carried out in Russia, Canada and the US during the last century confirmed
the positive effect of forests on the organoleptic and chemical composition of water arriving
through runoff into the water basins. For example, in Russia there were investigated six small
basins and it was found out that the colour indicator of water from the furrow surface was 10o-20o,
but the water from grassland or woodland showed the colour index below 10o. Water turbidity was
not too big, but during heavy rainfall the turbidity of the water from the furrow suddenly increased,
but the water drained from the woodland or grassland had unchanged turbidity.
The amount of nitrates (NO3-) in the water that drains from ploughing areas varies
between 0.003 and 0.3 mg/l, while the water coming from the forest area contains 0.01-0.03 mg/l.
Ammonium (NH4+) is contained in the concentrations of 0.7 to 1.5 mg/l on the ploughing areas, on
the meadows it varies from 0.5 to 1.2 mg/l and on the woodland it is from 0.15 to 0.4.
The most obvious influence of the forest is seen on the amount of salts washed from the
soil during heavy rainfall and snowmelt. During that periods suddenly increased the turbidity and
the colour indicator of water changed due to suspended particles that were dissolved in the water.
The research data show that the forest influences the content of pesticides in the drainages. The
degree of decomposition of pesticides depends on the specific composition of stands and their
density and age. For example, the amount of metrifonate (an insecticide used in the agriculture in
the past) of the drainages, which have passed through a forest strip of 5 meters wide fell from 0.6
mg/l to 0.25 mg/l and from 0.1 mg/l to 0.05 mg/l. The hexaclorociclohexan concentration contained
in runoff after passing through a strip of forest of 5m decreased from 0.041 to 0.001[6].
The water purifying effect of the forest is proved by a lot of researches promoted
worldwide, currently being explored the purification mechanisms and the contribution of different
 plant species to the purification process. For example, the most effective in the water purification
from pesticides have turned out to be the mixed linden and maple stands.

Table 2. The change of water quality parameters after passing through various types of forest stands.

Parameters Transpa- pH Oxidab Hard- NO2- NO3- NH4+ Mg2+ Cl- Suspen-
rency -ility ness ded
substan-
ces
mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l
Sampling place mg/l mg/l
cm mg/l
Inthe forest 15,0 5,5 6,8 0,4 0,040 - 2,0 0,1 2,76 194,6
belt(pine stand)
Outsidethe forest 25,0 6,0 11,3 1,4 0,020 - 1,2 1,1 2,30 4,2
belt (pine stand)
Till In the forest 13,0 6,0 4,4 0,8 0,002 0,4 0,8 0,6 2,30 2216,0
belt(larch stand)
Outsidethe forest 17,5 6,0 16,4 0,8 0,002 0,3 0,8 0,6 2,30 2,8
belt (larch stand)

According to data presented in the table we can say that the woodland serves as a filter for
the surface runoff, having a positive influence upon the water quality.

QUESTIONS TO SELF EVALUATION

1. What is the physiological importance of humidity and precipitation for the forest?
2. What is meant by positive and negative physical influence of water on the forest and how
does it develop during the summer and winter?
3. What requirements do the forest species have regarding the moisture?
4. Enumerate the types of hydrological influence of the forest.
5. What is the connection between the forest and the horizontal condensation precipitation?
What factors determine their amount in the woods?
6. How does the litter influence detention of rainfall in the forest?
7. How do forest and forest protection belts influence on the groundwater reserves?
8. What is the role of forests in determining the water quality?
 GLOSSARY
Hydrological regime – Variations in the state and characteristics of water body which are
regularly repeated in time and space and which pass through seasonal or other phases.
Hydrographic network – all riverbeds which facilitate the draining of surface and running
waters, along in river basins located on a certain territory.
Evapotranspiration – the phenomenon of combined loss of soil moisture via direct surface
evaporation and plant transpiration.
Groundwater – a network of groundwater from water infiltration which is situated close to
the earth’s surface (in the first waterproof layer of the Earth’s surface) and which feeds the springs
and wells.
Precipitations – condensed water vapours which fall from the atmosphere on the earth’s
surface as rain, fog, frost, snow, hail, etc.
Horizontal Precipitations – precipitations resulting from the condensation of humid vapours
while reaching the surface of cold objects, branches (ex .: dew, fog, frost)
Flow - the amount of fluid which pass within a unit time through a section of a riverbed, a
pipeline or a canal.

LIST OF REFERENCES
1. MINGTEH, CHANG. 2012. Forest Hydrology: An Introduction to Water and Forests, Third
Edition. , by CRC Press, Text book - 595 ISBN 9781439879948.
2. FLORESCU, I., NICOLESCU, N.V. 1996. Forestry. vol. I, ed. Exlibris, Brasov. (in Romanian)
3. MELEHOV, I.S. 1980. Forestry. – Moscow: Forest Industry, - 480p. (in Russian)
4. RAHMANOV,V.V. 1984. Hidroclimatic role of forests - Moscow, Forest Industry, - 241p. (in
Russian)
5. VORONKOV, N.A. 1988. The role of forests in water protection.– Leningrad, Hidrometeoizdat, -
285p. (in Russian)
6. NIKOLAENKO, В.Т. I.T. 1980. Forests and protection of water reservoirs - Moscow, Forest
Industry, - 263p. (in Russian)
7. КRESTOVSKIY, О.И. 1986. The influence of forest cuttings and forest renovation on water
capacities of rivers – Leningrad, Hidrometeoizdat, -116p. (in Russian)
 NATURAL HAZARDS IN THE FOREST
Keywords:
Natural hazards, forest fires, windthrows, avalanches, landslides, floods, mudflows
Glossary
Hazard - rare or extreme phenomenon of natural or human nature that affects life, property and
human activity, and whose spread can lead to disasters;
Landslide – movement of rocks forming the slopes of mountains or hills, slopes of hydrological
work or other land improvement works;
Flood – land cover with a layer of water stagnating or in motion that, because of its size and
duration, causes human victims and material destruction that disturbs the smooth conduct of socio-
economic activities in the affected area.
Forest fire - any uncontrolled fire in an area of natural vegetation available for burning due to
weather conditions
Avalanche - snow mass that detaches from a mountainside and rolls downhill (carrying stones,
trees etc. in its way).
Windthrow – massive fall of trees produced by storms.
 CONTENT
INTRODUCTION
1. FOREST FIRES
1.1. The classification of forest fires
1.2. The causes of forest fires
2. WINDTHROWS
2.1. The classification of windthrow types
2.2 Causes, effects and solutions recommended by specialized literature concerning windthrow
3. LANDSLIDES
3.1. Conditions, factors and causes of landslides
3.2. The classification of landslides
4. AVALANCHES
4.1. General aspects
4.2. The classification of avalanches
4.3. Generating factors of avalanches
4.4. Causes of avalanches
5. FLOODS
5.1. Causes of floods
5.2. Negative effects of floods
5.3. Floods prevention and control
 NTRODUCTION
Natural hazards have been an integral part of nature at every stage of its evolution. They are
well known throughout human history. Natural hazards occur unexpectedly, without any discernible
regularity, and have a serious impact on nature, sometimes for decades. In the evolution of the
natural environment they have always played a revolutionary role because they transfer a part of the
territory or landscape components into a new qualitative state. Moreover, at present, they are
magnified by human influence, which gives them a negative and often catastrophic character.
At the same time, people are now becoming more exposed to natural hazards and their
damages grow steadily. This happens because: first, with the scientific and technical progress, the
economic activities of people penetrate further and further into remote regions (primarily
mountainous and Arctic ones), and in these regions the strength and frequency of natural hazards
manifestations are on a larger scale than in already developed territories. Secondly, interference
with nature often causes breakage of existing links and increases unwanted and dangerous
phenomena. As a result, there occurs an unexpected paradox: science and technology develop
further, but the society is increasingly exposed to natural phenomena and although the number of
the deceased by natural hazards decreases, the damage caused by them increases.
One of the most dangerous trends of the contemporary era is increasing frequency, intensity
and consequences of natural hazards. According to the assessments, today direct and indirect losses
from them constitute 250 000 deaths annually and the economic damage constitutes from 50 to 100
million dollars. Economic losses, caused by all types of hazards, were assessed in 1950 and 1990 to
4 and correspondingly 40 billion US $ annually. Over 80% of these losses are due to the hazards
caused by weather, climate and water, i.e., storms, floods, droughts etc. During the period 1992-
2001 only the hazards caused by weather, climate and water have generated over 622 000 victims
and affected the existence of two billion people, they have also left millions of people homeless,
brought diseases, poverty and much suffering. The number of these phenomena increases.
According to the conducted researches the number of hydro meteorological hazards in the last 30
years has increased three times.
 1. FOREST FIRES

1.1. Classification of forest fires

Forest fires can be classified into the following categories:
- surface fires
- crown fires
- ground fires
Surface fires are the fires that spread over the forest floor vegetation: shrubs, moss, lichens,
herbs, bushes, dead layer of organic materials, residues remaining from forest exploitation and the
bottom of the trees. The development and spread of the fire area depend on the degree of dryness
of the vegetation located under the trees.
A surface fire often doesn’t have a continuous front forward but it propagates through jumps,
creating an irregularly shaped burned area in different directions depending on the wind patterns.
According to their propagation surface fires can be slow and fast.
Slow surface fires spread downwind at a rate of a few tens of meters per hour. Upwind and at the
lateral sides the fire develops very weakly. The flame reaches a height of 0.1 m to 2 or 3 m or
sometimes even more, depending on the thickness of the dead layer of the soil and the fuel load of
dry vegetation under the tree layer.
Fast surface fires start on the forest floor and spread downwind at speeds that can reach up to 1
km/h. These fires burn alive and dead soil layers. The fire does not extend downwind and at the
lateral sides as much as along the main axis of propagation. The burner area by a fast surface fire
is oval in flat terrain as in the case of slow surface fire, but with the major axis much more
developed. The flame height exceeds 2 m.
 Figure 1.1.1 Surface fire
Crown fires involve whole trees and full crowns burn. They produce large material damages and
difficulties in forest regeneration. Crown fires occur especially in resinous woods, in conifers the
fire development is favored by resins in the leaves, branches and the trunk of the tree. The fire
spread from tree to tree at speeds that depend on the wind speed and on the forest topographic
position.
According to their speed crown fires can be slow, fast and violent.
Slow crown fires have speed of propagation downwind up to 8 km/h. Upwind and laterally the fire
develops with lower intensity. The smoke usually has a dark gray color. The shape of the forest area
that has suffered from a slow crown fire is in most cases oval in flat terrain.
Fast crown fires burn rapidly through tree crowns. A fast crown fire burns all fir of resinous trees
and consumes totally small branches. Larger branches and the bark on the trees trunks are
carbonized. The forward speed downwind is 8-25 km/h The shape of the region devastated by a fast
crown fire is oval, but very elongated in flat terrain. The smoke is usually dark gray or black.
With violent crown fires (megafires, stormfires) the fire’s forward speed reaches more than
25 km per hour and the fire front is very broad. With fast and violent crown fires the dead organic
layer on the forest floor burns partially.
 Figure 1.1.2. Crown fire
Ground fires usually ignite in the secular/mature forests in which soil over the years there have
been deposits of a thick blanket of dry leaves and wood particles; materials which have decomposed
and formed a layer of mold, or peat. So a fire under the organic layer or stratum of foliage or soil
burns the rotten layer, that’s why it also is named rotifer. The speed of an underground fire is small,
rarely reaches several hundred meters and even more rarely reaches 1 km in 24 hours. The flame
height changes according to the depth of the ground organic layer and the amount of dead wood. In
this type of fires, together with the layer of mold and peat, tree roots burn too, causing tree trunks
fall.

1.2. The causes of forest fires and their evaluation

The causes of forest fires vary. Studies on forest fires show that the most common causes
are:
- careless use of fire by humans for cooking or heating;
- cigarettes thrown at random;
- burning wood residues resulting from stand harvesting;
- clearing of agricultural land by burning or for pasture improvement;
- the use of hunting guns;
- sparks from machinery used in forestry;
- lightning;
- arson.
 The propagation speed of a surface fire is influenced by a number of factors: type,
condition, humidity and amount of combustible material, local topography and weather changes
(wind speed and direction, air temperature and humidity, solar radiation).
Statistics are based on the observational evidence of forest fires per forest districts and within
forest districts per their production units and plots. The study of these statistics, by forest region,
years, climatic seasons, administrative areas, show the priority areas forrisk monitoring.
The postfire analysis based on burned vegetation aims to explain fire behaviour by
analyzing the following factors:
- flammability, that shows the proneness of the analyzed species to ignite when exposed to
heating. It varies considerably depending on the season and the technological state of the species;
- combustibility that defines fire intensity in a fuel-vegetation cover; it also depends on the season
and weather conditions.
The risk of fire propagation is linked to these two factors based on the analysis of vegetation
structure and composition; they allow to assess the risk more thoroughly than from statistics.

1.3. Measures to prevent forest fires

The main measures to prevent and stop wildfire are:
 teaching and training of people who come into contact with the forest through audible and
visual propaganda campaings; locating warning panels in conspicuous places and
arranging places for leisure and rest in the most visited areas of the forest;
 opening and maintaining access roads in vulnerable and most used areas; those forest
roads will ensure both organized traffic in the forest and safe and rapid intervention in
case of need;
 compelling the owners of the lands, neighboring the forest, to ensure forest isolation by
ditches or protection furrows and supervising the burning of plant residues;
 forest managers / owners should patrol the forest and even organize permanent vigilance
during dry periods in order to prevent or detect possible fires in the shortest time;
 together with local governments there should be organized rapid mobilization of a
sufficient number of trained people for an efficient intervention in case of fire;
 permanent maintenance of the fire pickets in good condition with all material and tools
needed;
 training of workers performing various tasks in the forest on the rules for fire prevention
and firefighting.
 At the national level, it is necessary maps on zoning forest ecosystems concerning the risk of
forest fires occurrence. These maps can be a relevant decision support tool for drawing up plans for
forest monitoring and forest and fuel management in an integrated system.
 2. WINDTHROWS
Of all the natural phenomena that forests are facing with increased severity, windthrow and
snaping caused by wind and snow, together with drought, cause the greatest damage (Giurgiu,
1995).
Windthrow is a part of the natural functioning of the forest ecosystem, being with other specific
processes a form of natural removal of vegetation and creation of regeneration gaps. For the forest
ecosystem, analyzed at large scales, when the climax stage and maximum stability is reached,
windthrow is a disturbance factor but its occurrence rate is usually within the bounds of natural
elimination and replacement for younger forest.
Compared with a virgin natural forest, in forest ecosystems intervened by management
modifying the structure and specific relationships established between the different components of
the ecosystem, windthrow exceeds the rate of natural elimination; they become a disturbance
factor having negative economic and environmental effects, by altering stand structure and
causing economic losses.
In recent decades, due to global warming, it has been noted an increase in general
circulation of the atmosphere and a slight movement of climatic zones from the south to the north
(Bogdan 2007, Bogdan Marin, 2007), which generates a wide range of extreme weather events,
including storms and tornadoes, that are prominent by the disasters they create not only in the
forest ecosystems, but also in the entire geographical environment. That’s why lately there have
been registered serious problems with windthrow in many countries of Western and Central
Europe.
A clear example is Hurricane Lothar which took place on October 26th 1999 and crossed all
European countries, from the Atlantic to Poland; it recorded land wind speeds of 169 km/h in
Alsace-Lorraine, where large tracks of forest land were felled to the ground, in some places up to
90% of tree density (Vahl, 2000). Such rapid development is characteristic of tropical cyclones,
but not of extratropical ones, as in this case. It was a unique phenomenon in the history of the
meteorological observations in Europe.

2.1 The classification of windthrows

According to the mechanical impact on ecosystems injury due to high wind speed, intensity
and scale of the phenomenon, experts in forestry classify windthrow in two main groups:
catastrophic windthrow and endemic windthrow.
Catastrophic windthrows are massive, they cover areas of hundreds of hectares and the volume of
the affected stocking is at the level of hundreds of thousands of m3. They are caused by extreme
weather conditions, with very high wind speeds, with lower relative frequency (every 10-15
years), and affecting most trees, regardless of their stability. In this case a proper forest
management is required concerning forest clearing, salvage harvesting and compensating for
deficiencies arising on domestic and international wood markets.
Endemic windthrows have a yearly frequency due to winds of medium intensity, but with
considerable economic consequences. They cover smaller areas or even isolated trees, sometimes
trees may be uprooted or only broken. They are generated by stationary and meteorological factors
and by trees characteristics (biometric and qualitative parameters, trees structure, their health etc.).
Sometimes windthrow may occur as a result of inadequate forestry measures, or because of fragile
topoclimatic soil and geomorphological conditions that favor windthrow.
As other climate risks, windthrows are characterized by temporary and instantaneous
occurrence depending on wind speeds that can exceed 15-50 m/s, by the reduced time lag (from a
few hours to 24 hours), by large scale (from isolated trees to a few tens or hundreds of hectares) as
well as by unpredictable economic and phytosanitary consequences. The most vulnerable are the
forest ecosystems located on the leeward slopes, sheltered and crossed by hot winds (type foehn)
and especially by cold winds (type Bora).
Windthrows are topoclimatic, very complex natural phenomena that are triggered usually by both
natural and human causes.
Natural causes are generated by two types of major factors: stationary factors and dynamic
factors. Their intensity and characteristics determine the intensity and scale of the phenomenon.
Dynamic factors have a decisive role by the pressure exerted by the air currents on forest
ecosystems specific to the general circulation of the atmosphere and from the lower troposphere.
Windthrows occur where there is a very high thermobaric gradient, oriented perpendicularly
on an orographic dam, where the contrast occurs by the existence of two opposite baric
formations: the cyclone, with very little pressure in the center, and the anticyclone, the
anticyclonic dorsal or the belt of high atmospheric pressure with high pressure in the center that
develop over Europe, being specific to different types of atmospheric circulation: western, polar,
tropical, blocking and eastern.
Windthrows can occur in all seasons, but with the highest frequency they apper in the
transition of seasons, particularly in autumn (when the direction of the atmosphere’s circulation
changes from the west, carrying hot and humid air, to the east, carrying cold and dry air).
Windthrows appear with the lowest frequency in summer when the thermobaric contrasts
are reduced, because of generally high positive temperatures.
Frequent synoptic situations that generate windthrow are quite varied. Thus, for example,
the more intense and extensive windthrows are produced when between the baric field from the
ground and the baric field from the altitude there is a close concordance: whether the ground baric
formations are supplied by the altitude ones, increasing thus, the thermobaric contrast, whether the
influence of the altitude baric formation overlaps the air circulation above the ground, in particular
of the "jet streams".

2.2 Causes, effects and solutions concerning windthrows

Windthrow and wind breaks (snapping) are caused by the interaction of many factors. The
ecological balance of these forests is due to several factors whose hierarchy is difficult to
determine because of the lack of evidence on all factors. The factors are divided into two groups:
natural and anthropogenic. Natural factors are represented by stationary factors, insects, pests,
diseases; and anthropogenic factors are represented by two types of factors: factors concerning
practiced forestry and factors concerning forests exploitation (Geambasu, 1980).
The research undertaken has revealed that windthrows (especially the massive ones), occur
because of exceptional weather, which is characterized mainly by impressive speeds of air
currents.
The decisive factor is the wind speed, which, combined with other factors, has negative
effects on forests in mountainous regions and especially on the European spruce forests (Abrudan,
et al., 1998). Strong air currents with speeds over 100-150 km/h are produced as a result of the
large differences of athmospheric pressure and temperature (Chiral, et al., 1981).
Another very important factor that should be considered when analyzing windthrow and
snapping is the topography. The influence of the local relief is manifested in the wind direction
change (Abgrall et al., 1991), in the emergence of the turbulence phenomenon, in the wind speed
increase and decrease, in the heating or cooling of the air masses. According to Popescu-Zeletin,
Woelfle, Hutte, Dissescu and others, slopes are exposed to windthrow only at the bottom of the
slope and under the ridge, at lengths that are inversely proportional to the size of the angle of the
slope. On the ridges windthrow occur when the speed of the air is over 17m/s, or if the soil, the
stand structure, the age and health of the trees are in unfavorable conditions (Dumitrescu, 1974).
The most exposed to the wind are valleys and peaks just underneath the wind current,
especially when they are rooted in deep valleys.
Soil type and how the trees are rooted lead to windthrow, the soil being taken into account
because of drainage characteristics. Analyzing the influence of the soil on windthrows, Hutt found
out that, on the surface where the spruce has superficial rooting, it is exposed to windthrow even
at the wind speed of only 11-14 m/s, if the duration of the storm is long and the wind blows in
gusts (Dumitrescu, 1974). At these speeds, if the wind blows in gusts, spruce balancing occurs. In
wet soils by balancing the roots gradually come off the ground, tearing the rooting disc. And under
the influence of stronger wind gusts, the tree gets out of balance and crashes. If the lateral roots
are strong, the wind force must be higher than the force required to separate vertical roots from the
mineral soil. The rocking movement of the tree is transferred to the rooting disc, which rises and
sinks successively several times during a storm. These repeated movements result in the breakage
of the lateral roots. In these situations, the storm’s duration and the wind gusts’ power influence
the dimensions of damage.
A first analysis of the slimness indexes is made by Giurgiu et al. (Giurgiu et al. 1972) in
Romanian tables of forest production, in which he highlights the following hierarchy of the main
species in terms of the relative resistance to wind: European larch, oak, black pine, fir, Scots pine,
hornbeam, beech and spruce. Of course, this potential is related to the native ownership of each
species, but also to the density of the stands, to the rooting system in relation to the position on the
slope, the slope, depth, texture, nutrition and the conditions of humidity of the soil (Avram, 2002).
Regarding the influence of the shape and size of the stem on the production of these injuries,
Barbu and Cenusa (cited in Avram, 2002) have shown that maintaining excessive density in the
sites favorable to spruce growth determines and highlights the imbalance between the height and
thickness of the trees. Moreover, according to the statements of Ichim (1976) and Dumitrescu
(1974) (cited in Avram, 2002), confirmed by other observations, wind and snow affect mostly pure
spruce stands of high productivity.

Figure 2.2.1. Windthrow in a spruce stand

The cited authors have also found that:

  trees stability decreases as the slenderness ratio increases;
 the most resistant to breakage and uprooting by wind and snow are the stands in which
more than 50% of trees have slenderness coefficient values less than 0.9.
The frequency of windthrows in time and space is cyclical, they occur under the influence of
systematic, i.e. predictable, factors, which favors forecasting (Popa, 2000).
Rooting manner and the nature of the soil are the main factors of trees uprooting. Therefore, the
more space the roots cover, the more solid is the tree anchoring (Ichim, 1981), but for the fact that
the area of land covered by the roots and thus deployable is larger in the case of windthrow.
Therefore the trees, whose rooting is strong and pivoting, are much more resistant to the action of
uprooting than those whose roots are shallow and poorly developed. In the area of the ground in
which the radicular system develops, roots intertwine with the soil horizontally and vertically,
forming a kind of frame for the soil cylinder. This roots frame is so strong that when the tree falls,
it pulls and disrupt the entire soil cylinder, turning it usually 90 degrees (Giurgiu, 2008).
The depth of the soil also greatly influences the action of tree uprooting: the deeper is the soil,
the more roots have the opportunity to grow; this is not possible on skeletal soils. Wet soils are
very easy to displace, and this is proved by the fact that mass windthrow occurs after heavy rains
when the soil is wet.
The composition and structure of the stands is decisive for windthrow and snapping: the stands,
whose composition is generally 100% Spruce, are the most exposed; the mixtures of beech and
softwood are also exposed, depending heavily on the mixture of species.
Even-aged Stand with a continuous crown cap are the most exposed, because trees grow in
mutually supportive conditions and therefore have a less developed root system, a weaker
anchorage, and the trunks are less resistant to ruptures (Giurgiu, 2008).
The effects of windthrow imply economic losses caused by these events, which constitute annually
millions of euros at the European level. For example, only in 1990 over 110 million cubic meters
were affected in one night (Doll 1992, Popa, 1999).
 3. LANDSLIDES

3.1. Conditions, factors and causes of landslide processes

Landslides are rock masses displacements over slopes, either for natural causes or caused by
human intervention. They cause great harm to human activities, as well as material damage, and
thus fall into the category of natural hazards.
Landslides are defined both as a process of displacement of rock masses on the slopes, as well as
the resultant relief feature. Slides are considered to be rapid or slow gravitational displacements of
masses on the slopes under the influence of intense wetting of rocks and slope materials as well as
due to the breakage of the balance between the gravitational force and the internal friction force of
the rock masses. The initiation of slides involves the penetration of water into the substrate (in rainy
periods) to an impermeable layer of rocks, represented by clays or marches, which when wet
imposes a "sliding bed" function. As a result of the wetting of impermeable rocks on the surface of
the "sliding bed", a clay / marce slurry is formed which plays the role of lubricant in the sliding
process. The landslides are favored by a series of conditions, factors and causes of which we
highlight:
- Characteristics of the geological substrate: lithological nature and stratification; alternation of
permeable and impermeable layers; the presence of clay rocks, which become damp through
humidity and have very low cohesion; the degree of fissure, etc.

Figure 3.1.1. Landslide

- Relief: slope (degree of inclination); configuration and length of the slope;
- Humidity: infiltration waters, meteoric waters originating from extended rains, underground
waters that weaken the cohesion of rocks;
- Natural vibrations of the Earth's crust: (earthquakes, avalanches).
- Anthropic activity: through direct actions - artificial subversion of the slopes, overloading the
slopes through construction, trepidation caused by road traffic, artificial explosions; over-wetting
of land by changing the water regime; through indirect actions - poor, unreasonable land
management, deforestation, excessive grazing, grubbing up of meadows.
- Lack of forest / grass vegetation on the slopes.
The landslides are characterized by the following morphological elements:
- Hole of detachment - the place where the mass of slipped material is broken, marked by a
rupture;
- The sliding body - the slipped materials with a very varied micromorphology according to the
moved material and the way the movement is produced, and also the types of landslides: in waves,
in treads, in furrows, in garlands, in mounds, etc.
- Sliding surface or bed - the area along which the rock mass moves and separates the moving
material from the substrate remaining in place.
- Sliding rim - the external edge of the sliding mass that rises slightly above the topographic
level of the slope.

3.2 Classification of landslides

Classification of landslides is based on certain criteria:
The depth of the sliding surface, whose position varies between wide limits, which allowed
separation in:
 Superficial landslides (at 1m depth),
 Medium-depth landslides (1-5 m deep)
 Deep landslides (over 5 m deep).
The character of rock mass movement:
 Rotational landslides (developed in homogeneous rocks);
 Translational slides (the movement is carried out on the stratification surfaces).
Movement velocity is a basic criterion that allows multiple subdivisions, but the basic types
remain:
 Sudden landslides (they can develop in a few hours);
 Rapid landslides (they can develop in a few weeks);
 Slow landslides (the movement of the rock mass can record a few meters per year).
The shape of the sliding body is a commonly used criterion, because it reflects the structure and the
genesis of the landslides. The following types are distinguished:

 Landslides in furrows (superficial) affect only the soil patch, placed on a well-fixed
substrate; they have the appearance of some furrows broken apart from each other, grassed,
between the furrows there are loose portions.
 Landslides lenticulars occur in impermeable, plastic rocks of clay types; they move both the
soil and the underlying rock on relatively low slopes (120 0-150); they are distinguished by a
body in the form of short waves, with concave outlines like lenses chaotically floored;
 Landslides in mounds have a great depth (5m-20m-30m), the mounds have a circular or
oval contour at the base, they are sharp on the top, due to the obstacles that suddenly
stopped the movement of the material.
 Landslides stepwise landslides are deep (5m-30m), extended on significant surface; they are
conditioned by the presence of accentuated slopes; they are characterized by moving a
packet of layers on a wetted surface without disturbing the internal structure; the sliding
body has staircase appearance; in most cases they are old slides, but they are dangerous
when reactivated;
 Flowing landslides occur due to the strong wetting of the sloped mass formed of clay-like
formations; the sliding body has an elongated shape, distinct from both sides by
longitudinal grooves, intersected by numerous cracks, transverse grooves; they are a type of
transition to muddy flows.
 Slides - cracks occur in the regions formed by alternations of plastic rocks (clays, marches)
and relatively hard or even unmarked rocks (pebbles, sands); they may be caused by river
erosion that affects the base of the slope or by the demolition of the land.
The character of stability (degree of activity) according to which we can differentiate:
 Stabilized or consolidated landslides are old landslides that do not have conditions for the
movement resumption;
 Active landslides - the rock mass is moving.
3.4. Measures to prevent and combat landslides
Having studied the landslides, it is very important to take urgent measures to stop and prevent
possible landslides in susceptible areas. The measures are complex; they are taken by geologist
engineers, geomorphologists specialized in this field. The following measures can be taken to
prevent and combat landslides:
 To settle a station for observations in time, regarding the evolution of the deformations
of the slope, the variation of the underground waters.
  To take technical measures for the stabilization of the slopes: the construction of
supporting walls and/or counterforts. To drain the surface water and to discharge it in
special areas.
 To capture the springs and to drain the land with excess moisture.
 To maintain wooded areas and afforestation in the sliding areas.
 To avoid excessive grazing on the slopes.
 To plow along the slope.
Today a series of measures to prevent and combat mass movements, especially landslides, is
being implemented in the Republic of Moldova. In order to ensure the stability of the sliding
slopes, the following measures are applied:
• Fixing constructions: supporting walls, pillars, etc.;
• Various drainage constructions: rapid surface water drainage channels, transversal and
longitudinal drainage channels in the form of fans, aeration drainage, drainage of the land by
evacuation of groundwater;
• Afforestation of the affected lands or of the lands prone to landslides.
 4. THE AVALANCHES
4.1 General aspects
Avalanches are a major natural hazard, causing socio-economic damage in all the areas of the
world where they occur. They are impressive phenomena and can have devastating effects on both
environment and humans.
The term "avalanche" comes from some French authors, from the verb "avaler" which means to
swallow a slope (Moţoiu, 2008). Other authors (Voiculescu, 2008) say that the term would come
from the Swiss Reto-Roman language, from the word "avalantse" which means to descend a slope.
Within an avalanche, it is usual to distinguish three zones: the start zone, the transport zone
(sliding) and the storage zone or the avalanche cone (Figure 4.1.1 and 4.1.2).

Figure 4.1.1. A powder snow avalanche

 Figure 4.1.2. The avalanche –its component parts (McClung şi Schaerer, 2006)

4.2 The classification of avalanches

Over time, the classification of avalanches has gone through various stages, and almost every
scientist or climber involved in this topic has proposed a classification system. At the International
Congress in Toronto (IUGG) in 1957, Quervain, said in his paper Avalanche classification, that a
classification, whether made for scientific use or for popular application, should be scientifically
correct and based only on well-established facts and not on theories. It should be able to survive any
new results of research. New facts, however, may complete and refine the classification if
necessary. A close agreement should be obtained in the terminology of the different languages. Also
in that paper he brought some examples of existing avalanche classifications. These examples,
originating from European countries only, are not given in all details, nor do they represent a
complete survey. The english translations from the original languages made by the author may be
susceptible to improvement:
a) F. Ratzel, Germany (1889) distinguishes between the classical terms:
- dust avalanches (Staublawincn)
- ground avalanches (Grundlawinen)
«Ground avalanches» are defined as avalanches, dragging along soil and rocks form te ground.
He proposes to denominate the form of movement by — rolling avalanches (Rollawinen) and —
sliding avalanches (Rutschlawinen)
b) J. Coaz, Switzerland (1888), defines avalanches as «big snow slides» (grosse
Schneeschlipre). He also use:
- dust avalanches (Staublawinen)
- ground avalanches (Grundlawinen)
The second type is characterized as snow stream of low velocity intermingled with grass and
rocks.
c) V. Pollok. Austria (1891).
l. Dust avalanches ((StaubIawinen).
- pure dust avalanches (air borne)
- common dust avalanches (partly air borne, partly lose ground avalanche)
2. Ground or mass-avalanches (Grund- Oder Masscnlawinen)
3. Surface layers avalanches (Oberlawinen).
The ground avalanche is defined as an avalanche flowing along the ground. Small avalanches
are also called «snow-slides» (Schneerutsche).
d) F. Fankhauser, Switzerland (1929) considers the classical distinction dust avalanches -
ground avalanches not to be satisfactory.
He reduces the system to
- dry avalanches
- wet avalanches
- mixed avalanches
 e) G. Seligman, England (1936)
I. Dry snow avalanches
1. dry powder-snow avalanches
a) wild-snow avalanches
b) dry new-snow avalanches
c) dry settled-powder avalanches
2. dry old-snow avalanches.
II. Wet-snow avalanches
l. damp-snow avalanches
2 medium wet snow avalanches
3. very wet snow avalanches
III. Wind slab avalanches
IV. Ice avalanches etc.
In Romania, one of the first classifications of avalanches was made by Topor in 1957. He
divided them in 5 groups according to the way they are born:
- powder snow avalanches that occur during heavy snowfalls, consisting of ice crystals falling
over an old snow cover;
- bottom or compact avalanches that occur during warmer winter or spring periods when snow or
rain starts to melt;
- avalanches in snow planks, which occur on low-inclined terrain, due to the lack of adhesion
between the successive layers of snow;
- snowballs avalanches or cataracts avalanches, frequent in spring or summer, when ice blocks fall
from galleries of steep walls or chimneys where snow is deposited;
- avalanches in cornices or balconies, which occur in winter or spring, when the cliff, where the
cornice is caught, is warming up, and the entire hanging platform collapses with noise.
Other criteria according to which avalanches have been classified (Voiculescu, 2002, Maria
Moţoiu, 2008) are: the form of motion, the shape of motion, the position of the sliding surface, the
shape of the avalanche, the humidity of the snow.

4.3 Avalanche generators

A number of factors contribute to avalanche production. According to the way they
contribute to the genesis of avalanches, they can be divided into initiating factors, potential factors
and triggering factors (Grecu, 1997; Voiculescu, 2002, Moţoiu, 2008).
Initiating factors are divided into natural and anthropogenic factors. Potential factors are
represented by the features of the snow layer. Triggering factors directly affect the scale, frequency
and mode of avalanches. They are divided into: morphometric factors, climatic factors, biotic
factors and accidental factors.
Thick forest is used as a natural protection against avalanches, It prevents the snow from
being redistributed by the wind, and divides the snow into separate sections.
Although the forest opposes only the local avalanches and cannot prevent the major transit
avalanches that come from glaciers, the inhabitants of the mountains have long recognized its role.
In Switzerland, there was a law prohibiting the deforestation on the slopes of the mountains adopted
in the fourteenth century. The destruction of the forests on the slopes of the mountains always
stimulates avalanches.
The impact of avalanches on forest vegetation is mainly manifested in the formation of the
so-called braiding - strips of deciduous forests between coniferous or mixed forests. Coniferous
forests do not grow if the main trunk has been damaged, and they are unable to regenerate in areas
systematically exposed to avalanches. These sites are usually occupied by hardwood species - birch,
poplar, alder, tremulous poplar. Avalanches break the forest belt into separate parts, and make the
top line of the boundary of the forest uneven.
The outer limit of avalanches or air wave impact is characterized by specific forms of forest
vegetation repression: trunks are inclined or curved, the crown is mainly developed in the direction
of avalanche movement, bark and wood tissues are skinned.
Traces of avalanche impact on forest vegetation are a good feature for delimiting the areas
systematically exposed to avalanches.
The age of undeformed deciduous trees allows to determine the time when the last major
avalanches occurred.

4.4 The causes of avalanches occurrence

The moment of avalanches triggering, and namely, the disruption of snow masses on the
slope, means that the gravity forces overcome the forces of cohesion within the snow layer or at its
lower limit.
Researchers have identified four main causes of avalanche triggering.
The first cause - the slope overloaded with snow during prolonged snowfalls and blizzards
(when there is a rapid increase in snow mass). Massive avalanches are usually caused for this
reason.
The second cause - a decrease in snow resistance to recrystallization. Snow, being a porous
material, is a good thermal insulator. In temperate climates, the temperature in the soil surface layer
usually remains around 0 ° though on the surface it can be very variable. At significant negative
temperatures on the surface of the snow layer, a temperature gradient appears in the surface of the
snow layer and the water vapor migration from the lower (warmer) horizons to the upper (cold)
ones begins. The loss of a part of the substance leads to their loosening and to the formation of the
depth rime layer where the cohesion forces are negligible. The avalanches, generated mainly for this
reason, are relatively rare but large in volume and destructive. They are sometimes called slow-
moving avalanches because the moment of their triggering is not related to weather conditions, as is
the case with the avalanches formed by slopes overloading during snow and blizzards.
The third cause – reduction of the snow layer due to the temperature. It occurs as a result of
sudden fluctuations in air temperature. Snow is plastic at a temperature of about 0 °, and becomes
fragile when the temperature drops. If snow on the slope gets compact, it can have compression and
tension zones (it should be noted that when the external conditions change, the layer reacts as a
whole). At the same time, due to sudden cooling, cracks appear in the snow layer. The fracture of
the snow layer can cause an avalanche, if the switching pressure will exceed the adhesion forces.
The fourth cause- links weakening when the snow melts. With the appearance of water
under the surface of snow, there occurs a weakening or destruction of links, both between crystals
and between snow layers. According to the snow melting intensity and to the depth of wetting of the
snow layer, different types of avalanches are formed. When snow melts radially and comprises a
thin layer, small surface avalanches occur on the southern slopes. In case of thawing (especially
with hot wind or rain) medium moist avalanches are formed, in this case the top (wet) snow layer
slides on the lower one which is not affected by water filtration processes. In case of prolonged
thawing and rains, when the full thickness of snow is moistered, there are strong avalanches that
move on the ground and take up the mass of clastic material.
 5. FLOODS
Floods represent the most widespread hazard on the Earth, with numerous losses of human
lives and large material damage, due to the extension of the hydrographic network, which has
always attracted people to settle. Every year over 20,000 victims are recorded worldwide, 100
million people being affected to varying degrees by this phenomenon.
Of the regime stage of a river, the most spectacular and dangerous is the maximum discharge,
characterized by overflows and floods more or less extensive.
Overflows are relatively rapid and short-term increases in the levels and in the river flows,
generally above normal values, due to torrential or long rains, snow melting or hydraulic
engineering accidents. Extremely high overflows exceed the capacity of soil absorption and
drainage capacity at the level of the minor bed, which leads to overflowing natural banks or dikes,
causing temporary or permanent cover of neighboring lands, causing flooding in the territories near
rivers (especially meadows). The phenomenon may occur as a result of overflowing water,
precipitation water stagnation on land without a drainage slope, or due to excessive rise in the level
of the groundwater up to the surface of the soil. The most frequent floods occur along the rivers
where the large amount of water exceeds the capacity of the bed and covers a part of the meadow.
There are significant differences between the occurrence of these phenomena on large and
small rivers in terms of their intensity and duration. In the case of bigger rivers floods with
catastrophic nature occur rarely and last for several days, there is the possibility of forecasting and
adopting defensive measures; for small rivers exceptional floods are specific with a very short
duration, without the possibility of immediate prevention (Zăvoianu, 1981).

5.1. Causes of floods

Certain conditions contribute to floods intensification: the conditions existing in the
hydrographic basin (surface, shape, slope, morphography, altitude and interactions between climate,
soil, vegetation and human activity), the conditions specific to the hydrographic network (storage
area, bed size, underground drainage) and to the river bed (slope, flood control, roughness, solid
load, form, storage) (Newson, 1994, quoted by Romanescu, 2003).
The causes of floods are natural and anthropogenic.
Natural causes are related to the penetration of surplus water into the riverbed, the water
coming from rains, sudden melting of snow and mountain glaciers, overfilling of underground
water cans, and barring the valleys by landslides and ice pockets causing the breakage of the dam.
• Heavy rainfalls are the most important cause of floods. The propagation of floods and the extent
of flooded areas depend on the fallen rainfalls and their intensity. When the soil is already saturated
with water or when it is already frozen, the entire amount of fallen water leaks out increasing the
danger of flooding. A large flood occurred in 1931 on the Yangtze River; the cause was a rainy
period in July, when precipitation reached 140-160 mm/24 h. It generated a normal flood that filled
all the lakes attenuating the maximum flows. Immediately two more rainy periods followed with
disastrous results. The city of Hankeou was flooded, and on both sides of the river, 100-150 km
wide areas were completely submerged, the water layer having an average depth of 2.5 m. The
affected area was about 80,000 km2 .The results of these floods were 3.7 million dead, 28.5 million
victims and material damages worth $ 1.4 billion.
• Sudden snow melting often generates severe flooding in northern North America and northern
Russia on the Siberian rivers. On the border between Russia and Mongolia, such a phenomenon
occurred in May 1977, resulting in a flood wave that caused unprecedented floods in the Kuglas and
Tora rivers (tributaries of the Obi River). The 5 m high floods affected the cities of Novokuznetk,
Kemerovo, Mejdurechensk.
• Snow melting associated with glaciers melting generates strong floods. Such a situation was
recorded in the Mont Blanc massif in 1892 when a stream of 200,000 m 3 of water loaded with mud
and boulders flooded numerous houses and highways.
Tides and strong winds can cause the sea dikes to break. During the catastrophic floods of
January 31, 1953, northern winds (125-180 km/h) prevented the flow of the Meuse, Escaut and Rin
rivers, and in shallow sea areas they formed waves of 12 m high, with the level of tide being higher
by 0.25-0.5 m. Under these conditions, the solid dikes from the sea resisted well, but those on the
shores of the estuaries, that were less resistant, gave up and the water mass poured into the
Zuiderzee (Netherlands) polder. The results of the flood were 2000 dead, 300,000 flood victims
(4,000 destroyed homes and 25,000 damaged), 70,000 ha of land completely flooded, and material
damage was estimated at $ 300 million. The sudden breakdown of natural dams along the slopes
and ice accumulations (valleys) is very dangerous and therefore people aim to destroy them and
drain water. A landslide in Nanga Parbat (The Karakorum Mountains) struck the Hunza valley,
forming a 55 km long lake, which drained suddenly in June 1841, causing an extraordinary flood
that raised the riverbed water level at Attock, 400 km down the valley, by 24 m.
Sometimes such increases can reach quite high values, as in the case of the Enisei River, in
1909, when, behind an ice dam, the water level increased by 12 meters in 24 hours, and the
breaking of the dam formed a violent flood that destroyed some of the ships in the lateral channel.
In 1838 on the Danube river, as a result of ice blocking near Budapest, the levels increased greatly,
with the waters destroying 4,254 houses.
Anthropogenic causes intensify the floods.
- Reduction of vegetation cover (deforestation, overpopulation, improper agricultural practices)
reduces precipitation absorption capacity, increasing water flow rates and accelerating the time of
wave formation and transmission. Stronger erosion of the soil increases alluviums movement along
rivers, raising the riverbed and increasing the risk of flooding.
- River bedding works (sewerage, dredging and drainage of meadows) and bridges with too low
apex lead to a decrease of the drainage section and a slight increase in the levels, accompanied by
the upstream floods.
-Paved areas and the areas occupied by buildings prevent the infiltration of water thus increasing
the amount of runoff water. Some calculations have shown that floods can be 10 times larger in
urban basins.
- Destruction of dams for various reasons (design errors, earthquakes, diversions, excess of
evacuation capacity) are the causes of extremely dangerous floods. On December 12, 1959, due to
heavy rain and to the water pressure behind the Malpasset Dam, located in southern France on the
Reyran River, the dam broke at 8-10 m from the ground (66.5 m high) and a wave of water, 20 m
high and 200 m wide, started off the river valley to Frejus, situated 11 km downstream. The report
was quite tragic: 421 dead, 1188 victims, 100 destroyed houses, 700 damaged houses and damages
over 30 billion francs. During the World War II, the Mchhne and Eder dams were destroyed by the
English on May 16, 1943. The produced damages were very high: 12 flooded villages and 4 flooded
cities, 1,300 dead, 3,000 ha of destroyed crops, 125 destroyed or seriously damaged industries.

5.2. Negative effects of floods

Flood losses may be direct (breakage of river banks and dikes, flooding of the major bed,
physical damage to properties, full restoration costs, human losses and diseases) and indirect
(disruption of economic activity and of traffic, reduction of consumption power within the
community, the increase of the the victims’ vulnerability, migration and reducing confidence in the
affected region).
The extent of the damage depends on: the degree of socio-economic development, the
density of the population in the affected territory, and the characteristics of the flood waves.
• Socioeconomic damage consists of the loss of human lives in the affected or partially affected
localities, many destroyed or damaged houses, affected industries, loss of animals, destroyed or
damaged communication ways (roads, railways, bridges) and the power network, and direct
material damage. Next come transport costs, defense costs incurred through the measures taken
during the floods, not to mention the expenses incurred for the normalization of the situation and
the resumption of economic activities, as well as for the payment of the material and human
material insurance.
Between 1900 and 2006, floods affected 2.9 billion people, causing 6.9 million dead, 1.3
million injured and material damage of about $ 354 billion (CRED-EMDAT). The largest floods
occurred in China, especially along the Huanghe River (the Yellow River). In the last two millennia,
1500 floods have been recorded there, the river changing its bed 26 times by tens of kilometers. In
July 1931, the most catastrophic floods and the largest natural disasters in human history occurred
there, affecting 28.5 million people, causing 3.7 million victims and material damages over $ 1.4
billion (US?). Next come the floods of 1939, which produced 500,000 victims and then those of
1959, which caused 2 million victims. In recent years, the floods of 1991, 1996, 1998 and 1999
have been recorded, affecting an average of 175 million people.
Other significant floods occurred in eastern Guatemala in October 1949 (40,000 victims, $15
million in damages); Bangladesh, July 1974 (tropical cyclone causing exceptional precipitation and
flooding that affected 36 million people, resulting in 28,700 victims and $580 million damage;
India, July 7th, 1993, floods on the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers (affected 128 million people,
causing 827 victims and damages of over $700 million); Venezuela, December 15, 1999 (30,000
dead, $3 billion damage).
Developed countries are also affected by such phenomena: i.e. the floods caused by the
Mississippi River in the USA. In 1927, the system of dikes was broken in 145 places, the waters
flooded 70,000 km2, resulting in 247 victims and $400 million in damages. The floods of August
1993, which produced only 45 casualties, but damages of $12 billion, were equally severe. The
floods in August 2002 affecting six European countries (Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia,
Austria, Romania and Hungary) were also significant, causing 57 deaths, 109 wounded and material
damages over $15 billion, the most affected were the cities of Dresden and Prague.
• Negative environmental effects are evident through the degradation of environmental factors.
During the floods, the quality of the water changes greatly as it brings into the riverbeds all wastes
from the banks, drowned and transported animals are decomposed, oil pipelines break.
There are cases when catastrophic floods produce spectacular erosions of banks and of the
riverbed. The Yellow River rises its bed about 10 cm with each flood, and sometimes bank erosions
reach 300 m/day during strong floods. In the plains there is the possibility of cutting meanders or
even changing the course of the river, as it happened with the Buzau River between Deduleşti and
Şuţeşti (Romania), as the result of the large spring waters of 1969.
During the floods, many rivers carry large volumes of alluviums that accumulate in the
lakes, contributing to their rapid clogging and to the gradual reduction of lakes’ retention capacity.
• Negative social effects are caused by the loss of human lives. During the floods there are carried
out extensive actions to evacuate the population from the affected localities, generating panic with
negative psychological effects. Lack of drinking water, the predominance of waters inadequate for
human consumption, the decrease of medical assistance and the lack of a minimum of food make
possible the occurrence of epidemics with very serious social implications. Also, in countries with
frequent floods, the costs of products of strict necessity increase by 50%.
Cultural assets and values, sometimes of national or international value, can be destroyed. For
example, on 15 June 2002, the tongue of the Sigismund bell (dating from 1549) was broken, the bell
being situated in the St. Vitus cathedral, located in Hrud (Czech Republic).

5.4. Floods prevention and control

The areas exposed to frequent flood occupy 9% of the total land area, inhabited by 2 billion
people (38%), they are: middle west of the USA, Central America, the coasts of South America,
Europe, East Africa, north-east India, Bangladesh, China, Korea, Indonesia, Philippines.
According to society's attitude and actions taken for defence from the effects of floods, there are
several types of flood-society relations (Pandi, 2002):
 passive, when people have suffered the flood without being able to intervene; they just
walked away from the river during the great waters and returned later;
 preventive, when society tried to defend itself, at least partially, from the occurrence of
floods, by setting up dams to defend human settlements;
 active, when people changed water courses, consolidated banks, cut meandres and built
important dikes;
 complex, when it is began the complex arrangement of the river basins (dams, permanent
and non-permanent accumulation lakes, routing of waters from one river basin to another).
• Prevention consists of activities designed to avoid or minimize the consequences of floods as a
result of accumulated knowledge and forecasting activity. There are required actions at national
level or at the level of some international bodies (UN, WMO).
Prevention intervenes at different levels (Sorocovschi, 2002):
- normative level (technical prescriptions requiring the construction of buildings and infrastructures
capable of withstanding the event);
- planning level (plans, regulations and other socio-economic programming tools, compatible with
risk exposure maps, rescue measures);
- technical-scientific level (studies and research intended to mitigate risk);
- informational level (educating and informing the population in order to make people know the
areas in which floods are possible and the rules of behavior in such situations).
In order to mitigate the negative effects of the floods, various development works are carried out
which include:
- works to damming the riverbed and to protect settlements. This type of work has been known
since antiquity, in China such earth dams were built 4,000 years ago;
- works of riverbed management: shortening the meanders, widening and deepening the minor bed,
periodic cleaning of the bed from alluviums, drainage and embankment of the meadow lakes etc.
Some of these works have adverse effects on the reduction of biodiversity in wetlands;
- construction of dams for storage lakes, which in most cases have multiple uses related to flood
control, electricity generation, water supply to localities and irrigation;
- full river basin management comprises a set of measures that are applied within the reception
basin considered as a whole.
There are works for the management of secondary basins, embankment and erosion control.
In more and more developed countries, the land around riverbeds is purchased by the state, being
used as parks and natural reserves.
 QUESTIONS FORSELF EVALUATION

What is the classification of forest fires?

What are the causes of forest fires?
What are the main measures of forest fires prevention?
What is the classification of windthrow?
What are the causes of windthrow?
What are the solutions for the mitigation of the effects of windthrow?
What are the conditions, factors and causes of landslides?
What are the main measures of landslides prevention and control?
What are the generating factors of avalanches?
What is the classification of avalanches?
What are the main measures of avalanches prevention?
What are the causes of floods?
What are the negative effects of floods?
What are the measures of floods prevention and control?

BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Abgrall, J.; Soutrenon, A., 1991: La fôret et ses ennemis. CEMAGREF, Grenoble, 399 p.
2. Alexa B (2005). The monitoring of avalanches triggered in forest area. Revista Padurilor, 1: 35-
38.
3. Avram, G., 2002, Cercetări privind cauzele si efectele doborâturilor si rupturilor de vânt
4. produse în pădurile de pe clima sudică a Muntilor Rodnei, Teză de doctorat,
5. Universitatea „Transilvania” Brasov, p. 8 – 26.
6. Geambaşu, N., 1980, Unele probleme ale gospodăririi pădurilor de molid din Bucovina, Revista
Pădurilor, nr.1, 1980, p. 8- 12.
7. Giurgiu, V., 1972, Modele ale statisticii matematice aplicate în silvicultură. Editura Ceres,
Bucureşti, 564p 41.
8. Giurgiu, V., Decei, I. & Armăşescu, S. (1972): Biometria arborilor şi arboretelor din România
[The biometry of trees and stands in Rumania: forest mensuration tables - Fák és
erdőállományok biometriája Romániában: erdőmérési táblák]. Ed. Ceres, Bucharest
9. Giurgiu, V., 1995, Protejarea şi dezvoltarea durabilă a pădurilor României, Societatea Progresul
Silvic, Bucureşti, p. 44 – 45.
10. Giurgiu, V., 2005, Compoziţii optime pentru pădurile României, Editura Ceres, Bucureşti p. 77
– 78.
11. Giurgiu, V., 2008, Opere Alese, Dendrometrie, auxologie forestieră, amenajarea pădurilor si
ecologie forestieră, Editura Academiei Române, Bucureşti, 273 – 282
12. Grecu Florina (1997), Fenomene naturale de risc (Natural Phenomena of Risk), Editura
Universitatii din Bucuresti;
13. QUERVAIN, M. R. Avalanche classification. http://hydrologie.org/redbooks/a046/04634.pdf
14. Ichim, R., 1980, Unele măsuri privind reconstrucţia ecologică a pădurilor de molid din
Bucovina, calamitate de zăpadă, Revista pădurilor, Nr. 6 p. 353 – 354.
15. Ichim, R., 1981, Aspecte privind gospodarirea în trecut a pădurilor din Bucovina, Revista
Pădurilor, Nr 1, p. 44 – 49.
16. Konỏpka, J., 1977, Protecţia pădurii împotriva rupturilor de vânt, zăpadă şi chiciură, Revista
pădurilor, Nr. 1, p. 24 – 26.
17. McClung David, Schaerer Peter (2006). The Avalanche Handbook (3rd edition) The
Mountaineers Books, Seattle, U.S.A., 288 p.
18. Moţoiu Dana Maria, (2008), Avalanşele şi impactul lor asupra mediului. Studii de caz în
Carpaţii Meridionali, Editura Proxima, Bucureşti, 280 p.
19. Popa, I., 2000, Modelarea ciclicităţii doborâturilor produse de vânt. Revista pădurilor, nr. 3,
2000, p. 32-37.
20. Weir P (2002). Snow Avalanche Management in Forested Terrain. Victoria, BC, Canada: British
Columbia Ministry of Forests Land Management, Handbook No. 55.
 BIODIVERSITY INDICATORS AND FOREST MANAGEMENT

Content
Section 1. The concept of biodiversity.
Section 2. Biogeocoenosis and factors forest formation
Section 3.Biodiversity of forest ecosystems.
Section 4. The parameters and indicators of forest biodiversity, international standards.
Section 5. Criteria for biodiversity conservation in forest management of the Russian Federation.

Keywords: biodiversity, biogeocoenosis, forest formation, forest ecosystems, forest communities,

parameters and indicators of biodiversity, biodiversity conservation criteria, forest management

Section 1. The concept of biodiversity.

According to the Convention on Biological Diversity, adopted on May 22, 1992 in Nairobi (Kenya)
and opened for signature on June 5, 1992 at the UN Conference on Environment and Development
in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), biodiversity means "the variety of life on Earth including, inter alia,
terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are
part; this concept includes species variation, variation between species and variations of
ecosystems."
Conservation of biodiversity is one of the major environmental problems of our time.
At present, science knows about 2.5 million species of living organisms, 74% of the species being
associated with the tropical belt, 24% - with temperate latitudes and 2% - with polar regions. It is
believed that this list is not complete since many kinds of small animals (such as insects and
arachnids), fungi and bacteria haven’t been found. Scientists suggest that the total number of
species on the planet range from 5 to 30 million.
Biological diversity of different groups of organisms varies significantly. The most species-rich
group of organisms is insects that amount to 8.75 million species (Fig. 1).
Natural ecological systems are completely destroyed or significantly changed on 1/5 of the
land surface. Since 1600 484 species of animals and 654 species of plants have been reported as
extinct. In fact, the number of extinct species is much greater.
Fig. 1

The Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN Red List) recorded more
than 9 thousand animal species and about 7 thousand plant species being endangered.
The loss of the biodiversity leads to destabilization of biota, loss of integrity of the biosphere and
the necessary conditions for the existence and sustainable development of mankind. The problem of
biodiversity conservation has gained global importance and is being discussed at various levels, not
only by scientists but also politicians and diplomats.
Convention on Biological Diversity was signed by the vast majority of states, including Russia
(1995). Under the terms of the Convention, each country develops a national strategy, plans or
programs for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, as well as necessary
measures. The National Strategy for the conservation of biological diversity in Russia was
developed in 2001 by the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Ministry of Natural Resources of
the Russian Federation.
There are three levels of biodiversity: genetic, species and ecosystem.
Genetic variation reflects the variability of organisms and populations within species. It
determines the ability of populations to adapt to changing environmental conditions.
Species variation refers to the number of species of living organisms, and is often regarded as a
synonym for biodiversity. Biological species is considered as the basic unit to record biological
diversity. Species variation is usually assessed by separate groups of organisms: the number of
species of vascular plants (flowering plants, gymnosperms, ferns, club mosses, horsetails) mosses,
lichens, fungi, algae, insects, birds, mammals, bacteria and so on. Ecosystem variation is estimated
by a set of different types of ecosystems within the large territorial units.
Biological diversity of communities can be measured by the ratio of different structural and
functional elements. Environmental or eco-cenotic groups of species and populations of species
with different properties can make up such elements. In this case, we are talking about structural or
functional diversity.
To assess the biological variation, species variation indicators were proposed by R. Ushteker and
have become a tradition in ecology.

Section 2. Biogeocoenosis and factors of forest formation.

Biogeocoenosis (from the Greek bio - life, geo - earth, coinos - common) - "is an aggregate of
natural components (atmosphere, rocks, plants, animals, representatives of microorganisms and
fungi, soil and hydrological conditions, in a particular area of land. Biogeocenosis is characterized
by specific relationships between components; specific types of matter, energy, and information
flows providing a certain degree of integrity that is in constant movement and development”.

Biogeocoenosis has 5 main components:

- Phytocoenosis is a plant community
- Zoocenoses represents all animal population, typical for the area,
- Microbiocenosis is a microbial community in the same territory,
- Edaphotope - soil conditions,
- Climatope - atmospheric conditions.
Phytocenosis microbiocenosis and zoocenosis together constitute an organic part of biogeocoenose,
its biocenosis and edaphotope and climatope being an inorganic medium (ecotope, in fact -
habitat). Each of the components of the ecological community in biogeocoenosis is presented by
their populations (plants, animals, microorganisms), closely interacting with each other, and the
components of ecotope through a complex system of direct and indirect relations.
Particularly important role in biogeocoenosis belongs to phytocenosis that creates organic matter,
whereas zoocenosis and microbiocenosis are consumers of this substance. Therefore, the entire
classification of biogeocenosis is based on the classification of phytocenosis.
The forest is not only a plant community, but also a biological one forming a biocenosis, which in
addition to plants includes numerous species of animals and micro-organisms. In the forest not only
plants adapt to each other but also animals to the plants and plants to animals. And all of this is
under the influence of the external environment. This broad community of living beings, mutual
adaptation to each other and to the environment has been called biocenosis. Forest is one of the
biocenosis types.
On one hectare of forest there are approximately 500-1200 mature trees that form an important
component of the forest - tree stand. Here grow hundreds, thousands, and sometimes tens of
thousands of tree seedlings, self-seedlings, undergrowth, shrubs, hundreds of thousands and
millions of individuals of herbaceous plants, mosses and lichens. And there are many thousands of
worms, millions of microorganisms, billions and trillions of fungi, actinomycetes, bacteria and other
forest dwellers, including numerous group of insects as well as birds and animals. The order of the
figures shows that the forest is a huge and complex world.
Considering the forest as an ecosystem, one can’t focus only on biocenotic approach to it. The fact
is that the forest biogeocenosis, being formed under the influence of the external environment
transform it as well.
The concept of ecosystem is close to the concept of biogeocoenosis. The cycling of matter and the
flow of energy within ecosystems occur through interactions among different organisms and
between organisms and the physical environment. What is in common for the notions of ecosystem
and biogeocenosis is the natural unity of organisms and the environment.
The interaction of biotic and geographic factors (biotic and abiotic) in the forest forms forest
ecosystems.
According to V.N Sukachev the forest biogeocenose is any area on the surface of earth where some
biocenose, and the parts of atmosphere, lithosphere and pedosphere that correspond to it remain the
same and react on one another in a uniform way thus forming in the aggregate an indivisible,
interdependent complex.
Biogeocoenosis consists of two components: biocenose and ecotope.
Biocoenosis, in turn, consists of three parts: phytocoenosis (set of plant organisms) zoocenosis
(animal organisms) and microbiocenosis (microbes, bacteria, protozoa).
Ecotope includes soil with soil moisture i.e. edaphotope and the atmosphere with the complex of
climatic factors - climatope.
Forest phytocoenosis or plants is a forest plant community with numerous interactions both within
the plant community and the external environment. Forest plants are presented by the following
parts that form different layers: timber stand, understorey or shub layer, field layer, non-layered or
ground vegetation. Not every plantation has all of the components.
In particular, there may be no understory (shrub) layer, or field layer, or even two or three
components at once. For example due to low light conditions dense spruce pole stand often lack
understorey and a field layer.
Some close in nature forest ecosystems can be grouped into a certain type of forest biogeocenosis,
which is known in forestry practice as the type of wood.
Biogeocenotic approach to the forest is well developed in our country and in some foreign
countries.
Considering forest as biogeocoenosis or ecosystem, consisting of many components with their
numerous organizations it is impossible to consider all the components of forest biogeocenosis as
being equivalent. The stand as the main component of forest communities and a link in the forest
biological system. The stand is an ecological dominant among all the other biological components
of the forest.
The stand itself greatly affects the environment, including habitat for most of the components of
forest biogeocoenose, and therefore has a certain effect on the composition, life and the location of
these components. All of these effects of the individual components on each other represent a single
system.
Morphological and biological stability and self-regulation are typical for woods. The woods may
exist for a long time preserving their typical features. But this stability does not mean its static
character, its immobility, stagnation. On the contrary, the forest is a natural dynamic self-regulating
system. External influences, especially anthropogenic, can destroy the biological system of the
forest. In the absence of adverse factors the forest is able to restore the system. Moreover, not only
stands die but the ecosystem as a whole.
Forest as a system can be considered not only at the level of the individual biogeocoenose, but at
higher levels, for example the forest massif includes many biogeocoenoses. As back as Morozov
stressed that forestry deals not only with biogeooenosis but with their set. Here we talk about the
impact of biogeocenosis on each other. In this case, an individual forest biogeocenose representing a
certain biological system is both an element of a broader, more comprehensive nature system.

Section 3.Biodiversity of Forest Ecosystems

Two-thirds of all environmental resources of the planet consist of various types of forest - tropical,
sub-tropical, Mediterranean, temperate and sub-Arctic. They are inhabited by millions of different
species of plants, animals and insects. According to some estimates, approximately 80 percent of
our planet's biodiversity depends on the health of forest ecosystems.
Tropical forests are especially rich in biodiversity. Covering only 10% of the land surface, they are
home to more than 60% of all terrestrial and freshwater species of flora and fauna.
Forests, being the most productive ecosystems on our planet contribute to mitigating climate
changes and their consequences for agriculture. Biodiversity of the Russian forest fund includes
quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the variability of living organisms and ecological
complexes.
The main objective of the conservation of biological diversity is to sustain the survival of species
and genetic variation within each biological species. Viable and reproducing populations as well as
their natural genetic variation do not exist by themselves, but as part of interdependent physical and
biological systems, or processes (community or ecosystem).
Ecological processes and viable populations of species typical of forest ecosystems also depend on
the state of adjacent forest areas or ecosystems of the minimum size.
Genetic diversity within population of species depends on the continued existence of
subpopulations and forest ecosystems, covering the greater part of their natural area. Therefore,
practical activities on the conservation of biological diversity involves, first of all, preservation and
maintenance of the historical structure of the forest fund of the country, which ensures the
preservation of habitats and hence biological diversity at the genetic, species and ecosystem levels.
Forests provide us with shelter, food, medicine and a source of clean water; provide a wide range of
environmental services, including biodiversity conservation, carbon sequestration, flood, soil
erosion and desertification protection. They contribute to the stability of climate and natural
environment on our planet. Forest is the basis of survival and well-being of each of the almost seven
billion people inhabiting it.
Forest biodiversity exceeds the biodiversity of other terrestrial ecosystems. The losses of forest
biodiversity are associated with deforestation, fragmentation and degradation of all forest types. The
most important factors of losses of forest biodiversity are:
- conversion of forest lands to agricultural use;
- overgrazing of cattle on forest lands;
- unsustainable forestry;
- introduction of invasive species;
- infrastructure projects (roads, pipelines, hydroelectric power station and others.);
- mining and oil extraction
- forest fires;
- pollution;
- climate change.
The priority measures to preserve forest ecosystems include:
- to develop long-term national government forest policy, transparent and beneficial to society;
- to develop forest management strategy aimed at preserving biodiversity;
- to develop and implement systems of forest management ensuring conservation and reproduction
of biodiversity adapted to the regional peculiarities;
- to develop economic mechanisms (including international) to ensure benefits from improved
environmental performance of forest ecosystems and biodiversity;
- to develop a network of specially protected areas to ensure preservation of biodiversity of forest
landscapes, ecosystems, species;
- to complete a comprehensive inventory of old-growth forests ensure legally their special nature
protection status.

Section 4. The parameters and indicators of forest biodiversity, international standards

The preservation and maintenance of biodiversity is put forward as an important criterion for
sustainable forest management adopted at the international and national levels. By now it has
become clear that the study and assessment of live biodiversity (BD) on the planet is only the first
step in solving the problems of its conservation. The next step is to organize monitoring of BD,
which is a system of regular observations to assess changes and trends and the basis for the
forecasting the state of the BD in the future.
To implement monitoring of BD the following questions are crucial: what to assess, how to get and
store the information, who will conduct the monitoring. Forestry scientists proposed a system of
parameters to monitor BD of Russian forests, the possible sources of information to evaluate the
options and discussed the importance of the proposed options for the conservation of forest BD.
The systematization of forest biodiversity is carried out in accordance with international agreements
that have lately acquired quite specific approach and can be taken as the basis for selecting the
parameters of evaluation and monitoring biodiversity of Russian forests. Assessment and
monitoring of forest biodiversity are primarily set out in the criteria and indicators for sustainable
forest management developed in detail by the Montreal and MCPFE (Ministerial Conference on the
Protection of Forests in Europe). All the criteria are characterized by a set of related indicators,
which should be periodically checked (controlled) to assess their changes. Indicators are
quantitative or qualitative parameters that can be measured or described.
Montreal process is intended to ensure preservation and sustainability of boreal and temperate
forests of the world. As an indicator of preservation of forest biodiversity it is recommended to
evaluate the diversity of ecosystems, the diversity between species, and genetic diversity of the
species.
To assess ecosystem diversity it is proposed to estimate the following parameters:
a) areas of different forest types relative to total forest area;
b) areas of different types of forests with account of age classes or successional stages;
c) areas of different forest types in protected areas of different status (according to IUCN categories
and other classification systems);
d) the area of different types of forest in protected areas with account of age classes or successional
stages;
e) the fragmentation of forest types.

Species diversity includes assessment of

a) the number of the "forest" (forest-dependent) species;
b) different forest species depending on the protection status with the account of the risk in order to
maintain viable populations according to the laws or scientific assessment.
 Fig.
2 - Examples of indicators for different environmental levels.

MCPFE process is aimed at the preservation of European forests. According to the materials of the
last ministerial conference of forestry of the European countries, held in April 2003 in Vienna, the
following set of biodiversity indicators within Criterion 4 " Maintenance, Conservation and
Appropriate Enhancement of Biological Diversity in Forest Ecosystems” has been proposed for the
current use:
1. Tree species composition: the area of forest and other wooded land, classified by number of
tree species occurring and by forest type (type of species is “considered” if its share in the
tree stand is more than 5%);
2. regeneration: area of regeneration within even-aged stands and uneven-aged stands, classified by
regeneration type (Regeneration by natural seeding, vegetative regeneration, coppicing).
3. naturalness: area of forest and other wooded land, classified by “undisturbed by man”, by “semi-
natural” or by “plantations”, each by forest type.
4. introduced tree species: area of forest and other wooded land dominated by introduced tree
species. (more than 50% domination in the stand composition);
5. standing and lying deadwood: Volume of standing deadwood and of lying deadwood on forest
and other wooded land classified by forest type (we recommend to take into account the size of
standing and lying deadwood of more than 2 meters in length and 10 cm in diameter);
6. The genetic resources: Area managed for conservation and utilization of forest tree genetic
resources (in situ and ex situ gene conservation) and area managed for seed production
7. landscape pattern: Landscape-level spatial pattern of forest cover.
8. Threatened forest species: Number of threatened forest species, classified according to the World
Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List categories in relation to total number of forest species.
9. Protected forests: Area of forest and other wooded land protected to conserve biodiversity,
landscapes and specific natural elements, according to MCPFE11 Assessment Guidelines.
Some indicators of forest biodiversity (on the example of Finland):
• plants are commonly used as indicators of the type of forest and soil quality;
• Lichens are sensitive to air quality and micro-climatic conditions;
• Animal bioindicators except vertebrates are difficult to use and often replaced by other indicators
(plants or structural indicators);
• Structural indicators of the forest, when based on accurate data, well reflect the threatened forest
Improperly selected indicators of biodiversity can lead to serious ecological consequences and
economic losses.

Section 5. Criteria for biodiversity conservation in forest management of the Russian Federation.

Article 1 of the Forestry Code of the Russian Federation devoted to the basic principles of forest
legislation identifies the following as priorities:
- Sustainable forest management;
- Conservation of biological diversity of forests;
- Increased capacity of forests
Federal Forest Service of Russia (FFA) has developed new Provisions of state forest policy on the
use, conservation and protection of forest fund and forest regeneration “Criteria and indicators of
sustainable forest management in the Russian Federation."
This Provision was approved on February 5, 1998 by order of the Federal Forestry Agency №21.
Thus, it is the guiding document for the coordination of federal actions in the forestry sector. The
main purpose of the document is to ensure the basic conditions for the implementation of
international commitments taken by Russia on Forests. Criteria and indicators play a dual role
being:
- a working tool for forest management,
- a mechanism of monitoring and regulating sustainable management.
On their basis the forest policy of Russia and its subjects is built. Sustainable forest management is
carried out taking into account the environmental and socio - economic criteria. Criteria are a set of
basic provisions on forestry to ensure the preservation and sustainable development of forests.
Appropriate criteria and indicators allow the assessment of the degree of progress of the country
towards sustainable development in forestry.
They perform the function of guidelines for practical activities in implementing the principles
adopted. The criteria for the conservation and sustainable forest management are implemented at
the level of practical forest management and can be monitored by appropriate indicators of
sustainable forest management. Each criterion can be assessed by a set of its indicators.
Indicators are quantitative and descriptive characteristics of the criteria for sustainable forest
management. The indicators evaluate the direction of changes in forest management, appropriate to
the particular criteria. Consistent tracking of indicators over time reveals trends in forest
management.
One of the criteria for sustainable forest management is indicated as "Preservation and maintenance
of biological diversity of forests and their contribution to the global carbon cycle." This criterion
provides the following strategic objectives:
- preserve habitats (fully or partially) to ensure the survival of species of animals and plants;
- maintain the composition and structure of forest fund (forest structure, age of trees, their height
and diameter, succession stage, etc.) to ensure the preservation of viable reproductive populations
and species;
- create optimum conditions for pollination and seed dispersal, animal movements between
individual sections of forests and their reproduction;
- to make long-term forecasting of the rate of accumulation of woody biomass and deadwood to
assess the role of Russian forests in the global processes of regulating atmospheric carbon and
climate change.
Key elements of the criteria: It allows:
- assess the domination by pine, hardwood and softwood trees, as an indicator of biological
diversity at the ecosystem level, reflecting the natural diversity of forests at the zonal level;
- assess the forest sustainability at the level of the region, natural and economic region and the
country by trends in the change of species composition of forests;
- support preservation and growth of biodiversity through the optimization of the age and species
composition of forests;
- establishing protected forest areas in different environmental conditions, especially those of the
climax, and the remnants of virgin forest, as well as specially protected forest areas that have
scientific or historical value in order to preserve the ecosystem biodiversity;
- preservation of species with low population or significantly reduced habitats that are at risk of
extinction or loss of important genetic traits in order to preserve the genetic diversity of the species
and forest ecosystems;
- Maintaining global forest functions to regulate the composition of the atmosphere and greenhouse
gas emissions;
- Monitoring the efforts of Russian forest management in the implementation of ratified UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change (carbon sequestration by woody biomass) and ratified
UN Convention on Biological Diversity (preservation of variability among all living organisms).
As its characteristics, the following indicators are adopted:
• the share of softwood and hardwood trees in the forested land (every 5 years);
• forest area by main tree species and age classes (every 5 years);
• the share of forested land under mature and over mature forests (every 5 years);
• area of protected forest areas (every 5 years)
• the number of threatened species of plants and animals in their distribution (Red Book of the
Russian Federation, every 5 years);
• forest area for the preservation or maintenance of the genetic diversity of forests (every 5 years);
• The total accumulation of carbon in forest stands and, if necessary, by main forest-forming species
(every 5 years).
 Acronyms and abbreviations
CBD Convention on Biological Diversity
CIFOR Center for International Forestry Research
CO2 carbon dioxide
FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
FMU forest management unit
GHG greenhouse gas
ITTO International Tropical Timber Organization
NGO non-governmental organization
SFM sustainable forest management
REDD+ reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and the role of conservation,
sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

CONTENT
1. Forest carbon and climate change.
2. The multiple benefits of forests
3. Drivers of deforestation and forest degradation and solutions to reverse deforestation and
forest degradation
4. Climate change impacts on forestry.
5. Climate change guidelines for forest managers.
6. Management responses to climate change.
7. Forest resilience, biodiversity, and climate change.
8. FAO, Forests and climate change: working with countries to mitigate and adapt to climate
change through sustainable forest management.
9. Forestry for a low-carbon future: integrating forests and wood products in climate change
strategies.
 1. FOREST CARBON AND CLIMATE CHANGE (UNEP, 2014)

1.1. Photosynthesis, respiration and carbon sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems (UNEP,

2014, p.9)
Through photosynthesis (Fig. 1.1), trees and other plants take up atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2)
and sequester it in their living tissues as biomass. Respiration in forests, both autotrophic (from
plants) and heterotrophic (from non-plant organisms), causes the release of CO 2 reducing this total
sequestration. Carbon (C) moving through a forest ecosystem in a given period of time (termed
flux) is by convention considered negative when moving from the atmosphere to biomass
(sequestration), and positive when moving from biomass into the atmosphere (release).

Fig. 1.1. The Carbon Cycle (Source Internet)

Terrestrial Gross Primary Productivity (GPP), or total photosynthesis, is the largest single land-
based carbon flux. Net Primary Productivity (NPP) is the remaining portion of GPP after accounting
for autotrophic respiration from plants; Net Ecosystem Productivity (NEP) further accounts for the
reduction in sequestration due to heterotrophic respiration from animals, fungi and other non-plants.
Net Biome Productivity (NBP) recognizes additional losses from disturbances, like fire and
harvesting (Fig. 1.2).
Total terrestrial GPP amounts to a -123 Pg C yr-1 (1 Pg = 1 billion tonnes) flux, 60% of which is
produced by tropical forest and savannah ecosystems (Beer et al. 2010). Approximately half of this
is respired back to the atmosphere by plants, resulting in a value for terrestrial NPP of ~60 Pg C yr-
1. NEP is still smaller at 10 Pg C yr-1. When all losses are accounted for (NBP), the terrestrial sink
is currently on the order of 1 Pg C yr-1 (IPCC 2000).

Figure 1.2. The forest carbon cycle is best described by classifying it as 4 fluxes: Gross Primary
Productivity (GPP), carbon assimilation from photosynthesis; Net Primary Productivity (NPP),
photosynthesis excluding plant respiration (Ra); Net Ecosystem Production (NEP), which further
subtracts to account for loss due to heterotrophic respiration (Rh); and Net Biome Production
(NBP), total sequestration accounting for all losses. The width of arrows is representative of the
relative size of the fluxes.
1.2. Forests as carbon stores (UNEP, 2014)
The fluxes described above result in short- (NPP), medium- (NEP), and long- (NBP), term storage
of C in “pools”. The forest carbon pool is the largest terrestrial reserve, holding more than ¾ of all
above ground terrestrial carbon (IPCC 2000, Houghton 2007) cited in (UNEP, 2014). While forest
soil is generally recognized as a large reservoir for carbon (~40% of total terrestrial carbon storage),
the size of the forest soil carbon pools is difficult to assess and remains one of largest uncertainties
in global CO2 budgeting efforts (Goodale et al. 2002, Ryan and Law 2005) cited in (UNEP, 2014).
Although turnover in litter and woody debris is relatively rapid, a small percentage of the total
forest carbon pool is the result of storage in decaying plant detritus (Bowden et al. 1993, Soepadmo
1993) cited in (UNEP, 2014). Numerous studies have investigated the absolute and relative sizes of
these distinct pools in various forest types and age-classes in each of the forested biomes.
1.3. Carbon Sequestration and Storage across Biomes (UNEP, 2014)
Tropical forest systems sequester carbon faster, and store more carbon, than comparable temperate
and boreal forests. Indeed, tropical forests are responsible for approximately 33% of terrestrial NPP
and hold nearly ¼ of above ground terrestrial carbon (Bonan 2008) cited in (UNEP, 2014). While
still significant, mid- and high-latitude forests have relatively slower rates of carbon uptake and
lower per area carbon stock (Fig. 1.3).

Figure 1.3. Forests and Carbon. (A and B) Current extent and total (above and below ground)
terrestrial carbon storage for forest and nonforest, and biomes. (C) Stand level NEP by biome.
Tropical forests have relatively higher rates of carbon sequestration. (D) Carbon Density. Forests
generally hold proportionally greater quantities of carbon per unit area than non-forests; Tropical
forests store more carbon per unit area than do Temperate or Boreal systems.
1.4. Stand Dynamics and Carbon Sequestration in Forests (UNEP, 2014)
Forests are dynamic. Decades of forest ecosystem modeling have established the important role of
both autogenic stand development processes – driven by species level traits – and disturbance in
regulating the development of forest stands, and thus, their influence on climate (Bonan 2008) cited
in (UNEP, 2014). The interaction of these internal drivers with external disturbances means forests
can develop along numerous independent pathways (Camp and Oliver 2004) cited in (UNEP, 2014).
Despite nearly endless combinations, general patterns in the development of forest assemblages are
well recognized (Oliver 1992) cited in (UNEP, 2014). Tree species are separated into guilds based
on their regeneration ecology, tolerance to shade, and relative growth rate (Ashton 1992) cited in
(UNEP, 2014). These distinct species characteristics lead to regular patterns in canopy stratification,
where initially fast growing, shade intolerant species dominate a young forest’s canopy, with more
tolerant species below. As early serial dominants slow in growth rate, or are damaged by
disturbance, they are gradually replaced by shifting waves of progressively more shade tolerant
species. Numerous developmental models exist, each more or less suited for specific interests or
geographic areas (Odum 1969, Shugart and West 1980, Bormann and Likens 1981, Oliver 1981,
Franklin et al. 2002) cited in (UNEP, 2014). While distinct, each of these models describes
predictable shifts in stand structure or process as new individuals occupy a site following
disturbance and compete for resources. Over time additional disturbances impact the stand, freeing
growing space and shifting competitive dynamics.
Oliver and Larson (1996) cited in (UNEP, 2014) describe a four-stage progression starting with the
rapid invasion of a forest stand after major disturbance (Stand Initiation); followed by a period of
intense competition and high rates of competition mortality (Stem Exclusion); then canopy species
lose vigor and new cohorts establish (Understory Reinitiation); and finally, this newly established
cohort ascends to the canopy (Old Growth). Forest stands move dynamically through these stages at
varying rates and along a nearly infinite number of trajectories depending on a wide range of factors
including site, species composition and disturbance pattern. As forest development progresses,
predictable changes in stand level respiration, nutrient processing, carbon sequestration and storage
occur. These patterns are the result of competition for limited resources driven by site factors
(edaphic, topographic, physiographic), disturbance type (scale, intensity and interval) and
accompanying changes in , individual- and stand-scale, photosynthate allocation and respiration.
Forest stands will move through these stages at varying rates, and will reach different maxima.
High-productivity sites will not only have higher peak sequestration rates, but also attain these rates
sooner than comparable species assemblages on less productive sites (Oliver and Larson 1996) cited
in (UNEP, 2014). Forest stand age is a major factor in sequestration rate, with young, productive
temperate forests sequestering 5-6 t C ha-1 yr-1 (Schwalm et al. 2010) cited in (UNEP, 2014)
whereas reduced rates of sequestration and larger respiration debts mean that old growth forests
sequester a global average of ~2 t C ha-1 yr-1 (Luyssaert et al. 2008) cited in (UNEP, 2014).
Though their rates of sequestration are lower, old growth forests accumulate biomass over long
periods of steady growth and are important stores of carbon. Most of this old growth biomass is
stored in the large stems characteristic of these stands. In the tropics ~70% of the variation in above
ground biomass can be explained by the density of large trees (Slik et al. 2013) cited in (UNEP,
2014).
1.5. The Contribution of Deforestation and Forest Degradation to Climate Change (UNEP,
2014, p.12)
The problem of deforestation and its consequences are well recognized. In addition to reductions in
biodiversity (Brook et al. 2003) cited in (UNEP, 2014), deforestation and the degradation of
forested ecosystems cause substantial losses in terrestrial carbon sequestration and storage
(Woodwell et al. 1983) cited in (UNEP, 2014). The World Resources Institute estimates that
historically forests covered ~47% of the earth’s surface; deforestation, particularly in the tropics,
has reduced global forest area to ~30% (WRI 2009) cited in (UNEP, 2014). Though recent trends
show a reduction in the pace of deforestation, huge areas of forest continue to disappear. An average
of 13 million hectares is estimated to have been lost every year during the 2000s as compared with
the 16 million hectares a year during the 1990s (FAO 2010) cited in (UNEP, 2014).
Because deforestation — and poor management that leads to degradation — reduces total stored
carbon and due the low rate at which these stores are replenished, the loss of forest cover has had a
marked effect on global carbon budgets. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates
that 1.6 Pg C yr-1 was lost to deforestation in the 1990s; the majority of this loss was due to
deforestation in the tropics (IPCC 2007) cited in (UNEP, 2014). Despite a recently slowing rate of
deforestation, global forest carbon is still being reduced at a rate of 0.5 Gt yr-1; between now and
2050 as much as 20.3 Pg C could be lost due to fire and deforestation in the Amazon Basin alone
(Poulter et al. 2010) cited in (UNEP, 2014).

2. The multiple benefits of forests

2.1. Ecosystem services: linking ecosystems and society (UNEP, 2014, p.23)
The vast array of goods and services obtained directly or indirectly from nature to improve human
welfare are known as ‘ecosystem services’ (Hassan et al., 2005 p. 27) cited in (UNEP, 2014). These
services are the linkages between a set of biophysical structures and functions and a set of benefits
society enjoys. This complex interaction between ecosystems and human well-being have been
present for as long as history has been recorded. Still, it was not until a few decades ago that natural
capital’s relevance to human welfare was acknowledged. The concept of ecosystem service was first
introduced by the Study of Critical Environmental Problems (1970) and entered a phase of
redefinition and framing during the following two decades (de Groot R. S., 1987; Daily, 1997;
Mooney & Ehrlich, 1997; Costanza, et al., 1997; Fisher et al., 2009; Gуmez-Baggethun et al., 2009)
cited in (UNEP, 2014). It was not until the early 2000s, with the declaration of the Millennium
Development Goals and the publication of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005), that
ecosystem services became a part of international policy agenda.
2.2. Benefits of forests in a REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest
Degradation in Developing Countries) + context (UNEP, 2014, p.24)
Ecosystem services, by definition, contribute to human well-being through environmental, social,
and economic benefits. Environmental benefits refer to the interactions between biophysical
structures and functions that allow human subsistence through provisioning, regulating, and
supporting ecosystem services. Estimating these benefits can be done through different techniques,
including biophysical indexes, spatial analyses, direct economic welfare, or even by approximations
of their indirect use. Benefits related to the environment can be enhanced through human actions,
for example by restoring watersheds or improving watershed management.
Social benefits include cultural services as well as recognition of indigenous rights, poverty
alleviation, gender equity, equitable land tenure, and participatory governance assessments.
Designing REDD+ initiatives that recognize social benefits, incorporate local communities, and are
based on informed decisions can improve livelihoods and bring into consideration new job
opportunities that could have been overlooked without a multiple benefit approach.
The economic values that ecosystem services provide to humans are known as economic benefits.
In this sense, to better capture ecosystem services’ benefits and assess tradeoffs to conserve natural
resources, various valuation techniques have been developed to assign monetary values to
ecosystem services.
Benefits provided by forests interact in different ways and can be grouped into ‘bundles’ (Cumming
& Peterson, 2005, p. 47; Farley & Costanza, 2010) cited in (UNEP, 2014, p.10). For example, a
freshwater bundle includes services like water quality, erosion control, nutrient cycling, and fauna
and microorganism habitat conditions, among others. Potentially, if ecosystem services are managed
in clusters, better synergies can be weaved to conserve ecosystems (Redford & Adams, 2009) and
thus achieve sustainable resource management. Although the bundle-approach is quite new within
the study of ecosystem services, it is a great opportunity to include them in payment for
environmental services programmes (Porras et al., 2008, p. 8; Wendland et al., 2010; Maes et al.,
2011, p. 58; Estrada Carmona & DeClerck, 2012, p. 203) cited in (UNEP, 2014, p.10) and a
multiple benefit approach to REDD+ mechanisms.
2.3. Giving credit where credit is due: increasing landowner compensation for ecosystem
services (LaRocco & Deal, 2011)
Conservation of biodiversity serves a number of human needs, including maintenance of ecosystem
services that are critical to the sustainability of all life. Effective biodiversity conservation will
require better landowner incentives for restoration and protection of ecosystems. Many services
produced from healthy, functioning landscapes are not well recognized in current conservation
incentive structures, including sequestering or storing carbon in trees and soil, providing fish and
wildlife habitat, filtering water, and reducing damages from natural disasters. Most existing
incentive programs pay landowners to protect and restore a specific service rather than the suite of
services produced from well-functioning ecosystems. Various incentive programs need to be better
integrated or new programs need to be developed that value a greater proportion of the ecological
benefits that flow from ecosystems. One promising option is to allow landowners to bundle or stack
payments for ecosystem services. This option, however, also presents issues that need to be
addressed to ensure ecological goals and economic efficiency are achieved.

3. Drivers of deforestation and forest degradation and solutions to reverse deforestation

and forest degradation (UNEP, 2014, p.33)
3.1. Recent trends in deforestation and forest degradation (UNEP, 2014, p.33)
Deforestation and forest degradation impact ecosystems and humanity in numerous ways. If
methane and other greenhouse gas emissions that result from land use changes are included in
addition to the CO2 released during deforestation, loss of forest cover accounts for about 20-25% of
anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions (Houghton 2005) cited in (UNEP, 2014). In addition, it
causes decreases in the supply of other ecosystem services provided by forests such as biodiversity
loss and non-timber forest products. Forest degradation is widely recognized to be a crucial
contributor to forest-related greenhouse gas emissions (Asner et al., 2005) cited in (UNEP, 2014),
although a harmonized definition of forest degradation is not in use. It broadly refers to activities
that, while not reducing the area under cover, reduce canopy cover, and “which negatively affect the
structure or function of the stand or site, and thereby lower the capacity to supply products and/or
services.” (FAO 2006) cited in (UNEP, 2014).
Tropical forests in particular have a vital role in regulating the global carbon reservoir, since they
store about 50% more carbon per land unit area than non-tropical forests, and contain as much
carbon in their soils and vegetation as boreal and temperate forests combined (UNFCCC 2006)
cited in (UNEP, 2014, p.10). However, these have also been the epicenter of large-scale forest loss
in recent decades.
3.2. Factors Affecting Deforestation and Forest Degradation – Overview of Methodologies
(UNEP, 2014, p.35)
Methods that assess the relative importance of factors affecting deforestation and forest degradation
draw on a variety of qualitative and quantitative approaches, ranging from examining the national
communications of countries to the UNFCCC (UNFCCC 2006) cited in (UNEP, 2014) to studies
that examine local case studies (Geist and Lambin 2001) cited in (UNEP, 2014), to models that
combine and analyze satellite data on deforestation and socio-economic data at the regional,
national and sub-national level (Pfaff 2012, Cropper et al. 1994, Nelson and Hellerstein 1997) cited
in (UNEP, 2014). Recently, the UNREDD national programmes for several countries including
Zambia and DRC have undertaken studies that seek to identify the drivers of deforestation using
both qualitative and quantitative methods.
A substantial portion of the literature distinguishes direct causes (also known as proximate causes)
of deforestation and degradation such as agricultural expansion and logging, from indirect causes
like institutional factors that affect deforestation, such as property rights systems regimes. It is
important to note that the causes may, and often are, inter-connected. For instance, the study
undertaken by the UN-REDD national programme for Zambia on the drivers of deforestation found
agricultural expansion (a direct cause) to be one of the main drivers of forest cover loss between
1989 and 2002. However, economy-wide structural adjustment undertaken around the same time
(an indirect factor), through cuts in employment in non-agricultural sectors such as mining, would
influence the amount of labor force in agriculture, which in turn would affect the magnitude and
rate of agricultural expansion (Vinya et al 2011) cited in (UNEP, 2014).
3.3. Challenges in the measurement of deforestation and forest degradation (UNEP, 2014,
p.41)
Measuring deforestation and forest degradation over time can be challenging, as estimates from
different sources may not be strictly comparable due to the use of different measurement techniques
and forest definitions. For instance, rates of deforestation measured using surveys and inventories
are generally, although not always, higher than estimates derived using remote sensing (UNFCCC
2006) cited in (UNEP, 2014). Several of the lower-cost remote sensing techniques used to measure
deforestation do not have the capability to reliably measure forest degradation, which recent
research (Foley et al. 2007) cited in (UNEP, 2014), indicates may be more pervasive than previously
believed. Furthermore, Asner et al. (2005) cited in (UNEP, 2014, p.10) find that areas of selective
logging in the Amazon overlap with earlier estimated deforestation areas by only 6%, and when
included in deforestation estimates, nearly double the land areas affected by these activities in the
Amazon. Consistent estimates of the contribution of deforestation and forest degradation to carbon
emissions is even more methodologically challenging. A recent consensus amongst scientists
(Harris et al. 2012) cited in (UNEP, 2014) concluded that emissions from tropical deforestation
between 2000 and 2005 were 3.0 Ѓ} 1.1 Gt CO2 yr-1 (0.8 Ѓ} 0.3 Pg C yr-1), although the study also
emphasized the high degree of uncertainty attributable in part to lack of consistent and reliable data.
3.4. Solutions to reverse deforestation and forest degradation. Solutions in the Forestry
Sector. Solutions in Related Economic Sectors. (UNEP, 2014, p.43)
A fundamental aspect of these solutions is the degree to which activities, institutions, and policies in
related sectors – energy, land-use planning and agriculture - affect the outcomes in the forest sector.
A primary reason for this is that policies and institutions in related sectors change the relative
economic returns to forest land, and the consequent level of forest cover is thus the result of these
interactions. To increase forest cover and quality, it is not only essential to have well-targeted
policies and conducive institutional environments in the forest sector, but also ensure that policies in
related sectors facilitate, not undercut, these objectives. Sustainable solutions in related sectors are
thus vital to reversing deforestation and forest degradation.
3.4.1. Initiatives, tools and metholodgies
3.4.1.1. Solutions in the Forestry Sector
3.4.1.1.1. Direct Solutions
The most direct solutions to increasing forest cover are policies that address the problem through
two different approaches - improved forest management techniques and command-and-control
regulations. Improved forest management techniques include practices that seek to minimize the
environmentally harmful impacts of logging using methods such as directional felling, assisted
natural regeneration of functional species, lengthening rotations, reducing harvest damage and or
accelerating replanting rates (FAO 1996, IPCC 2007) cited in (UNEP, 2014).
3.4.1.1.2. Indirect Solutions
Indirect forestry policies are primarily of two types – those that aim to directly or indirectly increase
the relative returns to forest land, and those that aim to encourage and facilitate sustainable forestry
institutions at the community level. The former category may be policies that manipulate logging
and concession policies, legislation that increases the risk of non-compliance with sustainable
supply chain activities such as the Lacey Act in the United States, and most importantly, payments
for ecosystem services (PES) and similar conservation incentive type programs such as incentives
for allocating land to conservation easements.
PES and conservation incentives are most similar in motivation and policy design to the REDD+
framework. Like REDD+, they seek to align the incentives of society as a whole and the individuals
and communities in charge of forest management to achieve the societally beneficial level of forest
cover. Payments or other incentives such as grain are provided to these communities conditional on
certain pre-defined criteria (such as a certain level of forest cover) being met. An example of such a
program is the Grain for Green program in China. These programs have the potential to increase the
returns to forest land relative to other uses such as agriculture, but the efficacy, costeffectiveness,
equity, and sustainability of these programs depends on a variety of features of policy design as well
as socio-economic and institutional characteristics such as the opportunity cost of forest land, clarity
regarding property rights regimes, and the presence of effective monitoring, reporting and
verification (MRV) mechanisms.
3.4.1.2. Solutions in Related Economic Sectors
3.4.1.2.1. Climate-Smart Agriculture as a Solution to Deforestation and Forest
Degradation
There is significant role of agricultural expansion in driving deforestation and forest degradation, in
combination with a variety of other complimentary conditions, such as infrastructure expansion.
Agriculture conversion impacts forest land not only via direct loss of forest cover, but also through
indirect mechanisms such as increasing fire risk in forest areas close to cleared areas for agriculture.
Morton et al. (2008) cited in (UNEP, 2014) find that high-frequency fires typical of deforestation
comprised more that 40% of fires detected via satellite imagery between 2003 and 2007 in
Amazonia.
There are a variety of solutions in the agricultural sector that have the potential for reducing GHG
emissions without adversely affecting productivity, collectively known as Reduced Emissions
Agricultural Policies (REAP) (CIFOR 2009) cited in (UNEP, 2014). Amongst these solutions, those
that increase returns to currently cropped land or incorporate trees into current cropping systems
may impact forest cover directly, the former through reduced pressure to convert forest land to other
uses, although as detailed below, the impacts of such practices are not the same across technologies
or contexts . In addition, there are agricultural practices that directly and indirectly enhance forest
cover by increasing the relative returns to currently cropped land, thereby reducing pressure to
convert forest land. For instance, incorporating trees into current cropping systems via agro-
forestry, can potentially provide several ecosystem services such as carbon sinks in addition to
agricultural income, and directly increase the availability of land under forests (assuming
plantations are designated as forests). Furthermore, agricultural practices that increase the fertility
of currently cropped land may also indirectly lead to greater forest cover, by increasing the relative
returns to currently cropped land, thereby precluding the need to convert forest land. It is crucial to
emphasize, however, that the impacts of these initiatives, even those that increase the relative
returns to currently cropped land, may vary depending on numerous economic, technological, and
institutional factors.
3.4.1.2.2. Sustainable Energy Solutions and Deforestation and Forest
Degradation
There are primarily two drivers in the energy sector linked with deforestation and forest
degradation. First, fuelwood extraction is a leading cause of forest degradation (UNFCCC 2006)
cited in (UNEP, 2014). Secondly expansion of land under biofuels is linked with deforestation.
Extraction of fuel-wood and consequent forest degradation can increase with changes in the energy
sector such as lower availability of alternative fuels for heating or cooking. About 2.7 billion people
worldwide rely on biomass for their fuel needs, and these fuels account for 90% of household
energy consumption in some counties (OECD 2006) cited in (UNEP, 2014).
3.4.1.2.3. Land Use Planning: Landscape Approaches as a Solution to
Deforestation and Forest Degradation
Forward-thinking and consistent land use planning at the landscape level are a crucial solution to
deforestation and forest degradation in primarily two ways. The first set of such decisions include
the site selection for infrastructural projects in general and roads in particular, which have been
linked robustly to deforestation and forest degradation in numerous regional and sub-regional
studies. Thus, site selection of infrastructural projects to balance the tradeoffs of maximal socio-
economic returns with minimum impact on deforestation and forest degradation is a challenge that
will crucially impact forest cover in the coming decades.
3.5. The Nature of Agricultural Technological Change and Impacts on Deforestation:
Evidence from the Brazilian Amazon and Republic of Moldova (organizational-
administrative services; agro-technical measures for soil protection; extension of forest
belts; expanding of protected forest plantations). (UNEP, 2014, p.50)
3.6. The Potential Role of Forest Certification Programs in Reducing Deforestation and
Forest Degradation. (UNEP, 2014, p.50)
Forest certification schemes, like payments for ecosystem services, are a relatively recent addition
to available policy tools to reduce tropical deforestation. Almost 10 % of the world’s forest areas
have been certified (UNECE-FAO 2012) cited in (UNEP, 2014), although the progress of
certification has been relatively slow in developing countries (Cashore and Stone 2012) cited in
(UNEP, 2014), where most of the tropical deforestation is located.

4. Climate change impacts on forestry (STAP, 2012)

4.1. How serious are the impacts of climate change in the context of Global Environment
Facility (GEF) focal areas? (STAP, 2012, p.10)
4.1.1. Biodiversity (STAP, 2012, p.10)
New research suggests that projected biodiversity loss due to climate change could be higher than
previously thought. The IPCC (2007a) cited in STAP (2012), concluded that “the resilience of many
ecosystems is likely to be exceeded this century by an unprecedented combination of climate
change, associated disturbances and other global change drivers”, and “approximately 20 to 30% of
plant and animal species assessed so far are likely to be at increased risk of extinction, if increases
in global average temperature exceeds 1.5 to 2.5ºC”. Balint et al., (2011) cited in STAP (2012),
suggested that the projected biodiversity loss due to climate change could be higher than previously
thought, as by 2080, more than 80% of genetic diversity within species may disappear in certain
groups of organisms. Heyder et al., (2011) project “a risk of substantial restructuring of the global
land biosphere on current trajectories of climate change”. They concluded that “considerable
ecosystem changes can be expected above 3ºC local temperature change in cold and tropical
climates and above 4ºC in the temperate zone”. They further suggested that “sensitivity to
temperature change increases with decreasing precipitation in tropical and temperate ecosystems”.
The Global Environment Outlook (GEO-5) (UNEP, 2012) cited in STAP (2012), concluded that
since 1970 vertebrate populations have fallen by 30%, and land conversion and degradation has
resulted in a 20% decline of some natural habitats. It concluded that climate change will have
profound impacts on biodiversity, particularly in combination with other threats. However,
according to the Convention on Biological Diversity (2010), “with adequate resources and political
will, tools exist for loss of biodiversity to be reduced at wider scales”.
4.1.2. Land degradation, water and food security (STAP, 2012, p.11)
Land and water resources are already critically stressed, and climate change has already started
impacting on global food yields. These impacts are likely to rise in future, thus seriously
compromising future global food security. Using 20 years of data, FAO (2011a) cited in STAP
(2012), concluded that land degradation is increasing in severity and extent in many parts of the
world with more than 20% of all cultivated areas, 30% of forests, and 10% of grasslands
undergoing degradation. An estimated 1.5 billion people, nearly a quarter of the world’s population,
directly depend on the land that is being degraded. Changes in precipitation and temperature lead to
changes in runoff and water availability. Climate change is expected to exacerbate current stresses
on water resources from population growth and economic and land-use change, including
urbanization. “The negative impacts of climate change on freshwater systems outweigh its benefits”
(IPCC, 2007a) mentioned in STAP (2012).
4.1.3. Sustainable management of forests and other terrestrial ecosystems. International
waters (STAP, 2012, p.12)
Climate change could adversely impact net primary productivity and carbon stocks of forests.
Forests and other terrestrial ecosystems could undergo large scale changes, from being a sink of
carbon to a source. “Over the course of this century, net carbon uptake by terrestrial ecosystems is
likely to peak before mid-century and then weaken or even reverse, thus amplifying climate
change” (IPCC, 2007a) mentioned in STAP (2012). ”For increases in global average temperature
exceeding 1.5 to 2.5°C, major changes are projected in ecosystem structure and function, species’
ecological interactions and shifts in species’ geographical ranges.” New studies documenting the
observed impacts of climate change on terrestrial ecosystems, especially forests, are becoming
increasingly common. Recent global carbon budget studies suggest the global terrestrial ecosystem
to be a sink of carbon in recent decades despite the deforestation related flux of CO2 to the
atmosphere (Le Quere et al., 2009; Yude et al. 2011) mentioned in STAP (2012). However, Carnicer
et al. (2011) mentioned in STAP (2012), suggested that “climate change is progressively increasing
severe drought events in the Northern Hemisphere, causing regional tree die-off events contributing
to global reduction of carbon sink efficiency of forests”. For example, a study by Potter et al.,
(2011) mentioned in STAP (2012), estimated the impacts of the 2010 drought on carbon uptake of
the Amazon forest. The study estimates that net primary production declined by an average of 7% in
2010 compared to 2008, representing a loss of vegetation CO2 uptake of nearly 0.5 MtC in 2010.
4.1.4. Impact of climate change on energy resources, infrastructure and services (STAP,
2012, p.14)
Normally, the focus of discussion of the impact of climate change is restricted to natural resources,
and at most to food production and water resources. However, implications of projected climate
change and extreme weather events to the energy sector are also important, and need to be
considered by the GEF since the bulk of its support for mitigation is through energy sector
improvement. Both the energy supply chain and energy demand are already vulnerable to the
impacts of current climate variability and extreme weather events in many parts of the world, and it
is projected that energy services and resources will increasingly be affected by increasing climate
variability and greater extremes (Ebinger and Vergara, 2011) mentioned in STAP (2012). Climate
change can also have direct effects on energy endowment, infrastructure and transport, and indirect
effects through other economic sectors. Naswa and Garg (2011) mentioned in STAP (2012),
suggested that climate change-related natural disasters represent an additional stress on India’s
infrastructure as temperature, precipitation, sea level rise and extreme events pose direct and
indirect threats to infrastructure assets. Coastal infrastructure assets are additionally vulnerable as
these are directly exposed to sea level rise and weather extremes. Significant impacts on energy
supply infrastructure (Picture 4.1) are projected due to higher temperatures, increased precipitation,
sea level rise, extreme events and increased demand for energy (Sathaye et al., 2012).
Picture 4.1. Impacts on energy supply infrastructure after a snowstorm 20-21 April, 2017 in
Chisinau the capital of Republic of Moldova

5. Climate change guidelines for forest managers (FAO, 2013)

“Forests play a significant role in climate change mitigation by acting as “sinks”, absorbing carbon
from the atmosphere and storing it in biomass and soils, but, when cleared or degraded, they are
also significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Forests, therefore, are important components
in strategies for adapting to climate change. Without direct management interventions, climate
change is likely to jeopardize forest ecosystem health, resilience, productivity, biodiversity and
carbon storage, and forest degradation and loss will continue to contribute to climate change. The
strong relationship between forests and climate implies that a dramatic change in one will influence
the other. This feedback could be negative in some situations and positive in others. Sustainable
forest management can help reduce the negative effects of climate change on forests and forest-
dependent people, and it can help ensure that forests play their role in mitigating climate change.
Forest management decisions made now will affect forests many decades into the future. Thus, it is
important for managers to plan now for climate change” (FAO. 2013).
The effects of climate change and climate variability on forest ecosystems are evident around the
world and further impacts are unavoidable, at least in the short to medium term. In some cases,
climate change is impairing the ability of forests to deliver critical goods and ecosystem services,
such as wood and non-wood products and clean water, to the detriment of the livelihoods of forest
dwellers, forest-dependent communities and others who benefit from forests. Meeting the
challenges posed by climate change will require adjustments to forest strategies and changes to
forest management plans and practices. Delays in taking action will increase the cost and difficulty
of making those adjustments (FAO, 2013).
Climate change is only one of many factors that forest managers must deal with (Fig. 5.1.), but its
impacts are projected to increase and to have wide-ranging repercussions. While some forests will
benefit from increased temperatures and changes in precipitation, most will experience losses of
important species, declines in yields, and increases in the frequency and intensity of storms and
other disturbances. Adjusting forest management plans and practices to reduce vulnerabilities and
facilitate adaptation to climate change is likely to incur additional costs, but these will probably be
less than the costs of remedial action in the aftermath of climate-inflicted damage. Forest managers
usually bear any increases in management costs, but they may not always benefit from the savings
that are made when they take action in response to climate change. Nevertheless, well-informed
forest managers will be able to benefit from financial and policy incentives to support climate
change mitigation and adaptation actions, and this will help offset the additional costs of managing
for climate change (FAO, 2013).
Fig. 5.1. Forest managers need to respond to a wide range of factors, all of which may be influenced
by climate change
5.1. Climate change processes and projections (FAO, 2013, p.7)
The Earth’s climate changes continually under the influence of a range of natural forces. Currently,
however, observed significant and rapid changes in climate patterns worldwide are being driven by
global warming caused by human activities that emit heat-trapping gases known as greenhouse
gases (GHGs). Global warming is associated with increased climate variability and consequently an
increased frequency of extreme events such as heat waves, severe droughts and intense storms, and
it is also associated with rising sea levels. Climate change and increased climate variability are
expected to have widespread economic, social and environmental repercussions. For forest
managers, adapting to and mitigating climate change is likely to require major adjustments in
management practices.
 5.2. Adaptation and mitigation in forestry (FAO, 2013, p.8)
Adaptation and mitigation are the two main responses to climate change. They are two sides of the
same coin: mitigation addresses the causes of climate change and adaptation its impacts. Climate
change adaptation actions consist of adjustments in natural or human systems in response to the
actual or expected impacts of climate change to avoid harm or exploit opportunities. Climate
change mitigation actions are measures to help stabilize or reduce the concentration of GHGs in
the atmosphere. They include actions to reduce human-induced GHG emissions or increase
removals of GHGs from the atmosphere.In the forest sector, adaptation encompasses changes in
management practices designed to decrease the vulnerability of forests to climate change and
interventions intended to reduce the vulnerability of people to climate change.
Mitigation strategies in the forest sector can be grouped into four main categories: reducing
emissions from deforestation; reducing emissions from forest degradation; enhancing forest carbon
sinks; and product substitution. Substitution comprises the use of wood instead of fossil fuels for
energy and the use of wood fibre in place of materials such as cement, steel and aluminum that
involve the emission of larger quantities of GHGs. Climate change mitigation measures, including
forests, are urgently needed to help reduce anthropogenic human-induced interference with the
climate system, but such measures will only begin to have an effect on global mean surface
temperature decades from now. For this reason, adaptation measures in forests to secure the
continued delivery of forest goods and ecosystem services will be required for many years to come.
5.3. What does climate change mean for forest managers? (FAO, 2013, p.9)
Climate change jeopardizes the capacity of forest managers to achieve their objectives and to help
meet the forest-related needs of society. Forest managers will need to adjust their management
objectives and practices to reduce vulnerability and to facilitate adaptation to climate change, both
of forests and of the people who depend on the goods and ecosystem services that forests provide.
Forest managers should aim to optimize the potential benefits of climate change by taking
advantage of policy incentives and financial support mechanisms for climate change adaptation and
mitigation.
Managers aiming to minimize the impacts of climate change must deal with uncertainties in the
extent and nature of climate change and climate variability, differences in the time scale of impacts,
and the costs associated with changing management practices.
While global climate models can project broad patterns of climate change at the global and regional
levels with some certainty, projections of climate change at the subnational and especially local
levels are likely to be less accurate. Climate variability and extreme climatic events as reflected in
the picture 5.1 are very difficult to predict with confidence. This uncertainty poses challenges for
forest managers aiming to undertake adaptation and mitigation measures.
Picture 5.1. Trees in the square “Valea Morilor” from Chisinau affected by the heavy snowstorm on
20-21 April, 2017
Forest managers may need to “hedge their bets” by managing for a wide range of change and
adopting “no regrets” options that are consistent with good practice and will yield climate change
adaptation and mitigation benefits.
Increasingly, forest managers need to be aware of the current and potential impacts of climate
change. Some effects will be direct, such as on water availability and the rate of tree growth. Other
effects will be the result of modified disturbance regimes (e.g. fire, pests and storms), or will be
driven by economic and social changes caused by climate change, such as population movements
and changes in markets (e.g. increased demand for biofuels to replace fossil fuels).
Forest managers will also need to be aware of the incentives available to undertake climate change
adaptation and mitigation measures. These may be policy incentives instituted by government, or
market incentives, such as carbon credits or demand for bioenergy. Forest managers will need to
understand the evolving climate-related policy, legal and regulatory environment, which is likely to
change, in order to comply with new laws and regulations and to capitalize on financial
opportunities.
As climatic conditions move beyond historical ranges, adaptation and mitigation will require the
adjustment of management objectives, approaches and monitoring systems. Fortunately, SFM is
consistent with climate change adaptation and mitigation and provides a comprehensive framework
that can be adapted to changing circumstances. Forest managers will need to factor climate change
into their planning and to adjust their management practices accordingly. They will also need to put
greater emphasis on risk management and to weigh the costs of changes in forest management
against the likely benefits, keeping in mind that the costs of climate change adaptation measures are
likely to increase, the longer they are delayed (Picture 5.2).

Picture 5.2. Forest manager explaining his goals to the participants of the meeting of Oregon
Society of American Foresters (OSAF), in Albany, OR (7-9 April, 2010)
5.4. Sustainable forest management and related approaches for effective climate change
responses (FAO, 2013, p.13)
5.4.1. Sustainable forest management (FAO, 2013, p.13)
SFM is a universally accepted concept that guides forest policies and practices around the world. It
constitutes an overarching approach to forest management, and its implementation requires, at the
national or subnational levels, enabling policies, laws and institutions and, on the ground, the
application of sound management practices based on good science and traditional knowledge. SFM
can be applied in all types of forest, regardless of the objective(s) of management (e.g. production,
conservation, protection and multiple use). Efforts worldwide to advance towards SFM have
provided a wealth of knowledge, experience, best-practice guidance, tools, mechanisms and
partnerships that can be applied to help meet climate change challenges. Using SFM as an overall
framework helps to ensure that adaptation and mitigation measures are synergistic and balanced
with other forest management objectives and take into consideration the economic, social and
environmental values of forests. Recognizing that countries manage their forest estates for multiple
socio-economic, productive and environmental functions, forest-related climate change adaptation
and mitigation efforts on the ground require a comprehensive approach, sound policies, and
appropriate legislative and governance frameworks.
Adaptive management. Adaptive management is a dynamic approach to forest management in
which changing conditions are monitored and practices adapted accordingly. Adaptive management
combines planning, implementation, monitoring and the modification of resource management in
response to monitoring. It explicitly addresses complex and uncertain situations and is widely seen
as part of an appropriate response to climate change and other environmental change.
Landscape approaches. As integral parts of broader landscapes, forests and trees contribute to the
stability and vitality of ecosystems and to meeting societal needs. Integrated approaches to
landscape management can increase synergies among multiple land-use objectives. By considering
the perspectives, needs and interests of all stakeholders, including local communities and individual
land users, landscape approaches can be instrumental in developing sustainable land-use and
livelihood strategies. Stakeholder dialogue is especially important as adjustments are made to land
uses and management. Some impacts of climate change require managers to look beyond their
management units. Thus, adopting a landscape approach can help to identify forest adaptation and
mitigation measures that will provide the best economic, social and environmental outcomes.
Partnerships and participatory approaches. Partnerships and participatory approaches recognize
the importance of involving all forest stakeholders in the management or co-management of forest
resources. Forest stakeholders comprise all people who depend on or benefit from forests and those
who decide on, control or regulate access to forests. Partnerships and participatory approaches can
operate at a range of levels, from national to local, and may include state and local authorities,
forest extension agencies, forest-dependent communities, non-governmental organizations (NGOs),
private-sector entities, research and academic organizations, and forest managers. Partnerships and
participatory approaches will be essential for successful management responses to climate change.
More than ever, forest managers will need to cultivate and participate in existing and new forest
partnerships.
5.4.2. Global, regional and national policies on climate change (FAO, 2013, p.15)
Forest managers are affected by climate change policies made at the subnational, national, regional
and global levels. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC),
which has been ratified by 195 countries, sets global climate change policy. Some regional political
entities (e.g. the European Union) have set regional policies on climate change, and there are also
regional cooperative programmes to support national action on climate change. National climate
change policies are influenced by global and regional policies but are tailored to national
circumstances. Forest managers should be aware of policy developments that will affect them
directly or indirectly.
Parties to the UNFCCC have agreed to undertake adaptation and mitigation actions and to report on
their actions through periodic national communications and on their GHG emissions and removals
through national GHG inventories. Parties to the UNFCCC are negotiating a new legal instrument
designed to supersede the Kyoto Protocol that will be applicable to all parties and will take effect in
2020.
In 2010, the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC adopted a decision on reducing emissions
from deforestation and forest degradation and on the conservation of forests, sustainable
management of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks, usually known as REDD+.
REDD+ is designed as a national (or in some cases subnational) mechanism that would provide
positive incentives to countries achieving verified emissions reductions or carbon removals in
forests at the national level. The accessibility of benefits from REDD+ activities to individual forest
managers would depend on the arrangements in place in the country for REDD+ benefit-sharing.
Another important decision made by the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC in 2010 was to
establish the Green Climate Fund, which is designed to provide financial support to developing
countries to undertake adaptation and mitigation actions. A number of other financial mechanisms
have also been established to support such actions. Voluntary carbon markets offer a means by
which forest managers can sell carbon credits for carbon sequestered by their forests. The scope for
voluntary market projects in the forest sector is wide, including not only afforestation and
reforestation but also, for example, forest restoration and avoided deforestation (i.e. preventing a
forest from being deforested). Forestry projects are favored by the voluntary carbon market because
of their additional social and environmental benefits (known as co-benefits).

6. Management responses to climate change (FAO, 2013, p.19)

Forest managers should assess the costs, benefits, trade-offs and feasibility of climate change
adaptation and mitigation actions and consider how these might affect – positively or negatively –
the achievement of management objectives. The general process for undertaking such an assessment
(as shown in a simplified form in Figure 6.1) involves the following steps:
 Assess the risks that climate change poses to the achievement of the management objectives
of the FMU (i.e. the delivery of desired forest products and ecosystem services).
 Identify the forest-dependent people and forest areas that are most vulnerable to the likely
impacts of climate change.
 Identify forest management measures that would reduce the vulnerability of forest-
dependent people and forest areas to climate change or would increase their adaptation
capacity, and estimate the costs of implementing these measures in the FMU.
 Gather information on policies, institutions, financial and technical incentives, the
availability of support for undertaking adaptation measures, and the requirements to obtain
access to such incentives and support.
 Identify the available options at the FMU level for contributing to climate change
mitigation, including the actions to be taken, the schedule for taking such actions, the costs
involved and the mitigation benefits that could be expected to materialize.
 Gather information on policies, financial and technical incentives and the availability of
support for undertaking mitigation actions and the requirements for gaining access to such
incentives and support.
 Conduct a cost–benefit assessment to identify the most cost-effective adaptation and
mitigation options, taking into consideration synergies and trade-offs between them.
 Adjust forest management plans and other planning tools to accommodate the adaptation
and mitigation measures and to incorporate the knowledge gained through assessments of
vulnerability, risk and options for mitigation.
 Identify capacity development needs and opportunities to implement adaptation and
mitigation measures.
 Adjust management practices to achieve the specified adaptation and mitigation goals.
Adjust forest monitoring and evaluation procedures to allow for additional requirements
related to the specified adaptation and mitigation actions.
 Develop mechanisms to ensure the continual adaptation of forest management in the light of
monitoring and evaluation.
Fig. 6.1. The process for integrating adaptation and mitigation measures into forest management
plans and practices (FAO, 2013, p. 20)
6.1. Vulnerability and risk assessment of climate change impacts and mitigation options
(FAO, 2013, p.21)
The scope and scale of assessments of vulnerability, risk and mitigation options carried out by the
forest manager will depend on the following factors:
 the focal area of the assessments;
 the time available for the assessments;
 the questions to be addressed by the assessments and the decisions the assessments should
support;
 the funds available for the assessments;
 the level of support from key stakeholders;
 the value of the resources that may be at risk.
Vulnerability and risk assessments. The goal of vulnerability and risk assessments is to identify
who (i.e. which groups in a population) and what (i.e. which ecological systems and human-created
infrastructure) are vulnerable to climate change impacts and the risks of negative impacts. Climate
change vulnerability assessments of forests and forest-dependent communities can involve a range
of approaches and sources of information, such as local knowledge, expert opinion and detailed data
collection and technical analyses. The first step of any such assessment is to identify the likely
impacts on ecosystems and their ramifications for human well-being.
Once the likely impacts have been identified, the vulnerability to them of forests and forest-
dependent communities can be assessed and appropriate actions taken. At the national level,
government agencies and research institutions that collect and analyze climate-related information
are likely to be involved in downscaling global and regional climate models to national and
subnational levels. They are also likely to carry out vulnerability assessments for various sectors
(e.g. agriculture and forestry) and population groups.
While global surface temperatures are generally rising, predicting climate change and its impacts at
the local level remains very difficult. Forest managers should obtain available information from
relevant government agencies and research institutions or other sources, including local
meteorological data. They should also gather information about the impacts of climate change on
forests from their own field observations and forest inventories, other monitoring systems, and local
residents. The collected information can be used to make predictions about impacts on product
yields and the provision of ecosystem services.
Vulnerability and risk assessments generally involve a climate sensitivity analysis and an evaluation
of the capacity of ecosystems and communities to adapt to climate change. To analyze the
sensitivity of forests and forest-dependent communities to changing climatic conditions, the forest
manager, in partnership with other stakeholders, should determine:
 the current and expected stresses on the forest area;
 the known climatic conditions, and how these affect the forest area;
 the projected change in climatic conditions and the likely impact(s) of these changes on
forests;
 the expected changes in stresses on a system as a result of the likely impacts of climate
change.
To evaluate the capacity of a forest area and forest-dependent communities to adapt to climate
change, the forest manager, in partnership with other stakeholders, should consider:
 the current capacity of a forest or forest-dependent community to adapt to climate change;
 constraints on the capacity of a forest or forest-dependent community to accommodate
changes in climatic conditions;
 whether the projected rate of climate change is likely to be faster than the capacity of a
forest or forest-dependent community to adapt;
 ongoing efforts in the locality to address the impacts of climate change on forests and forest-
dependent communities.
The final step in vulnerability and risk assessments is to combine the findings of the climate
sensitivity analysis and the evaluation of capacity to adapt to determine the extent to which forests
and forest-dependent communities are vulnerable to climate change. Vulnerability and risk
assessments can be qualitative (e.g. high, medium or low) or quantitative, depending on the
information and resources available. Vulnerability and risk assessments should not be considered
static because existing vulnerabilities will change and new vulnerabilities will emerge as a result of:
 climate change impacts on the frequency, intensity, duration and extent of specific climatic
events;
 the emergence of threats, such as new invasive species or diseases;
  new information on how climate change may affect forests;
 the implementation of adaptation and mitigation actions;
 changes in the forest-dependent community’s size, economy, preferences or other factors
that might influence its vulnerability to climate change.
Assessment of mitigation options. Forest managers must weigh the costs of climate change
mitigation against the benefits and identify the negative and positive impacts on the achievement of
other desired forest management objectives. Forest managers should aim to maximize the economic
and social benefits and minimize the social and environmental costs of adjusting forest management
plans for climate change mitigation.
Mitigation options available to forest managers can be grouped into four general categories:
 maintaining the area under forest cover by reducing deforestation and by promoting forest
conservation and protection;
 increasing the forested area (e.g. through afforestation and reforestation);
 maintaining or increasing carbon density at the stand and landscape scales by avoiding
degradation and managing timber production forests so that, on average, carbon stocks
remain constant or increase over time, and through the restoration of degraded forests;
 increasing off-site carbon stocks in harvested wood products (e.g. displacing fossil fuels
with woody fuels).
The designation of forests for conservation (specifically as parks and other protected areas) or
protection (specifically for the protection of soil and water resources), where timber extraction is
prohibited or limited, cannot be considered a mitigation action unless such forests would otherwise
have been cleared or degraded.
To assess mitigation options, forest managers need information on at least the following:
 national policies and regulations related to incentives to undertake (and potential
disincentives for not undertaking) mitigation actions;
 mitigation options that are feasible, given existing forest cover and current forest
management objectives;
 the potential for GHG emissions reductions (i.e. the potential to maintain or increase forest
carbon stocks) over time as a result of adjusting management plans or practices;
 requirements for measuring forest carbon and verifying mitigation;
 requirements for ensuring that no “leakage” (i.e. changes in the management of an FMU that
result in GHG emissions elsewhere) is occurring;
 the capacity to provide evidence that the forest manager would not have undertaken the
mitigation measure anyway – i.e. that it was “additional” to business as usual in managing
the forest;
 the actual and opportunity costs, and the benefits, of implementing and monitoring the
mitigation actions;
  the likely positive and negative economic, social and environmental side-effects of
implementing the mitigation actions.
6.2. A guiding framework for adaptation actions (FAO, 2013, p.24)
After completing assessments to determine how forest ecosystems and forest-dependent
communities will be affected by changing climatic conditions, the next step is to examine the
management options that would reduce vulnerability, increase resilience, and enable adaptation to
climate change and climate variability.
In the tables that follow, actions for climate change adaptation are presented to address risks or
impacts on: forest productivity; biodiversity; water availability and quality; fire; pests and diseases;
extreme weather events; sea-level rise; and economic, social and institutional considerations. These
actions are intended to support forest managers and other stakeholders in dealing with the
challenges of adapting to climate change. They are drawn mostly from existing forest management
practices, but the aim is to give greater consideration to spatial and temporal aspects of climate
change, the protection of forest communities, management measures to reduce vulnerability to
expected changes and extreme climate-driven disturbances, and increased flexibility in forest
management plans to deal with climate-related uncertainties and surprises.
Many impacts of climate change cannot be addressed by forest managers at the FMU or total forest
area scale due to their nature, jurisdictional issues and financial costs.
Effective responses to some climate change impacts will require action at a landscape, regional or
national level. Climate change impacts are cross-sectoral, which means that to prepare for them,
coordination is needed among government agencies, NGOs, and stakeholders in multiple sectors
(e.g. natural resources, public health and safety, emergency and disaster risk management,
recreation, and economic development.
Forest productivity. Climate change will affect forest growth and production directly through an
increase in the concentration of atmospheric CO2 (“carbon fertilization”) and changes in climate,
and indirectly through complex interactions in forest ecosystems induced by changes in temperature
and precipitation. In the temperate and boreal zones, the positive effect on growth of warmer
temperatures and longer growing seasons could be cancelled out by a decline in precipitation and an
increase in decomposition rates. Although carbon fertilization has already increased productivity in
some tropical zones, this effect is likely to be temporary. Particularly in drylands, increases in
temperature are expected to increase plant stress in plants, reducing their productivity and leading to
dieback.
Changes in forest productivity will affect the production of wood and non-wood forest products.
This will affect the income that can be earned from commercial forests and the availability of
products for forest-dependent people, who may use such products for household consumption and
sale.
Adaptive forest management will be essential to reduce forest vulnerability and to maintain forest
productivity. Adaptation measures might include, for example, the selection of heat-tolerant and
drought-tolerant species in planted forests, the use of planting stock from a range of provenances,
the underplanting of tree varieties adapted to expected climatic conditions, and the assisted natural
regeneration of adapted species and varieties.
Biodiversity. Forests are important repositories of terrestrial biodiversity, and this diversity will be
directly and indirectly affected by changing climatic conditions. Individual species can be important
for forest functioning, and the loss of biodiversity can affect the rate at which forests sequester
carbon. Since forest ecosystems are important carbon sinks, the loss or deterioration of biodiversity
has serious implications for climate change.
Climate change will have a variety of impacts on the distribution of forest species and populations
and effects on ecosystem function and composition. In general, it is expected that forest habitats
will shift towards the north and south poles and move upward in elevation. Forest biodiversity will
be forced to adapt to such shifts, and there are likely to be changes in the types of forest and the
composition of species. Vulnerable species and populations could be lost locally, and it is predicted
that species extinctions will occur. The higher projected incidence of extreme climatic events, such
as floods, storms and droughts, will further affect forest flora and fauna and leave forests more
prone to disturbances such as fire and disease.
Forest managers can undertake several measures to ensure that forests maintain or improve their
capacity to provide products, conserve biodiversity, safeguard species and habitats and protect soils
and watersheds. These include tracking changes in flora and fauna as the climate changes,
evaluating the risks to biodiversity and the associated loss of productivity, maintaining biodiversity
to increase resilience, and adjusting management plans to account for these changes.
Water availability and quality. Climate change will alter precipitation and runoff patterns. In large
parts of the world, this will mean a reduced availability of water – in terms of quantity, quality,
timing and distribution. Forested watersheds reduce storm runoff, stabilize stream banks, shade
surface water, cycle nutrients and filter pollutants. The capacity of forests to provide such services,
however, will be reduced as the climate changes. Water supplies stored as snow cover in high-
elevation forests are particularly vulnerable to climate change and are projected to decline. Earlier
spring runoff and reductions in low flows will reduce downstream water availability, and higher
water temperatures and increased flooding and drought will affect water quality and exacerbate
water pollution. Besides these direct effects on the hydrological cycle, climate change is expected to
increase the frequency, extent and magnitude of floods, droughts, forest fire and forest mortality.
Forest managers should anticipate and respond to these threats to ensure the sustained protection
and provision of water-related services. Managers should use existing information to identify
watersheds and water-related services that are most vulnerable to climate change. Sound forest
management and the restoration of degraded areas will reduce erosion and increase slope stability
and resilience to natural hazards and therefore will contribute to the provision of a regulated water
flow. Adaptation strategies for the hydrological cycle should be based on landscape considerations
and involve all relevant actors and sectors.
Fire. The risk of forest fire is expected to increase with increased temperatures and decreased
precipitation due to climate change. The consensus view among climate change scientists is that the
frequency, severity and area affected by forest fire will increase. Forest fires are a substantial source
of emissions of GHGs and particulate matter and are closely linked to deforestation and forest
degradation.
Integrated fire management is an essential part of climate change adaptation and mitigation
strategies. It encompasses fire prevention, preparedness and suppression, and forest restoration after
fire. Forest managers will need to intensify and adapt their fire management practices in response to
climate change. Promoting fire-smart landscapes that are resistant to fire spread and resilient to its
occurrence is an important part of fire management. This may be done, for example, by treating
fuels in fire-prone vegetation types or by decreasing the importance of those vegetation types in the
landscape. Integrated fire management should be addressed at the landscape level. For example,
agricultural burnings should take place before the peak of the dry season and before surrounding
landscapes become fire-prone. This type of management is often beyond the scope of forest
managers, who are encouraged to engage with local and community groups and networks at the
landscape level. It is imperative that all stakeholders are involved in fire management.
Pests and diseases. Climate change, particularly extreme weather events, can affect forest pests and
the damage they cause directly by influencing their development, survival, reproduction and spread
and by altering host defences and susceptibility, and indirectly by altering ecological relationships
such as changing the abundance of competitors, parasites and predators. Insects and diseases may
be early indicators of local climate change, and there are already numerous examples where insect
and pathogen lifecycles or habits have been altered by local or larger-scale climate change (e.g.
mountain pine beetles in North America and pine and oak caterpillars in Europe).
The management of pests and the prevention of their spread will help ensure that forests remain
healthy in the face of climate change. The most effective way to deal with forest pests is through
integrated pest management, which can be defined as a combination of ecologically and
economically efficient and socially acceptable prevention, observation and suppression measures
designed to maintain pest populations at acceptable levels.
Prevention may include the selection of species and varieties to suit site conditions; and the use of
natural regeneration and planting and thinning practices that reduce pest populations and favour
natural enemies. The careful monitoring of pest populations, for example through visual inspection
and trapping systems, will help determine when control activities are needed. Given that pest and
disease outbreaks generally extend across FMU boundaries, forest managers need to communicate
and cooperate with each other and with other local and regional stakeholders. For integrated pest
management to be effective, all forest workers must be trained to recognize, monitor and control
outbreaks, and a formal plan and approach should be in place.
Extreme weather events. The frequency and intensity of disturbances such as storms, floods,
droughts and periods of extreme heat are projected to increase due to climate change. Forest
managers can reduce the risks posed by such disturbances by maintaining stands with diverse age
classes (see Forest productivity and Biodiversity above), and they can increase protection against
financial losses by anticipating and preparing for disturbance events. Forest managers should also
be aware of landscape-scale and interdisciplinary adaptation efforts.
Sea-level rise. Coastal forests – such as mangroves, beach forests and some peat swamp forests and
lowland moist tropical forests – play important economic, social and environmental roles. Sea-level
rise due to climate change poses a threat to many natural coastal forests.
The management of coastal forests requires an integrated, multidisciplinary approach known as
integrated coastal area management. Coastal forest protection and restoration are important to
mitigate the impacts of climate change, while adaptive management will be needed to ensure the
continued existence of coastal forests.
Social considerations. Climate change presents a risk not only to the composition, health and
vitality of forest ecosystems but also to the social systems linked to forests. Decreased forest
ecosystem services, especially water-cycle regulation, soil protection and the conservation of
biodiversity, may imply increased social vulnerability. Millions of people in rural areas use forests
to help meet subsistence needs, including food, fuel, timber, medicines and income. For many
indigenous people, forests are also central to their cultural identity and spiritual beliefs.
Many urban areas are equally dependent on forest ecosystem services, such as those related to water
supply and recreation.
Climate change will affect many of the services provided by forests, with direct and indirect social
impacts. For example, vector-borne diseases (e.g. malaria) are projected to increase in some regions
as temperatures increase and precipitation patterns change, with possible implications for the
popularity of forest-based recreation and the perceived value of forests to society. It is crucial that
forest managers include social considerations in adjusting their management plans for climate
change. Actions to reduce the negative impacts of climate change will achieve best results if they
contribute to the adaptive capacities of local people.
Economic considerations. Climate change will have economic impacts on the forest sector and
consequently on forest management. These effects may be positive or negative. Warmer
temperatures and increased concentrations of atmospheric CO2 may increase forest productivity
under certain conditions. On the other hand, the increased incidence of forest fire is expected to
affect the supply of forest products and ecosystem services and lead to higher costs for fire
management and control. An increase in the incidence of pests and the frequency and intensity of
extreme weather events could increase damage to financially valuable stands and disrupt industrial
operations, resulting in, for example, a reduction in the period of favourable conditions for timber
harvesting and transport. In addition, increased precipitation and storm events could damage road
networks and stream-crossing structures.
Climate change may require alterations to long-standing timber harvesting schedules, upgrades to
logging infrastructure, the use of adaptable harvesting and transportation equipment and techniques,
and changes in silvicultural methods. Such changes could increase forest management costs and, in
some cases, may require substantial capital investments in infrastructure, equipment and training.
Forest managers should use economic models to estimate the costs of implementing versus not
implementing adaptation actions.
Institutional considerations. Coping with climate change in the forest sector will require adjusting
institutional structures and arrangements. This includes defining adequate national policy and
legislative frameworks and assigning and coordinating responsibilities within the governance
structures of countries and regions. Mechanisms are needed to ensure that information on new
policies is disseminated and understood. This will facilitate iterative planning through participatory,
integrated approaches and strong stakeholder engagement, especially on landscape-scale
management actions. Institutions and decision-making must remain flexible in order to deal with the
uncertainties of potential impacts of climate change.
6.3. A guiding framework for mitigation actions (FAO, 2013, p.55)
Climate change mitigation actions in the land-use sectors fall into two broad categories: reducing
GHG emissions by sources (reducing emissions), and increasing GHG removals by sinks
(increasing removals of GHGs from the atmosphere).

7. Forest resilience, biodiversity, and climate change (Thompson, Mackey, McNulty,

Mosseler, 2009)
7.1. The relationships among biodiversity, productivity and function, and resilience and
stability.
There is a fundamental relationship among biodiversity, production, and resilience and stability in
forests and that this relationship is important with respect to adaptive management in forests under
climate change. Here we consider climate, weather conditions, soil parent material as extrinsic
(exogenous) physical inputs to terrestrial ecosystems and the role of species as intrinsic
(endogenous) to ecosystem functioning. There is considerable ongoing debate over the role that
biodiversity plays in ecosystem function and stability owing to the highly complex nature of the
relationships among species and the synergistic roles of extrinsic factors and intrinsic factors,
including genetic factors, in ecosystems (see e.g., Waide et al. 1999, Kinzig et al. 2001, Loreau et
al. 2002) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Nevertheless, in the absence of
biodiversity there would be no ecosystems and no functioning. Further, there is evidence that
complex forest ecosystems are more productive than less diverse ones (under the same conditions)
(e.g., Phillips et al. 1994) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, and generally that
forest systems comprised of few species are highly prone to various catastrophes including disease
and invasion (Scherer- Lorenzen et al. 2005) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler,
2009.
7.1.1. Theoretical background
The relationship between diversity and productivity is variable (Waide et al. 1999) cited by
Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009 and dependent on the scale considered (Chase and
Leibold 2002) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Much of the work done to
understand the relationship between species diversity, ecosystem processes, and production has
necessarily been done in highly controlled low-diversity systems at small scales, especially using
grasses (e.g., Tilman and Downing 1994, Tilman et al. 1996, Hector et al. 1999, Hector 2002) cited
by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, or in other controlled systems (e.g., Naeem et al.
1995) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Few studies have examined more
connected systems with multiple trophic levels and complex production webs, such as forests, nor
have they considered larger scales. In particular, two main competing hypotheses have been
identified to predict the relationship between biodiversity and productivity in ecosystems: the niche
complementarity hypothesis (Tilman et al. 1996, Tilman and Lehman 2001) cited by Thompson,
Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, and the sampling effect hypothesis (Aarssen 1997, Doak et al.
1998) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009.
7.1.2. Evidence of a diversity productivity relationship in forests
Testing the theories of the relationship between diversity, productivity, and resilience in forests is
difficult owing to the inability to control either extrinsic or intrinsic variables within these complex
ecosystems. Furthermore, niche partitioning is well known in forests (e.g., Leigh et al. 2004,
Pretzsch 2005) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, with many uncomplicated
examples such as tap and diffuse rooting systems, shade tolerant and canopy species, and xeric and
hydric species. Some confounding effects also affecting production in forests include successional
stage, site differences, and history of management (Vila et al. 2005) cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Species mixtures change with successional stage in forests, from those
rapidly-growing species favouring open canopy environments to those capable of reproducing and
surviving in a more shaded canopy environment. Various plant species are adapted to site types that
are defined by soils, topography, and moisture levels, but opportunistically may be found across a
range of sites. Many forests, including most temperate forests, have undergone many direct
anthropogenic-related changes and so an understanding of community structure must be in the
context of the human history related to the stand.
7.1.2.1. Diversity-productivity relationships and forest resilience
Stone et al. (1996) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, concluded that more
productive ecosystems are more resilient than less productive ones, and hence recover more rapidly
from disturbances. Functional diversity in forests is related to production in the ecosystem (Chapin
et al. 1997, Diaz and Cabido 2003), cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, and
many species in forests appear to be redundant in terms of total production (Pretzche 2005).
Redundancy, which is also referred to as the insurance hypothesis (Naeem 1998, Yachi and Loreau
1999), cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, appears to be a common and
important trait in most forest systems, contributing to their resilience following various
disturbances, protecting against effects of species loss, or responding to environmental change. For
example, several tree species have been lost, or substantially reduced in abundance, in temperate
forest ecosystems, with little or no loss of productivity in that broad forest system (e.g., Pretzsch
2005), cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, suggesting compensation by other
species. Therefore, the redundancy provided resilience in terms of maintaining productivity in the
face of species loss. Redundancy can also confer system resilience and/or resistance in response to
the impact of disease and pests (see below: Jactel et al. 2005, Pautasso et al. 2005) cited by
Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. The resilience that redundancy provides in
maintaining system productivity in response to species loss, disease and pests, may not necessarily
compensate for other ecosystem goods and services. For example, loss of a particular species that
had specific cultural or economic importance would mean a less valuable forest (e.g., Hooper et al.
2005) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Furthermore, there may not
necessarily be redundancy for certain functional species, such as nitrogen-fixers, and their loss
would then have consequences for ecosystem processes (Brown et al. 2001).
7.1.3. Diversity and stability
For a system to have resilience, the state of interest (e.g., the mature forest type) must be stable over
a certain time period. Considerable research has explored the concept that species diversity
enhances stability, defined as variation within defined bounds (time and space) or dynamic
equilibrium, in ecosystem processes in response to environmental change (e.g., Loreau 2000,
Hughes et al. 2002) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. The relationship
between diversity and stability is complex and may resist generalization. Confusion over this issue
stems from debate over whether stability refers to individual populations within ecosystems or the
stability of ecosystems and their processes. For example, relatively recent work has suggested that
as diversity increases, stability within individual population declines (e.g., Moffat 1996, Tilman and
Lehman 2001) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Ecosystems respond to
environmental change through functional compensation, or the dynamic capacity of systems to
maintain production, even though levels of output among individual species may change (e.g.,
Loreau 2000). This concept is closely linked to that of functional redundancy in diverse ecosystems
(Naeem 1998, Yachi and Loreau 1999) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009.
Dynamic responses in diverse ecosystems that maintain stability to environmental change over time
may occur at genetic, species, or population levels. There appears to be low variability among
ecosystem properties in response to change in diverse systems compared to those systems with low
diversity, where higher variance is observed (Hooper et al. 1995, Ives et al. 1999, Lehman and
Tilman 2000, Hughes et al. 2002) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009.
7.2. Resilience, biodiversity, and forest carbon dynamics.
The ecosystem service of most current interest to the international community is the role of forests
in carbon sequestration and storage. This section considers the questions: 1.) how important to
regulating atmospheric greenhouse gases is the carbon sequestered and stored by terrestrial forest
ecosystems; and 2.) in what ways does biodiversity confer resilience on this ecosystem process?
7.2.1. Forests and the global carbon cycle
The main reservoirs of carbon are fossil fuel reserves, the atmosphere, oceans, ocean sediment, and
terrestrial ecosystems. The biospheric flux and storage in terrestrial ecosystems and oceans is a
highly significant component of the carbon cycle. Terrestrial ecosystems currently store about 2,400
Gt C and have an annual gross carbon exchange with the atmosphere of some 200 Gt C (IPCC
2002) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. About 50% of terrestrial carbon
stocks reside in forest ecosystems (biomass living and dead, both above and below ground; and soil
carbon) (FAO 2000, IPCC 2002), cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, with
much of the remainder in peatlands and wetlands. About half the world’s forests have been
converted to agriculture and other land uses (Ravindranath et al. 2008) cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009; as have substantial areas of other carbon dense ecosystem types.
Therefore, given this conversion and emissions associated with degradation, the current terrestrial
stock of ~2,400 Gt is possibly about 40% below the natural reservoir when at equilibrium with
current climate.
7.2.2. Biodiversity and resilience of forest-carbon dynamics
At the global scale, the role of biodiversity in the resilience of forest-carbon dynamics is evidenced
by the specialized species that have evolved and characterize the distinctive forest ecosystems
found in the major climatic and forest domains – tropical, temperate, and boreal. Over time,
evolution results in new plant traits, which through the filter of natural selection, and aided by
ecological processes such as dispersal, result in forests comprising species that function optimally
under the climatic conditions and disturbance regimes prevalent in each domain.
7.3. Case studies of forest resilience and comparisons under climate change by forest
biome.
Forests are all variously driven by disturbances, whether the disturbance is in the form of minor
blowdown events at a scale of <1 ha or landscapealtering wildfires affecting hundreds of thousands
of hectares. Species that occur in these systems must necessarily be adapted to such changes
because they recur over time and space and individual species adaptations to disturbance types are
legion. Some forest ecosystems that have been disturbed by humans may exhibit engineering
resilience, or equilibrium dynamics, to the disturbances under many conditions in all forest biomes
(Attiwill 1994, Drever et al. 2006, Phillips et al. 2006, Norden et al. 2009) cited by Thompson,
Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. However, any ecosystem may change states when disturbed by
a novel and/or severe disturbance, under altered interval time between disturbances, or with
multiple simultaneous disturbances. Climate change may present such a serious challenge to the
resilience of forest ecosystems globally.
7.3.1. Boreal forest biome
The circumpolar boreal biome occurs across North America, Europe and Asia and has 33% of the
Earth’s forested area. Boreal forests are characterized by a small number of common tree species,
any of which may dominate over a vast area (Mooney et al. 1996) cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Annual temperature ranges from -5 to 5oC with annual precipitation
ranging from 300-1500 mm. The mean maximum of the warmest month is 10 oC. Forests in the
boreal biome are relatively young, assembling after the quaternary ice ages, and so may be <7000
years old (Liu 1990). Boreal forests are primarily driven by disturbance at landscape scales where,
depending on the moisture conditions, fire interval ranges from 50-500+ years (Johnson 1992, Li
2000) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009 and several major insect pests are
chronic to regularly epidemic (Drever et al. 2006, Soja et al. 2007) cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. As a result, boreal forests are highly ecologically resilient under current
conditions because the species in these systems are adapted to recover following regular
disturbances. The boreal forest biome is predicted to undergo the greatest increase in temperature
under climate change scenarios (IPCC 2007) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler,
2009. Using global climate change scenarios ‘growth’ (>+4-5oC) and ‘stable’ (+2-3oC), Fischlin et
al. (2009) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009 and Sitch et al. (2003) cited by
Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, reported predicted broad gains northward for boreal
forest distribution, although with conversion of boreal forests to temperate forests and grasslands at
southern and central areas of Canada and Russia. Soja et al. (2007) cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, summarized the greatest increase in temperature under climate change
scenarios (IPCC 2007) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Using global
climate change scenarios ‘growth’ (>+4-5oC) and ‘stable’(+2-3oC), Fischlin et al. (2009) cited by
Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009 and Sitch et al. (2003) cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, reported predicted broad gains northward for boreal forest distribution,
although with conversion of boreal forests to temperate forests and grasslands at southern and
central areas of Canada and Russia. Soja et al. (2007) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty,
Mosseler, 2009, summarized published predicted changes for the boreal forest as: increased fire,
increased infestation, northward expansion, and altered stand composition and structure.
7.3.2. Temperate forest biome
Southern European forests tend to be dry and driven over the long term by fire and over the short
term by blowdown (Schelhaas et al. 2003) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009.
As climates warm, the prediction is for fire to increase in some of these forests, especially in the
Mediterranean area (Milne and Ouijen 2005, Dios et al. 2007) cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. As a result, Morales et al. (2007) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty,
Mosseler, 2009, suggested that there will be a net loss of forest area and of total carbon from these
systems. As the forests burn, more will likely change states to savannahs or grasslands suggesting
little habitat resilience. Similarly, Lindroth et al. (2009) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty,
Mosseler, 2009 suggested that increasing blowdown will reduce overall production in temperate
forests.
Although temperate deciduous forests are the most widely distributed of the temperate forest type,
there are other temperate forest types such as the Mediterranean Forest. While high moisture
characterizes many areas of the temperate forest biome, the Mediterranean area is an especially dry
temperate system as illustrated in the following case-study. Like moist conifer forests,
Mediterranean forests have a dry period during the summer months. However, Mediterranean
forests are more similar to dry conifer forests with regard to total annual precipitation. The
combination of precipitation is concentrated in winter, and totals
 7.3.3. Tropical forests
Most evidence suggests that tropical forests may not be resilient to climate change over the long
term, primarily owing to a predicted reduction in rainfall and increased drought (IPCC 2007, Malhi
et al. 2009) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. In the short term, evidence
suggests a positive effect of CO2 fertilization on tropical forest production as a result of present
climate change (Boisvenue and Running 2006, Lewis et al. 2009), cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, although importantly this has involved some changes in species
composition, indicating resilience to current change. Future capacity of these forests to maintain
this service is highly uncertain (Cramer et al. 2004) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty,
Mosseler, 2009, as a result of altered moisture regimes possibly leading to increased fire and
drought (e.g., Malhi et al. 2009) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Loss of
tropical forests will have consequences for global hydrology, among other consequences of global
relevance (Fischlin et al. 2009) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009.
7.3.4. Summary among forest biomes
All forest types will undergo some change as a result of altered climate conditions; some of these
changes are already occurring but widespread change is expected over the next 50-100 years (e.g.,
Alcamo et al. 2007, Fischlin et al. 2009) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009.
From the case-studies, it is clear that some forests are considerably more vulnerable (less resilient)
than others as a result of altered disturbance regimes that are predicted under climate change. This is
especially the case for forests where previously rarely-seen disturbances will become more
common, such as fire in rainforests. In some cases, even ecological resilience will be overcome and
forests are expected to change states to non-forest or savannah (IPCC 2007), cited by Thompson,
Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009, as has happened in many areas previously, such as the northern
Sahara area of Africa (Kröpelin et al. 2008). In many cases, forests will change states, however, at
least among most boreal and some temperate forests, ecological resilience is expected. In many
tropical forests, however, many rainforests may become dry tropical forests with reduced carbon
storage capacity (case-studies, Fischlin et al. 2009) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty,
Mosseler, 2009. The diversity in these tropical regions suggests that some form of forest will
continue to exist even with severe disturbance, but that many of the functions will change owing to
the lack of resilience and new states, in general, will produce considerably less goods and services
while supporting less biodiversity than at present.
7.4. Ecological principles to foster forest ecosystem resilience and stability under climate
change.
The capacity to conserve, sustainably use and restore forests rests on our understanding and
interpretation of pattern and process at several scales, the recognition of thresholds, and the ability
to translate knowledge into appropriate management actions in an adaptive manner (Frelich and
Reich 1998, Gauthier et al. 2008) cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Caring
for forests in ways that maintain their diversity and resilience is being made even more complex
owing to climate change (e.g., Chapin et al. 2007, Kellomaki et al. 2008) cited by Thompson,
Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. The following as ecological principles can be employed to
maintain and enhance longterm forest resilience, especially under climate change (e.g., Thompson
et al. 2002, Fischer et al. 2006, Millar et al. 2007, Innes et al. 2009) cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009:
1. Maintain genetic diversity in forests through practices that do not select only certain trees
for harvesting based on site, growth rate, or form, or practices that depend only on certain
genotypes (clones) for planting (see e.g., Schaberg et al. 2008), cited by Thompson, Mackey,
McNulty, Mosseler, 2009.
2. Maintain stand and landscape structural complexity using natural forests as models and
benchmarks.
3. Maintain connectivity across forest landscapes by reducing fragmentation, recovering lost
habitats (forest types), and expanding protected area networks (see 8. below).
4. Maintain functional diversity (and redundancy) and eliminate conversion of diverse natural
forests to monotypic or reduced species plantations.
5. Reduce non-natural competition by controlling invasive species and reduce reliance on non-
native tree crop species for plantation, afforestation, or reforestation projects.
6. Reduce the possibility of negative outcomes by apportioning some areas of assisted
regeneration with trees from regional provenances and from climates of the same region that
approximate expected conditions in the future.
7. Maintain biodiversity at all scales (stand, landscape, bioregional) and of all elements
(genetic, species, community) and by taking specific actions including protecting isolated or
disjunct populations of organisms, populations at margins of their distributions, source
habitats and refugia networks. These populations are the most likely to represent pre-
adapted gene pools for responding to climate change and could form core populations as
conditions change.
8. Ensure that there are national and regional networks of scientifically designed,
comprehensive, adequate, and representative protected areas (Margules and Pressey 2000)
cited by Thompson, Mackey, McNulty, Mosseler, 2009. Build these networks into national
and regional planning for large-scale landscape connectivity.
 8. FAO, Forests and climate change: working with countries to mitigate and adapt to
climate change through sustainable forest management (FAO, 162)
Forests support the livelihoods of more than a billion people living in extreme poverty worldwide
and provide paid employment for over 100 million people. They are home to more than 80 percent
of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity and help protect watersheds that are critical for the supply of
clean water to most of humanity. Climate change, however, poses enormous challenges for forests
and people. Adaptation and mitigation are the two main responses to climate change, mitigation
seeking to address its causes and adaptation aiming to reduce its impacts. In the forest sector:
 mitigation strategies comprise reducing emissions from deforestation; reducing emissions
from forest degradation; increasing the role of forests as carbon sinks; and product
substitution, such as using wood instead of fossil fuels for energy and forest products in
place of materials whose manufacture involves high greenhouse gas emissions;
 adaptation encompasses interventions to decrease the vulnerability of forests and forest-
dependent people to climate change.
Deploying sustainable forest management (SFM)1 can not only lessen the risks posed by climate
change, it can generate opportunities, such as employment in forest restoration, forest conservation,
wood production and wood-based manufacturing; tenure reform; and payments for forest-related
services. Encouraging SFM and optimizing its role in climate change mitigation and adaptation will
often require changes in policies, strategies and practices. Delay in making such changes will
increase their cost and difficulty and reduce the opportunities they may create.
Trees also play critical roles in land-use systems other than forests, such as agriculture and the
urban environment. Integrated landscape management is a key approach in climate change
adaptation and mitigation and will help ensure that adequate attention is paid to trees outside
forests.
8.1. FAO’s role
Working at the forefront of climate change policy and practice, FAO, with its team of more than 150
forestry professionals, supports countries to raise awareness, strengthen technical capacity and
create enabling policy environments. Recognizing that climate change affects us all, FAO also
promotes collaboration among the forestry, agriculture, fisheries and energy sectors and between
climate change and food security policy-makers. In addressing the issues associated with forests and
climate change, FAO works with many partners – far too numerous to list here – at the global,
regional, national and local levels.
8.2. Strengthening capacities in climate change
The capacity of the forest sector to respond to climate change varies greatly within and across
regions, countries and communities. Practitioners and decision-makers are not always equipped
with the tools, or have access to the information and resources, to enable the most effective
responses to a changing climate. FAO is helping to build the capacity of countries to respond to
climate change by:
 collecting, analysing and disseminating information to countries and stakeholders through a
wide range of publications, a monthly electronic newsletter dedicated to forests and climate
change, and the FAO website;
 developing guidelines and convening workshops to disseminate best practices and exchange
experiences;
 implementing projects to build climate change capacity at the national and local levels;
 providing training materials on forests and climate change;
 encouraging and supporting regional cooperation and networks for information exchange.
8.3. Monitoring and assessment of forests and climate change
8.4. Management planning and practices: best practices for climate change
8.4.1. Best practices for climate change
Climate change could affect the growth of trees and the frequency and intensity of fires and the
incidence of forest pests, and it could increase damage caused to forests by extreme weather
conditions such as drought, floods and storms. Adaptive approaches to SFM will help to reduce
forest vulnerability, maintain forest productivity and foster the adaptive capacity of forestdependent
communities. Specific management practices can also be adopted to help mitigate climate change.
The implications of changes to forest management practices for the full suite of forest values need
to be weighed against the likely benefits.
8.4.2. Forests, trees outside forests, and disaster risk management
Forestry interventions can play a crucial role in the mitigation of, and long-term rehabilitation in the
wake of, disasters, the frequency of which could increase in the face of climate change. For
example:
 flooding: restoring damaged forest ecosystems or re-establishing forest cover where it has
been cleared will increase protection against future floods;
 landslides: re-establishing or increasing forest cover on steep lands that have been affected
by landslides will reduce the risk of future landslides; ’
 storm surges: coastal forests (mangroves and other coastal forests) can help protect coastal
inhabitants, infrastructure and productive land against storm surges.
The forest sector can also assist in emergency situations by, for example, undertaking salvage
logging of damaged trees; providing wood for cooking, repairs and the construction of temporary
housing for disaster victims; and generating employment in tree nurseries and planting schemes.
8.4.3. Forest biodiversity and climate change
Biodiversity encompasses the variety of existing life forms, the ecological roles they perform and
the genetic diversity they contain. It is the key to forest ecosystem resilience and the adaptation of
forest species to climate change, and it will also underpin the role of forests in mitigating climate
change. The continued loss of biodiversity, however, weakens the ability of forest ecosystems to
respond to change. Inadequate information and knowledge on the conservation and sustainable use
of biodiversity in the context of climate change is an obstacle to identifying issues, needs and
priorities for action.
8.4.4. Integrated landscape approaches in response to climate change
Challenges related to climate change, deforestation, ecosystem degradation, desertification, the loss
of biodiversity, food insecurity and poverty call for integrated approaches to landscape management
that increase synergies among multiple land-use objectives. In practice, however, the management
of forests is often dealt with in relative isolation. There is a clear need – and real scope – for the
integration of natural resource management through improved multisectoral land-use planning,
especially in the face of climate change. Integrated approaches to landscape management can
increase synergies among multiple land-use objectives, may require new policies, investments,
market incentives, institutions and capacities, and should consider the perspectives, needs and
interests of all stakeholders and sectors.
8.5. Policy and governance.
8.5.1. Integrating climate change into national forest policy frameworks.
To ensure an efficient and coherent policy approach to forests and climate change, policy-makers
need to integrate climate change strategies and plans with national forest policy frameworks and
other sectors that affect forests. Equally importantly, forest-based adaptation and mitigation
priorities should be reflected in national climate change strategies. Several countries have identified
the need for legal reform to implement national strategies on REDD+, and forestry institutions may
need to strengthen their structures, operations and capacities. Other major processes with
implications for the management and governance of forests, such as those related to forest law
enforcement, governance and trade (FLEGT), should also be taken into account. FAO is supporting
the integration of climate change considerations into national forest programmes and national forest
policy frameworks and the development of national response strategies to mitigate the impacts of
climate change on forests by:
 publishing Climate change for forest policy-makers, providing an approach for integrating
climate change into national forest programmes in support of SFM, which countries can
adapt to national circumstances;
 convening regional and national workshops to facilitate discussion between stakeholders on
how to address the impact of climate change on forests and helping to initiate national forest
 policy reviews or revisions to integrate climate change, with the support of the Sustainable
Forest Management in a Changing Climate Programme and the former National Forest
Programme Facility (now the Forest & Farm Facility);
 supporting countries to strengthen the capacity of forestry institutions to enable them to
better follow up on changed policies and strategies and to respond more effectively to
climate change;
 through the European Union (EU)-FAO FLEGT Programme, supporting developing
countries to improve policy, legal and regulatory frameworks for addressing illegal logging
and related trade;
 supporting the integration of REDD+ and FLEGT actions into national forest policy
frameworks and facilitating activities that can strengthen coordination and synergies
between these two processes, an initiative involving the UN-REDD Programme and the EU-
FAO FLEGT Programme.
8.5.2. Forest tenure, and governance assessment and monitoring.
The success of forest-based climate change adaptation and mitigation in countries depends largely
on the quality of forest governance. A widely accepted, comprehensive framework for identifying
areas to be addressed and monitoring the results of corresponding responses would facilitate and
harmonize efforts to improve forest governance. Since conditions vary widely, systems for forest
governance assessment and monitoring need to be tailored for each country, taking into account a
range of other forest-related governance issues, including forest law enforcement. Many countries
have also identified the need to address tenure, which cuts across the various land-use sectors.
Therefore, integrated approaches to the governance of tenure are needed. FAO is helping to improve
forest governance for climate change adaptation and mitigation by:
 through the Sustainable Forest Management in a Changing Climate Programme, supporting
countries to integrate the monitoring of forest governance with national forest-related
monitoring systems;
 strengthening the capacity of countries to implement forest-tenure reforms that guarantee the
rights of local communities to own, manage and benefit from forest resources.
8.5.3. Forests, livelihoods and food security in a changing climate.
Forests are often critically important to the food insecure because they are one of the most
accessible productive natural resources available to them. Forests and trees outside forests improve
the resilience of people to climate change by acting as a protective resource and a safety net and
thus mitigating calamities. Small-scale forestbased enterprises can increase rural income and the
resilience of rural communities to climate change, and they can also respond quickly to local
climate change with adaptive approaches to SFM. FAO is helping to create an enabling
environment for climate-resilient livelihoods and food security by:
 deepening the understanding by stakeholders of the importance of forests, trees and
agroforestry systems for the food security, nutrition and livelihoods of rural people and
encouraging intersectoral collaboration; ’
 supporting countries in the development of forest policies and climate change strategies that
acknowledge and strengthen the role of forests and trees in improving local livelihoods and
food security as a response to climate change;
 integrating forests and trees into climate-smart agriculture strategies to encourage
intersectoral approaches for achieving the “triple win” of adaptation, mitigation and food
security;
 supporting countries to embrace participatory and inclusive approaches that ensure increased
tenure rights, responsibilities and control over the management and use of forests by local
communities, smallholders, indigenous groups and families in a gender-balanced way;
 documenting the knowledge gained from successful experiences in the formulation and
implementation of policies and strategies for rural development and natural resource
management and adaptation to a changing climate, for example in Latin America and the
Caribbean; ’
 promoting the development of community-based forest enterprises, including by improving
capacities for the development and management of small and medium forest enterprises and
through normative work such as Guidelines for institutionalizing and implementing
community-based forest management in sub-Saharan Africa;
 supporting the establishment of forest producer organizations and their resilience in the face
of changing opportunities created by, and challenges posed by, climate change, including
through the Forest Connect alliance.
8.6. Forest products, services and industry.
8.6.1. Forest products
Forests have always provided a multitude of products, but their role in mitigating climate change
has gone largely unnoticed. Wood-based products are made of raw materials derived from the
photosynthesis of trees and therefore enable renewable and low-carbon cycles of production and
consumption and the long-term storage of carbon in useful wood products. The forest products
industry faces a challenge, however, in convincing people that wood products are better for the
climate and the environment than products based on non-renewable minerals and fossil fuels. FAO
is helping to promote the role of forest products and industry in climate change responses by:
 supporting the development of sustainable forest industries;
  collecting, analysing and disseminating wood energy statistics and information;
 supporting countries in fossil-fuel substitution through the modernization and efficient use
of woodfuel, including by convening marketing workshops and conducting economic
analyses of markets for processed woodfuel.
8.6.2. Finance, markets and economics.
Economic viability is an important factor that must be considered in any measures to promote
climate change benefits in the forest sector. In particular, investments in climate change mitigation
and adaptation in forestry have to demonstrate favourable returns when compared to alternative
investments in both forestry and other climaterelated interventions. The impacts of climate change,
as well as mitigation and adaptation measures, also need to be considered in the wider context of
existing investments in forestry and the forest industries and the markets for forest products and
services. FAO and its partners are assisting countries to assess the financial, economic and market
impacts of climate change and climate change policies by:
 supporting policy development and capacity-building on forest financing at the global,
regional and national levels through activities such as
> the Organization-led Initiative on Forest Financing
> the Heads of Forestry Dialogue on Forest Financing
> the Asia-Pacific Forest Policy Think Tank
> the integration of climate change funding into national forest financing strategies
> helping communities to access forest-related voluntary carbon markets;
 producing studies on the impacts of climate change policies on trade and markets, including
> Bioenergy development: issues and impacts for poverty and natural resource management (with
the World Bank)
> The forest-sector carbon markets chapter in the Forest products annual market review (a
UNECEFAO annual publication)
> European forest sector outlook study II (with UNECE)
> An assessment of the potential impacts of forest product legality regulations and REDD+ on
forest products
 analysing the costs and benefits of storing carbon in wood products compared to other
forest-related mitigation options (such as wood energy development and REDD+) to see
where the promotion of wood products would be feasible and would make a costeffective
contribution to climate change mitigation efforts in the forest sector.

9. Forestry for a low-carbon future: integrating forests and wood products in climate
change strategies (FAO, 2016)
Forests are at the heart of the transition to low-carbon economies. Forests and forest products have a
key role to play in mitigation and adaptation, not only because of their double role as sink and
source of emissions, but also through the potential for wider use of wood products to displace more
fossil fuel intense products. Indeed, a virtuous cycle can be enacted in which forests increase
removals of carbon from the atmosphere while sustainable forest management and forest products
contribute to enhanced livelihoods and a lower carbon footprint.
9.1. Mitigation in the forest sector (FAO, 2016, p.9)
9.1.1. Forestry in the climate change framework
9.1.2. Mitigation potential in the forest sector
9.1.3. Finance options for forest-sector mitigation
9.1.4. Key messages: forest-sector mitigation
9.2. Expanding forest and tree cover (FAO, 2016, p.29)
9.2.1. Mitigation potential of afforestation and reforestation and trees outside forests
9.2.2. Economic feasibility
9.2.3. Bottlenecks in harnessing potentials
9.2.4. Embracing opportunities
9.2.5. Key messages: expanding forest and tree cover
9.3. Reducing deforestation and preventing forest loss through REDD+.(FAO, 2016, p.41)
9.3.1. Mitigation potential of reducing forest loss
9.3.2. Economic feasibility
9.3.3. Bottlenecks in harnessing potentials
9.3.4. Embracing opportunities
9.3.5. Key messages: REDD+
9.4. Changing forest management practices (FAO, 2016, p.51)
9.4.1. Improved harvesting
9.4.2. Rotation length and mitigation
9.4.3. Better management of pests and diseases
9.4.4. Improving fire management
9.4.5. Management of the soil carbon pool
9.4.6. Key messages: forest management
9.5. Improving and using wood energy (FAO, 2016, p.69)
9.5.1. From traditional use to biorefineries
9.5.2. Potential of using wood energy for mitigation
9.5.3. Economic feasibility
9.5.4. Bottlenecks in harnessing potentials
 9.5.5. Embracing opportunities
9.5.6. Key messages: wood energy
9.6. Promoting the use of wood for greener building and furnishing (FAO, 2016, p.87)
9.6.1. Trends in wood use
9.6.2. Mitigation potential of wood use in building and furnishing
9.6.3. Bottlenecks in harnessing potentials
9.6.4. Embracing opportunities
9.6.5. Key messages: wood in green building and furnishing

10. Climate Change Science and Modeling: What You Need to Know
10.1. Climate Change Science and Modeling: What You Need to Know
Climate Change Science and Modeling: What You Need to Know is the first education module in a
series of three. It gives a brief overview of the climate system, greenhouse gases, climate models,
current climate change impacts, and future projections (Water and Climate, Temperature Trends,
Milankovitch Cycle, Greenhouse Gas Causes, Main Greenhouse Gauses, Greenhouse Effect,
Concentrations, Carbon Cycle, Regional Observations, General Circulation Models, Uncertainty,
Emissions Scenarios, Projections, Activity). There is a 14-question activity at the end of the module,
and users who complete the activity will receive a printable certificate with their name and the date
completed (Climate Change Resource Center. USDA Forest Service:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/ccrc/education/climate-change-science-and-modeling).
By the end of Climate Change Science and Modeling, users should know:
 The three adaptation options: resistance, resilience, and transition
 Main greenhouse gases contributing to climate change
 How the greenhouse effect works
 The flow of carbon through the carbon cycle
 Examples of climate change impacts by region
 The components of climate models and the uncertainty associated with models
 Emissions scenarios storylines and representative concentration pathways
 Examples of projected future climate impacts
The Climate Change Science and Modeling activity will help users gain an understanding of:
 Historic temperature changes in their region
 Projected temperature changes by mid-century and the end of the century for their region
 Current and projected impacts in their region
 General differences between high and low emissions scenario projections
 10.2. Reviewing the Science and Implementation of Climate Change Adaptation Measures
in European Forestry (Kolström, Lindner, et.al. 2011).
Developing adaptation measures in forestry is an urgent task because the forests regenerated today
will have to cope with climate conditions that may drastically change during the life of the trees in
the stand. The adaptation measures include responses to both risks and opportunities created by
climate change and address all stages of forestry operations. Measures targeted to reduce
vulnerability to climate change may either aim to reduce forest sensitivity to adverse climate change
impacts or increase adaptive capacity to cope with the changing environmental conditions.
Adaptation measures mitigating drought and fire risk such as selection of more drought resistant
species and genotypes are crucial. For adaptation to be successful it is of the utmost importance to
disseminate the knowledge of suitable adaptation measures to all decision makers from the practice
to the policy level. The analysis of the ECHOES (Expected Climate Change and Options for
European Silviculture) database demonstrates that this challenge is well recognized in many
European countries. Uncertainty about the full extent of climate change impacts and the suitability
of adaptation measures creates a need for monitoring and further research. A better understanding of
how to increase adaptive capacity is also needed, as well as regional vulnerability assessments
which are crucial for targeting planned adaptation measures.
10.2.1. Adaptation options in forestry
10.2.1.1. Stand Level Adaptation Options (Forest Regeneration; Tending,
Thinning and Harvesting).
10.2.1.2. Adaptation Options Beyond the Stand Level (Forest Management
Planning; Pest and Diseases and Disturbance Risk Management;
Infrastructure and Transporting).
10.2.1.3. Adaptation Options at the Policy Level
10.3. Registries and research: climate change mitigation and forestry in the United States
(Tuttle & Andrasko, 2005)
The United States has actively pursued a technology- and project-based approach to addressing
greenhouse gas emissions since the climate change issue emerged prominently around 1990. This
approach has been dually driven by greenhouse gas reduction projects developed by electric utility
companies and the private sector, and by research on emission reduction and sequestration
conducted by federal government agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
As a result, climate change mitigation activities in the United States focus on: • emerging voluntary
greenhouse gas reduction and registry programmes that record emission reductions by companies
and other entities; • research on advanced technologies in energy and other sectors to reduce
emissions and increase carbon sequestration (both geologic and terrestrial); • sectoral initiatives for
voluntary commitments to reduce emissions from an entire sector (e.g. the aluminium and forest
products sectors). Efforts to advance climate change mitigation in the United States are
consequently highly diverse, decentralized and experimental, featuring learning by doing. A wide
range of players, including states (e.g. California, Oregon and Washington), several major cities
(e.g. Seattle, Washington; Salt Lake City, Utah; Portland, Oregon), private companies, trade
associations (e.g. the American Forest and Paper Association), NGOs, federal agencies and sectoral
partnerships are actively engaged in greenhouse gas mitigation efforts at all scales and in various
sectors, including forestry.
10.3.1. Forestry and carbon stock trends in the united states
The United States comprises a vast forest estate of about 226 million hectares of forest land (FAO,
2001) and is both a major world exporter and importer of forest products. The federal government
has ownership and management responsibility for about one-third of United States forest land, with
two-thirds owned by state, local and private entities. The Forest Service of the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA-FS) is the primary agency charged with developing estimates of
forest carbon stock and flux (change in stocks) for the United States.
Forest carbon stocks will increasingly be affected as roads, homes and commercial centres displace
forest cover and photosynthetic sequestration (Best and Wayburn, 2001). Intensified management in
remaining production forests may compensate for lost timber volume, but this may require more
carbon-intensive inputs (e.g. advanced clonal seeding stock, fertilizer) and management (alternate
silvicultural treatments). The net outcome is still unclear, and these opposing forest trends over time
will be a key influence in the United States forest carbon budget.
10.3.2. A complex policy landscape: action on multiple levels
In official policy statements by the White House and State Department, the United States
Government has reaffirmed its commitment to UNFCCC and its central goal, to stabilize
atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations at a level that will prevent dangerous human
interference with the climate system. Since backing away from ratification of the Kyoto Protocol in
early 2001, the government has implemented a policy comprising three major approaches. First is
slowing the growth of greenhouse gas emissions. Second is laying the groundwork for current and
future actions by developing new greenhouse gas reducing technologies for the use of coal,
renewable energy sources, geosequestration (such as pumping CO2 gas into abandoned oil wells)
and others in a wide range of federally funded programmes. The third element is working with other
nations to develop an effective global response. The State Department and other federal agencies
have been pursuing bilateral climate change relationships and partnership initiatives with other
countries.
A number of individual departments are carrying out initiatives with implications for forestry. The
following are some examples: Department of Energy; Department of Agriculture; Environmental
Protection Agency; State-level initiatives; Increasing forestation. Regional efforts and carbon credit
exchange.
10.3.3. Issues in project approaches to mitigation and registries
Given the significant reliance on voluntary greenhouse gas reductions in the United States, many
entities have invested in the analysis of technical and policy issues surrounding emission offsets.
Key issues include baseline setting; establishing additionality of greenhouse gas benefits beyond
business as usual; leakage; permanence; and measurement, monitoring and verification
methodologies and precision. Addressing these issues will be a major challenge in the United States
for the coming years, as newly emerging programmes issue guidance, receive their first few years
of mitigation reports and assess if they have found a reasonable balance between rigour and
participation rates.

Glossary
What is forest management?
Forest management encompasses the administrative, economic, legal, social and technical measures
involved in the conservation, protection and use of natural and planted forests. It involves various
degrees of human intervention to safeguard forest ecosystems and their functions and resources for
the sustained production of goods and the provision of ecosystem services.
Who is a forest manager?
A forest manager is an individual or entity responsible for overseeing the management of forest
lands or the use and development of forest resources to meet specific objectives. Individual forest
managers may have formal education in forestry, equivalent qualifications or local knowledge, and
experience in forest-related matters.
Adaptation The adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic
stimuli or their effects, which moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities.
www.ipcc.ch/pdf/glossary/ar4-wg2.pdf
Adaptive capacity The ability of a system to adjust to climate change (including climate variability
and extremes), to moderate potential damage, to take advantage of opportunities, and to cope with
the consequences. www.ipcc.ch/pdf/glossary/ar4-wg2.pdf
Adaptive management The process by which research and learning is continuously incorporated in
management planning and practice. Specifically, the integration of design, management and
monitoring to systematically test assumptions in order to adapt and learn.
www.fao.org/agriculture/crops/core-themes/theme/spi/soil-biodiversity/initiatives/adaptive-
management/en/
Afforestation Establishment of forest through planting and/or deliberate seeding on land that, until
then, was not classified as forest. www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Agroforestry Traditional or modern land-use systems in which trees are managed together with
crops and/or animal production systems in agricultural settings. www.fao.org/forestry/9469/en/
Aquaculture systems The breeding and rearing of fish, shellfish, etc., or the growing of plants for
food in special ponds.www.ipcc.ch/ipccreports/tar/wg2/index.php?idp=689
Biodiversity The variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia,
terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are
part; this includes diversity within species, among species and of ecosystems.
www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Biodiversity conservation The designation of a forest area primarily for the conservation of
biodiversity. Includes, but is not limited to, areas designated for biodiversity conservation within a
protected area.www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Biofuel Fuel produced directly or indirectly from biomass such as fuelwood, charcoal, bioethanol,
biodiesel, biogas (methane) or biohydrogen. However, most people associate biofuel with liquid
biofuels (bioethanol, biodiesel and straight vegetable oil).
www.fao.org/fileadmin/templates/nr/sustainability_pathways/docs/Factsheet_BIOENERGY.pdf
Buffer zone An area between a core protected area and the surrounding landscape or seascape
which protects the network from potentially damaging external influences and which is essentially a
transitional area. www.cbd.int/doc/publications/cbd-ts-23.pdf
Carbon market A popular (but misleading) term for a trading system through which countries may
buy or sell units of GHG emissions in an effort to meet their national limits on emissions, either
under the Kyoto Protocol or under other agreements, such as that among member states of the
European Union. The term comes from the fact that CO2 is the predominant GHG, and other gases
are measured in units called “CO2 equivalents”. http://unfccc.int/essential_background/glossary/
items/3666.php
Carbon sink Any process, activity or mechanism which removes a GHG, an aerosol or a precursor
of a GHG from the atmosphere. Forests and other vegetation are considered sinks because they
remove CO2 through photosynthesis. http://unfccc.int/essential_background/convention/
background/items/2536.php
Climate change A change of climate that is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that
alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate
variability observed over comparable time periods.
http://unfccc.int/essential_background/convention/ background/items/2536.php
Deforestation The conversion of forest to other land use or the permanent reduction of the tree
canopy cover below the minimum 10 percent threshold.
www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Disturbance regime An environmental fluctuation and destructive event that disturbs forest health,
structure, and/or changes resources or physical environment at any given spatial or temporal scale.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/008/A0400E/A0400E00.pdf
Early-warning system A system of data collection and analysis to monitor people’s well-being
(including security), in order to provide timely notice when an emergency threatens and thus to
elicit an appropriate response. www.fao.org/ag/againfo/programmes/en/lead/alive_
toolkit/pages/pageD_whatEWS.html
Ecosystem service Ecological process or function having monetary or nonmonetary value to
individuals or society at large. www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg2/en/ annexessglossary-e-
o.html
Extreme weather event An event that is rare within its statistical reference distribution at a
particular place. An average of a number of weather events over time (e.g. rainfall over a season)
that is itself extreme. The characteristics of what is called extreme weather may vary from place to
place.
www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg2/en/ annexessglossary-e-o.html
Forest Land spanning more than 0.5 hectares with trees higher than 5 metres and a canopy cover of
more than 10 percent, or trees able to reach these thresholds in situ. Does not include land that is
predominantly under agricultural or urban land use. www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Forest carbon stock The quantity of carbon in a “pool”, meaning a reservoir or system that has the
capacity to accumulate or release carbon. Examples of carbon pools are: living biomass (including
aboveground and belowground biomass); dead organic matter (including dead wood and litter); and
soils (soil organic matter). ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/008/A0400E/A0400E00.pdf
Forest-dependent communities Communities of people living inside or near forests who are
directly reliant on forests for their livelihoods. Includes indigenous people and people from minority
ethnic groups. May also include people engaged in forest-based commercial activities such as
trapping, collecting minerals and logging. www.fao.org/docrep/w7732e/w7732e04.htm
Forest fragmentation Any process that results in the conversion of formerly continuous forest into
patches of forest separated by non-forested lands. www.cbd.int/forest/definitions.shtml
Forest management The administrative, economic, legal, social and technical measures involved
in the conservation, protection and use of natural and planted forests. Involves various degrees of
human intervention to safeguard a forest ecosystem and its functions and resources.
www.fao.org/docrep/w4345e/w4345e04.htm
Forest management plan Translates national or regional forest policies into a thoughtfully
prepared and well coordinated operational programme for a forest and for regulating forestry
activities for a set time period through the application of prescriptions that specify targets, action
and control arrangements. It is an indispensable part of a forest management system and should
regulate protection, inventory, yield determination, harvesting, silviculture, monitoring and other
forest operations.
www.fao.org/docrep/w8212e/w8212e00.htm
Forest management unit (FMU) A clearly demarcated area of land covered predominantly
(FMU) by forests, managed to a set of explicit objectives and according to a long-term forest
management plan. May vary in size from a fraction of a hectare to hundreds and even thousands of
hectares. May include subunits managed for differing goals.
www.fao.org/docrep/003/x6896e/x6896e0e.htm
Forest manager An individual or entity responsible for the planning, implementation and
monitoring of forest management measures.
Forest productivity The capacity of a forest to produce specific products (e.g. biomass, timber and
non-wood forest products) over time as influenced by the interaction of vegetative manipulation and
abiotic factors (e.g. soil and climate). www.termwiki.com/EN:forest_productivity
Global warming The recent and ongoing global average increase in temperature near the Earth’s
surface.
www.epa.gov/climatechange/glossary.html
Greenhouse gases (GHGs) Gaseous constituents of the atmosphere, both natural and
anthropogenic, that absorb and emit radiation at specific wavelengths within the spectrum of
infrared radiation emitted by the Earth’s surface, the atmosphere and clouds. This property causes
the greenhouse effect.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change The leading international body for the assessment
of climate change. Established by the United Nations Environment Programme and the World
Meteorological Organization in 1988 to provide the world with a clear scientific view on the current
state of knowledge on climate change and its potential environmental and socio-economic impacts.
www.ipcc.ch/organization/organization.shtml#.UYVTdaJHJuI
Invasive species Species that are non-native to a particular ecosystem and whose introduction and
spread in such an ecosystem cause, or are likely to cause, sociocultural, economic or environmental
harm, or harm to human health. www.fao.org/forestry/aliens/en/
Kyoto Protocol An international agreement that stands on its own, and requires separate ratification
by governments, but is linked to the UNFCCC. Among other things, it sets binding targets for the
reduction of GHG emissions by industrialized countries.
http://unfccc.int/essential_background/glossary/ items/3666.php
Landscape management The process of formulating, articulating and developing a set of strategies
geared to enhancing a specific landscape and improving the quality of human life, as part of a
sustainable development approach using the appropriate instruments and implementing the
programmes and actions set out in a landscape management project.
www.coe.int/t/dg4/cultureheritage/heritage/landscape/ reunionconf/6econference/CEP-
CDPATEP(2011)13_ en.pdf
Land-use change A change in the use or management of land by humans, which may lead to a
change in land cover. www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_appendix.pdf
Leakage The portion of cuts in GHG emissions by developed countries (countries trying to meet
mandatory limits under the Kyoto Protocol) that may reappear in other countries not bound by such
limits. http://unfccc.int/essential_background/glossary/items/3666.php#L
Mitigation A human intervention to reduce the sources or enhance the sinks of GHGs. Examples
include using fossil fuels more efficiently for industrial processes or electricity generation,
switching to solar energy or wind power, improving the insulation of buildings, and expanding
forests and other carbon sinks to remove greater amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere.
http://unfccc.int/essential_background/glossary/items/3666.php#L
Multiple use Forest area designated primarily for more than one purpose and where no single
purpose is considered as the predominant designated function.
www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Natural forest A forest composed of indigenous trees and not classified as planted forest.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/003/Y1997E/FRA%202000%20Main%20report.pdf
Payment for ecosystem services A voluntary transaction where a well-defined ecosystemservices
service (or a land-use likely to secure that service) is “bought” by a (minimum one) ecosystem
service buyer from a (minimum one) ecosystem service provider if and only if the ecosystem
service provider secures ecosystem service provision (conditionality).
www.cifor.org/publications/pdf_files/OccPapers/OP-42.pdf
Photosynthesis The process by which green plants, algae and some bacteria take CO2 from the air
(or bicarbonate from water) to build carbohydrates. www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-
report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_
appendix.pdf
Planted forest Forest composed predominantly of trees established through planting or deliberate
seeding. www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Production forest Forest designated primarily for the production of wood, fibre, bioenergy and/or
non-wood forest products. www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Protected area An area dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biodiversity, and of natural
and associated cultural resources, and managed through legal or other effective
means. www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and the role of conservation,
sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon (REDD+) An instrument
agreed by the UNFCCC to provide incentives to countries achieving verified emissions reductions
or atmospheric GHG removals through, forestry interventions.
http://unfccc.int/methods/redd/items/7377.php
Reforestation Re-establishment of forest through planting and/or deliberate seeding on land
classified as forest. www.fao.org/docrep/017/ap862e/ap862e00.pdf
Resilience The amount of change a system can undergo without changing state.
www.ipcc.ch/ipccreports/tar/wg2/index.php?idp=689
Risk assessment An impact assessment that considers the uncertainty associated with the
consequences of climate variability or climate change in a specific area of interest.
http://climatechange.worldbank.org/content/note-3-climate-risk-assessment-concepts-and-tools
Semi-natural forest Forest or other wooded land of native species, established through planting,
seeding or assisted natural regeneration. ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/008/A0400E/A0400E00.pdf
Silviculture The science and art of cultivating (such as growing and tending) forest crops.
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/008/j4290e/j4290e.pdf
Soil conservation The protection of soil from erosion and other types of deterioration so as to
maintain soil fertility and productivity. Generally includes watershed management and water use.
http://stats.oecd.org/glossary/detail.asp?ID=2502
Stakeholder dialogue An interactive, working communication process that involves all types of
stakeholders in decision-making and implementation efforts.
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EXTGOVACC/ Resources/MultiStakeholderweb.pdf
Substitution Any use of wood that replaces other inputs of production in providing an equivalent
service or function (e.g. using wood instead of fossil fuels or wood instead of non-wood materials).
www.cepe.ch/download/staff/reinhard/miti_substitution_paper_final.pdf
Sustainable forest management (SFM) A dynamic and evolving concept that aims to maintain
and enhance the economic, social and environmental values of all types of forests, for the benefit of
present and future generations. www.un.org/esa/forests/pdf/session_documents/unff7/
UNFF7_NLBI_draft.pdf
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) An international
agreement adopted on 9 May 1992 in New York and signed at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de
Janeiro by more than 150 countries and the European Community, with the ultimate objective of
achieving the “stabilization of GHG concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent
dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system”. www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-
report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_ appendix.pdf
Vulnerability The degree to which a system is susceptible to, or unable to cope with, adverse
effects of climate change, including climate variability and extremes. A function of the character,
magnitude and rate of climate variation to which a system is exposed, its sensitivity and its adaptive
capacity.
www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_ appendix.pdf
Vulnerability assessment An evaluation with three main goals: to identify the degree of future
risks induced by climate change and sea-level rise; to identify the key vulnerable sectors and areas
within a country; and to provide a sound basis for designing adaptation strategies and their
implementation.
www.ipcc.ch/ipccreports/tar/wg2/index.php?idp=636
Water conservation The control and management of subsurface drainage water, through, for
example, source reduction through sound irrigation water management; shallow water table
management; groundwater management; and land retirement.
www.fao.org/docrep/005/y4263e/y4263e08.htm
Wind erosion The movement of material by the wind, which occurs when the lifting power of
moving air is able to exceed the force of gravity and the friction that holds soil particles to the
surface (e.g. the movement of sand dunes). ftp://ftp.fao.org/agl/agll/docs/mmsoilc.pdf.
 FOREST AND PRODUCTION: SITE QUALITY AND FOREST GROWTH MODELLING
(WOOD PRODUCTION INCLUDED BIOMASS FOR ENERGY, BEST MANAGEMENT
PRACTICES)

Introduction
Simulation models and simulation systems are widely used to meet the challenges of forest science
and practice. Model- means image, representation, expression of the object. In the modern
interpretation of model - the study of the object by means of an experiment using computer
technology to the simulation model of the object. Simulation is performed to study the playback
system (the object) based on the results of analysis of the most significant relationships between its
components. Simulation computer models include a presentation of the system components and
their relationship in the form of the actual mathematical objects: formulas, equations, matrices,
logical procedures and in the form of charts, tables, databases, operational environmental
monitoring information. Such multivariate models allow us to combine the diverse information on
the environmental or ecological and economic system, "play" different development scenarios and
to develop on the model of optimal management strategy, it is impossible to do on a real system
because of its uniqueness and the limited time available. Thus, the model becomes a kind of tool for
the study of the properties of the original object. For simulation models relevant terms of utility for
all types of modeling. According to modern concepts of scientific methodology, the model should:
- be in accordance with the original;
- limitate original in some respects;
- must be able to provide new information about the object under study.

1.1 Subject of mathematical modeling.

The subject of the simulation of mathematical modeling, relates to the field of mathematical
ecology, combining mathematical models and methods used in solving environmental problems.
Any ecosystem, including forest, consists of nonlinearly interacting subsystems, which can be
arranged in a certain hierarchical structure. As the combination of components, or subsets into
larger functional units, these units having new properties that are absent in the constituent
components. Such a qualitatively new "emergent" properties of the level of environmental or
ecological units are not a simple sum of the properties of the components.
The impact of external factors on the forest ecosystem and can not be considered independently of
each other, as the combined effect can not be reduced to the sum of operating factors. The more
difficult task is the quantitative description of the reaction of a complex system to the combined
effect of various factors (1).
All these circumstances make it impossible to describe the complex ecosystem with easy-reduced
"mechanistic" models. At this stage, we need sophisticated simulation models that combine into one
complex system at the model level of knowledge about the elements of the system and the types of
their interaction.
1.2 Modeling tasks.

The experimental results on a computer simulation model are estimates of the values of the
functional characteristics of the system. Complex of biological systems (biogeocoenosis,
phytocoenosis, forest ecosystem) on the current state of scientific and technical knowledge is almost
impossible to describe the adequate mathematical model in the analytical form. It applies simulation
method to introduce such a system in the form of simulation models on a computer. Simulation
models thinning, for example, are used to predict the growth and productivity of forest stands, the
development of optimal plans of logging.
Simulation as well as study of system begins with the formulation problems, i.e. with a clear and
precise statement of the purposes of the experiment. Accordingly, it is necessary to make a list of
questions to be answered by simulation study. With the construction of the list of issues closely
related problem of the research project: on the level of the problem, the boundaries of the space, the
duration of the planned period of time (2,3).
The next challenge is the conceptualization of the model: the choice of variables and parameters of
the model, a qualitative description of their relationship, a preliminary assessment of the initial
information and the possibilities to obtain. To build a list of variables and qualitative description of
their relationship is based chart relationships between variables of the model. It allows you to
visualize the dependencies of complex models and check whether all the variables are significant
for modeling purposes and are not lost if something important variable. Conceptual diagram makes
it possible to determine the requirements for initial information model, and understand information
not only numeric values, but also the kind of relationships between variables.
After constructing a chart or a list of assumptions is analysed the possibility of calculations based
on an assessment model number of variables and the complexity of the relationships between them.
When collecting and processing information using selective methods of observation and statistical
analysis. If the information you need to develop a simulation model to obtain is not possible, it is
possible to perform the aggregation of variables, ie, replacing one of several variables reflecting the
impact on the system approximately replaceable variables.
The next stage of application of simulation is to develop a simulation model of the system, its
implementation in the form of programs and validate the model. In developing the model used
methods of statistical analysis of the initial information. Verification of mathematical models is
carried out by methods of mathematical statistics (determination, standard error of the model mean
square error and systematic, reliable model) using additional information collected. When checking
mathematical models established whether all parameters impact on the system are included in the
model is correctly specified the relationship between the variables and the range of their existence,
etc. The implementation of the simulation model in the form of a computer program is associated
with two tasks:
1) selecting a programming language;
2) generating a sequence of random numbers with a fixed distribution.
The simulation model is suitable when an opportunity to realize the purpose of research or
experiment. Model suitable for solving some problems, it is absolutely not suitable for other
solutions. The only criterion for full fitness model can serve as a practical application of the results.
If the simulations correctly predict the consequences of the decisions to be implemented in practice,
then you can positively evaluate the simulation model. Adequacy
checked prior to the simulation experiment. When checking the reliability of the simulation model
is also used methods of mathematical statistics (3,4).

1.3 Process of construction of a mathematical model.

Let us try to illustrate the simulation process through a comparison with the classical mathematical
model.
The main stage of the simulation - carrying out simulation experiments, including planning,
execution and processing of the experimental results. At this stage it is necessary to receive the
impact of external factors on or system. Mathematical models, based on which an experiment can
be deterministic and stochastic. The deterministic model factor uniquely determines the response of
the system; stochastic - the reaction is the result of external influences in a number of random
numbers, which, although they are a sample from the same distribution, due to randomness of the
modeled process take different values.
The main stages of building a model:
1. Formulation of the basic questions about the behavior of the system, the answers to which we
want to get with the help of models.
2. From the set of laws that govern the behavior of the system, choose those that significantly
impact at finding answers to questions.
3. The completion of these laws, if necessary, for the system as a whole or its individual parts are
formulated certain hypotheses about the operation.
The difficulties in constructing a mathematical model of a complex forest ecosystem:
- The model contains a lot of links between elements, a variety of non-linear constraints, a large
number of parameters etc.
- Real systems often affected by various random factors which account analytically is very great
difficulties are often insurmountable for a large number of them;
- Ability to the original models and comparing this approach there is only the beginning.
These difficulties and cause the application of the method of simulation, which is implemented in
the following stages:
1. As in the past, with the main questions about the behavior of a complex system, the answers to
which we want to get.
2. Implemented by decomposition of the system into simpler parts of blocks.
3. Formulated laws and "plausible" hypotheses about the behavior of a system as a whole and its
individual parts.
4. Depending on the issues assigned to the researcher introduced the so-called system time,
simulating the passage of time in a real system.
5. Formalized way are given the necessary phenomenological properties of the system and its
individual parts.
6. Randomly parameters appearing in the model, compared some of their implementation, remains
constant for one or more system clock cycles. Next, discover new implementation (4).

2. A system-wide approach to the modeling of forest ecosystems

When building models of complex ecosystems apply system-wide analysis methods. Often used in
environmental modeling balance compartmental models when flows of matter and energy between
the components of the model are considered compartments, the contents of "substance" in each of
which is a separate variable system. The need to describe the ecological interactions served as an
impetus for the development of systems research. According to Ludwig von Bertalanffy (1) "artciles
of Volterra, Lokki, Gause, and others, belong to the classical works of the general theory of systems
theory of populations. They were first to demonstrate the possibility of the development of
conceptual models for such phenomena as the struggle for existence, which can be subjected to
empirical testing. "
Widely used isomorphism principle makes it similar mathematical equations describing the system,
different in nature but similar in structure and type of interaction between the elements and their
components. This provision is valid for mathematical modeling in general, is especially important
for such a complex science of ecology, dealing with a variety of interactions between the myriad of
organisms and their environment. Almost all of these interactions are dynamic in the sense that they
are time-dependent and vary constantly, and typically include a positive and negative feedback, i.e.
are non-linear. The complexity of the forest ecosystem is compounded by the variability of living
organisms themselves, which can manifest itself in the interaction of organisms with each other (for
example, in the course of the competition or symbiosis) and in the body's response to environmental
change. This reaction can be expressed in the change rate of growth and reproduction in a different
ability to survive in the strongly varying conditions. Added to this are taking place regardless of
changes in environmental factors such as climate and the nature of the habitat. Therefore, research
and regulation of ecological processes is an extremely difficult task.
Experimental and field observations of ecological processes is complicated by their duration. For
example, research in the field of agriculture and horticulture are mainly related to the definition of
the yield and harvested once a year, so that one experimental cycle takes a year or more. To find the
optimal amount of fertilizer and have other possible measures for domestication, it may take several
years, especially when it is necessary to consider the interaction between the experimental results
and the weather. In forestry, because of the duration of the cycle of timber harvests the most short-
lived experiment in 25 years, and long-term experiments can last anywhere from 40 to 120 years.
The informational forest management system are of paramount importance models describing
forestry processes. Simulation is carried out at the same time in the following areas:
- Model describing the variation of individual taxation rates;
- Characterizing the course of an individual tree growth, without taking into account external
influences;
- A single course of tree growth, taking into account external factors;
- Forest stand type on certain taxational indicators;
- Characterizing the course of growth and productivity of the stand as a whole.
The fundamental value of performance models of stands is that they reflect the laws and the laws of
growth and productivity of forest stands, together with the principle of the target forest, multi-
purpose forest management and extended reproduction of forest resources constitute the theoretical
basis of forestry. Modelling is the main purpose of the doctrine of the performance stands. Through
models carried specification target forest principles. From performance stands laws depends the
choice of forms of forestry, wood species, methods of thinning and their intensity, the age of
maturity and harvesting. On the basis of laws, many regulations are based forestry, which is
impossible without the knowledge of the real cadastral valuation of forest resources. In other words,
from the laws of growth and productivity of forest stands depends on the choice of rational methods
of organization and forest management.

3. The history of the use of the method of modeling in forestry.

Informed scholars implementation of the method of mathematical modeling in forestry in Russia

and abroad accounted for the beginning of the XIX century when logging planning and maintenance
of forests, forest growing and studying forest protection issues. This method has been used in the
past, but since the time of the formation of forestry and to the XIX he lacked understanding and
systematic solutions for effective forest management problems.
M. Peterson create modeling stands growth (1). It was based on the use of methods of multiple
regression analysis and the theory of distributions. The initial stage of the simulation was to study
the formation of pine trunks of the distribution patterns of the steps thickness plots of different ages.
The study of the nature of the allocation is important in the theoretical justification of the specifics
of the formation of the structure of forest stands. Thus the greatest theoretical importance played
distribution types: normal, generalized normal (Gram-Charlier); Pearson, lognormal, beta and
gamma. He also pointed out a number of major drawbacks: subjectivity in the selection stands for
research and the establishment of sampling intensity in them dropping out of the trees, the indirect
determination of the current growth rate, which is the main indicator of productivity.
N.N. Svalov (3) plan provided a basis random stratified sampling and experimental material based
statistical method of constructing a series of plants. The new, unified method of constructing tables
of plantation growth designed with years of experience and the latest achievements of forest
taxation. V.V. Zagreev developed types of plantation growth, which are averaged and systematized
with a specific gradation relative ranks of the course of growth of individual taxational indicators
and geographical areas (4) Wellknown table the course of growth of optimal planting represented by
E. Assmann and F.Frants. This tables have site class, defined by the upper height performance
simulation is based on installed them, depending on the growth of timber defining factor - the
completeness of the stand (4). They introduced the concept of three integrity levels: the highest
level - from the most complete stands, the best - corresponds to the highest current growth of
timber, critical - the fullness of stands at which the current gain is 5% lower than the maximum.
Assmann innovation Franz tables is that all sorts of communication used in the tables are expressed
using a computer system of equations.
Atroschenko O.A. developed a model of productivity of pine stands in terms of performance and
care regimes, tables of forest types and site class (5). In the United States and Canada are working
on the study of the course of growth of plantations with different initial number of trees, causing
unequal total basal area, progress of growth of these plants have certain advantages tables for
forecasting and planning indicators taxation intermediate use size. For their construction requires a
large amount of experimental data, so mathematical methods are carried out with the help of
computer technology. Specialists of some foreign countries in the construction of tables of growth
progress along with mathematical methods and computers are widely used graphics. Model, created
by Zagreev V.V., have been developed on the basis of types of curves for individual taxational
indicators (4). Modelling the course of growth and productivity of plants of varying thickness was
conducted by A.P. Tyabera (3) The initial density was calculated using Becking coefficient, density
in subsequent ages using exponential equations and values taxation indicators - through the multiple
regression equation. These parameters stands close to the accepted optimal standards. In addressing
the issues of modeling the optimal planting density, despite the various methodological approaches,
it shall be based on well-known pattern that with the increase in density plantings to a certain value
at the current stock growth increases and then begins to decrease.
Model of the most productive pine operational purpose was designed by M.P.Gordinoy in Siberia
(3). The theoretical basis for her model was the reception at a time with a maximum number of
hectares of industrial assortments. Model the most productive pine lichen operational appointment
is made, based on the equations of diameter depending on the height and the percentage of the
output from large commercial timber diameter. Questions of modeling the formation of highly
productive pine plantings in the Urals are considered by V.A.Galako. The starting point of his work
was to study the patterns of distribution of the number of trunks on the steps uneven thickness
plantations, plantations of spatial structure. The optimality criterion is taken the maximum pulp
(maximum stock) and maximum growth. Analysis of the relationship with the growing stock
inventory indices analyzed using multiple regression techniques and factor analysis. The same
question was raised by S.V.Sokolov, but the approach to modeling was different. Check of
accessories plots to one natural number was carried out by analyzing the course of growth in the
height of the highest trees and leveling of average height and diameter on sample plots depending
on the age of the stands and the subsequent calculation of data deviations from the medium-aligned.
Simulation of the growth course of modal plantings was carried out by Mikhailov M.M., Zykov I.N.
and Sabirov A.T.. (1). The basis of the experimental material was taxation descriptions highlight,
selected by the method of statistical sampling. For example, pine forest in southwestern Yakutia by
Bogdanov V.N (1) explored the course of growth, with the experimental data on test areas laid down
in the stands fourteen age classes. Was created new types of stroke models, reflecting the growth of
the consequences of environmental change and reflect the dynamics of all forest products and
utilities.
Comparing all research research on modeling productivity stands, you can identify a number of key
factors influencing the performance: biological feature of tree species; genetic properties of
individual trees; management regime, as well as the sanitary condition of the stand. However, these
factors are studied differently. In the development of a universal mathematical models should
resolve issues on the development of improved performance assessment models in statics stands
and modeling self-thinning stands.
As for the simulation approach, as well as the modeling of functions with the help of feedback, then
due to the fact that they require a highly developed computer technology, mathematical ecology as a
developed and practically used science became widespread only in the last decades of the 20th
century.

4. The practical application of modeling techniques.

At present, widely used mathematical apparatus stimulates the development of theoretical ecology.
Construction of mathematical models requires ordering and classification of the information
available on the ecosystems, makes it necessary to plan the data collection system and allows you to
combine on a content level of physical, chemical and biological information and understanding of
the individual processes occurring in ecosystems. Simulation until recently actually used a small
circle of professionals who were supposed to be not only a deep knowledge of the application
domain, for which the model is built, but also a deep knowledge in programming, probability theory
and statistics. In recent years, the creators of the simulation languages have made the software
easier to use, using a graphical approach to building models.
The effectiveness of any legal proceedings, including at the enterprise forest complex, largely
determined by the rational organization of the production process. Since in the field of forestry is
expensive or impossible to experiment on the real object, for the proper organization of harvesting
expedient use of simulation systems. At the same time the results of this model will be determined
by the random nature of processes to provide stable statistics that can be used later to make a
decision. Popular, universal package of simulation today are the Arena, Extend, AnyLogic,
STELLA, PowerSim, iThink et al. Simulation packages tend to include objects, properties, and
resources line as part of the model structure. One of the most popular packages is the universal
AnyLogic. Its advantage is that it has all three known methods of modeling: system dynamics,
discrete event simulation, and agent-based modeling. With this package, it can cover the whole area
of logging operations, logging operations simulation, logging harvested wood, wood removals,
wood transportation logistics as well as business modeling with the account of market conditions
and competition.
In addition to direct logging there are many areas of forestry, where the application of the method of
simulation
Fighting waterlogging - a very important task for many regions. Traditionally, the fight against
water-logging was carried out with the help of costly reclamation measures. Since the beginning of
the application of simulation method made possible the development of tactics and planning to
combat waterlogging moderate, by adjusting the species composition of forests and maintaining
optimal density for specific site conditions.
When growing forests on nonforest areas (e.g. in the case of agricultural land transfer to the Forest
Fund, reforestation after felling or fire), there are many different tasks. For example, the selection
ratio of softwood and hardwood, the calculation of the area of forest cover crops, etc. Simulation of
different modes of development of the new site produced by a spatially-distributed model, there
may be a compiled incorrectly because of the large number of parameters with different variations.
In this case, the model is investigated using general desirability of certain directions, and then the
specific values of the relevant parameters are determined by simulations.
In addition to the above case, the simulation method is used in other areas of forestry, such as fire
science, describing the dynamics of pollutants and their impact on the production process,
assessment of the impact of global warming on forests, etc. (5)

5. Problems and prospects of development of the method

Consideration of dynamic modeling of forest ecosystems, forest growth and development shows
that this line of research is characterized by a considerable diversity of approaches and a large
number of models. It was examined 130 models only mixed forests of various natural areas.
Silvicultural growth model stands, having fewer opportunities for long-term forecasts, the most
accurate in respect of the important characteristics of the simulation performance stands in
commercial forests within one rotation period. On the contrary, the environmental model offer
opportunities for more in-depth analysis of the system behavior and soil-tree stand eѐ long-term
dynamics, as in the stable, and under varying conditions, as well as different modes of economic
use.
However, in this area there are many unresolved issues, the number of which rastѐt with increasing
intensity of research. First of all, a considerable amount of work there is no data on the
experimental substantiation of the parameters used in the model.
Another problem is the lack of growth models and development of the lower tiers of the stand:
underbrush, grass-shrub storey and mosses. These components are present in a few cases. The
absence of these components reduces the possibility of the use of forest models for the analysis of
the dynamics of biodiversity. However, the absence of such models can be compensated by
changing the functional assessment of the possible types of plants, which can be divided plant
vegetation as the composition of tree species edificators.
The dynamic modeling of forest ecosystems is particularly relevant in connection with the problem
of changes in natural conditions on our planet as a result of human activity.
It is noted that the progress in the development of dynamic modeling of forest ecosystems will
depend on the following circumstances:
- Continuous improvement of model approaches and models themselves, by incorporating new
scientific ideas and experimental data.
- Further integration of different theoretical approaches to dynamic modeling, ie construction of
combined models.
- Create Based on complex models of decision support systems and libraries of models, as well as
the development of a modular system that can be claimed by different users to select the optimal
models for solving specific problems.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Shilov I.A. Ecology: the textbook for students of biological and medical specialties universities.
Ed. 6th, sr. M .: Higher School, 2009. 511 p.
2. Volkov V.N., Denisov A.A. Fundamentals of the theory of systems and system analysis: a tutorial.
- SPb .: Publishing house of the Polytech. University Press, 2005. - 520 p.
3. N.V. Golubeva Mathematical modeling of systems and processes- SPb .: Lan, 2013. - 192 p.
4. Chikurov N.G. Simulation systems and processes: study book - M .: INFRA-M, 2013. - 398 p.
5. Zinoviev V.V., Starodubov A.N. Modeling systems by computer simulation and animation,
KuzGTU, 2010. - 118 p. FBS: http://e.lanbook.comIzd MarSTU, 2005. - 392 p. FBS:
http://e.lanbook.com

QUESTIONS TO SELF EVALUATION

1. The system of control and management of forest resources: the main problem. Development of
research programs.
2. The main approaches to the study of plantation growth: statistical, typological and combined
research methods
3. Joint simulation models of the structure and growth of the stands, their use and the goal of
building
4. Statistical and cybernetic approaches to describe systems. Features of the forest ecosystem, the
complexity of its description
5. Simulation methods: main challenges and difficulties in the description of biological systems
6. Measuring the scale used in the mathematical modeling, the main sources of silvicultural
information errors
7. The structure of the simulation model of the stand growth, the main stages of the development of
applied communication models and formulas
8. The objectives and tasks of modeling and optimization of forest management processes. The
main directions of mathematical modeling in forestry
9. Basic principles of building models: three kinds of models, the advantages and disadvantages of
each model.
10. Models optimal performance stands, the main directions of the development, application and
use in forest management
11. Optimality criteria in selecting models of formation of forest stands. Absolute and relative
completeness as the optimization criteria
12. The main regulations and normative documents in the development of models of optimal
performance, their impact on the program for the formation of stands
13. Objectives and methods of operations research: basic concepts, the purpose of the operation, the
types of problems
14. The structure and algorithm for optimal performance models stand used formulas and
technologies
 REMOTE SENSING IN FORESTRY
INTRODUCTION

In the context of the increasing importance of forests for the environment and society, as well as
increasing anthropogenic impact on the forest landscapes problem is particularly acute rational use
and reproduction of forest resources and their useful properties. According to Suhih (9), for the
successful solution of this problem above all need reliable, accurate and real-time data on the status
of forests and significant changes occurring in forest ecosystems.
The most known method of operational information on statics and dynamics of large forest areas
include the widespread use of materials of remote sensing and automated methods of processing
and analysis of the incoming data.
1. Distance (aerospace) methods of the inventory of forest resources and environmental
protection
Application of aerial methods for studying and mapping of forests in the former USSR refers to
the start of previous century, and since the late 70s in regular practice and actively introducing
methods that provide for satellite imagery.
Data availability clearly demonstrates the effectiveness of such approaches to solve problems on
the analysis, forest mapping and monitoring of their condition. This is achieved by the integrated
use of materials aviation and space survey with remote sensing techniques. The most appropriate
RS information can be used in the implementation of specialized monitoring.
RS monitoring of forests should be seen as a combination of remote and land-based methods of
obtaining information about their condition, the major environmental and resource functions (9).
Data collection for the RS forest monitoring system is held at different levels. The first (general)
level observations - remote sensing with automatic and manned equipment, which should provide a
regular - at least once a year, and in some cases (for example, for the detection of forest fires), even
2-3 times a day - control over the entire territory of the forest fund, which involves the recognition
of all the necessary natural and man-made objects, the interpretation of their properties and a
comprehensive assessment of possible environmental violations.
The satellite imagery is appropriate for forest monitoring tasks. Thus, multispectral high-
resolution imagery (10-50 m per pixel) are used for this purpose. They allow quick obtaining of
information about large areas and at the same time to identify the important changes of quantitative
and qualitative characteristics of forest resources on a relatively small area (within 1-10 ha).
In the study and mapping of forests, tracking the dynamics of forest ecosystems in limited areas
(for example, the control of forest cuttings, especially in remote areas) can also be used satellite
imagery (multispectral or multispectral) high resolution and a series of satellites "Cosmos".
 The second stage of forest monitoring - aviation (aerial photography and aerial survey), the third
– field monitoring. Second or/and third stages are held only to collect data, in case if the data from
RS is insufficient. In other words, in such a situation is actually applied optimization model: a
minimum of labor and financial resources - the most relevant information. (2)
According to Suhih (9), to solve a number of scientific and practical problems is enough
information from satellite images, in other cases, satellite imagery carried out in conjunction with
aerial photography (scale 1: 500 - 1: 100000), and often additionally held ground based verification.
When performing certain types of work that require detailed information, the first (satellite
imagery) the level of observation is eliminated, and the data is used only obtained aerial and
ground-based methods.
Organization of forest monitoring requires the development of a special geographic information
system (GIS). Geographic Information System (GIS) - an automated system oriented to solve the
problems of monitoring the environment, planning and management of resources and providing
input, storage, access, analyze, and display information about the Earth (REF). It includes a base
map, descriptive variable of forest stands, which is geographically referenced. Database provides a
comprehensive analysis of the available material on the forest fund and the of the relevant
information in the mapping, static text or another form (on paper or screen display) to monitor the
forest productivity of the multiple forest management and solutions of environmental objectives
(10).
For the effective functioning of forest monitoring systems are database at different levels:
a) detailed, containing information for each forest stand, which is going to be measured as part of
inventory, including thematic forest mapsin the scale of (in most regions of Russia - 1: 10 000 - 1:
25 000, in the north-eastern part of the country - 1: 50 000 - 1: 100 000);
b) local, containing generalized information for the maps at a scale of 1: 200 000 - 1: 500 000
(thematic maps, the term "generalization" refers to the selection of the main, essential descriptive
information, suggesting the display of objects on the map according to its value, category and scale
within a few relatively large compartments- forest blocks, tracts, etc.);
c) regional, containing generalized information for the scale of 1 maps: 2 500 000 - 1: 5 000 000.
GIS enables the analysis of materials through satellite imagery analysis to identify and fix the
database various changes taking place in the forests as a result of anthropogenic influences and
environmental disturbances, e.g. fires, pest outbreaks, diseases, windfall etc. (8)
Since the national GIS database contains information for all land users about the geological
structure, topography, water bodies, soil, vegetation, road transport network, etc. (9)
As part of satellite monitoring of forests must be dealt with the following main objectives:
• study and mapping of forest land (forest resources inventory update);
 • monitoring of forests against fires;
• assessment of sanitary conditions of forest ecosystems;
• control of forest management and other types of economic activity;
• mainstreaming of the various changes in the forests, caused by natural and anthropogenic
factors.
Studying forest land traditionally carried out in the course of forest management, which includes
measures on the organization of the territory and forest inventory based on a combination of ground
surveys and decrypting large-scale aerial photos (1: 10,000 - 1: 20000), as well as the creation of
forest maps at a scale 1: 10,000 - 1: 25,000.
Forest inventory provides the necessary information about forest dynamics. However, it is
extremely difficult and requires considerable costs. While in the former USSR, forest management
is carried out from the middle of the last century and now this work attracted about 10,000 people,
detailed and reliable data are less than about 60% of the total area of forest (700 mln. ha) (1,2,9).
Tasks of the forest and updating stored data successfully solved satellite monitoring tools based on
extensive use of remote sensing data and a constant inventory of forest resources in the conditions
of functioning of banks combined mapping and taxation information.
When inventory can obtain a complete set of maps, forest inventory and other materials used in
the implementation of measures for the protection of forests, organization and management of
forestry, logging and planning, etc. The level of detail and reliability of these materials are generally
quite adequate to achieve its goals.
Satellite imagery has also been successfully applied during forest inventory work in the boreal
zone: flow of operational information ensures constant updating map, forest inventory and design
materials in accordance with the requirements of the forest management while dramatically
reducing the cost of labor and financial resources.
Clarification of forest inventory data and inventory of forest resources in the conditions of
functioning of banks combined mapping and taxation information provided by the timely analysis
of current changes in the forest, the fund identified by deciphering aerospace high-resolution images
in combination with the organization of limited ground surveys or aerial observations.
As part of satellite monitoring of forests on the basis of remote sensing data can be solved and the
problem of drawing up a series of coupled multi-purpose and specialized small-scale forest maps,
which are needed different agencies and departments to carry out special forecast developments, as
well as planning activities and development of the territory of the forest fund.
The use of satellite imagery and mapping combined databases and inventory information helps to
streamline and automate the process of creating thematic maps, to improve their quality and, as a
consequence, reduce production costs of forest management work, especially in poorly known and
difficult to access areas.
Protection of forests from fires, causing enormous damage forest ecosystems (in 2002 the
proportion of dead plants from the forest fires was 288 thousand hectares, or 85.4% of the total area
of dead plants, and the total area of dead plants was 334.6 thousand ha.). - one of the main forest
management objectives. (1)
Traditional methods of forest fire based on aerial and ground patrols forests. The use of satellite
data allows to greatly increasing the effectiveness of measures for the monitoring of forests from
fires. The most significant results can be achieved through regular surveys satellite forest areas.
In order to ensure effective monitoring of forests against fires requires extensive information on
forest condition, in particular, need forest landscape maps and information about the presence of
combustible materials, zoning areas according to the degree of fire danger. As part of satellite
monitoring of forests preparation of such cards may be in the process of forest management, the
creation and updating of data banks at different levels.
According to experts, remote sensing should be used primarily to address forest fire three key
tasks:
• observation of snow cover, phenological state forests, common meteorological conditions,
humidity of combustible materials and the growth of the degree of fire risk forest areas;
• detection and evaluation of forest fires parameters at any state of the atmosphere;
• forecasting the spread of fire on the landscape elements and tracking the dynamics of forest
fires. (3, 5, 6, 10)
To solve these problems in the Institute of Forest named under Sukachev created and operates an
automated system, "forecast", which consists of three subsystems: the satellite operational control,
aircraft sensing ground receiving center and information processing.
Satellite surveillance methods used for rapid assessment of the overall weather and fire
conditions, forest fire detection and monitoring of their dynamics.
Aircraft sounding carried out in order to identify detailed assessment of fire risk (especially in the
face of considerable clouds and smoke area), mapping and causes of forest fires. Processed satellite
information was analysed by computer and on the basis of the results are made operational and
long-term forecasts, calculates the necessary material and technical resources for fire prevention
and suppression. (7)
In recent years, sanitary conditions and health status of many forest ecosystems is deteriorating
rapidly. Damage to forests by pests, comparable to the losses from forest fires. Significant adverse
impact to the forest stands have also windfalls, windbreaks, increasing air pollution (acid rain).
Therefore, among the most important tasks of satellite monitoring of forests are operational
accounting and forecasting of mass reproduction of pests, assessment of damage to forest vegetation
as a result of the emission of pollutants into the air, revealing other negative processes, tracking of
localization and liquidation of potentially dangerous natural and anthropogenic impacts on forest
landscapes.
One of the main features of the protection of boreal forests from insect pests - the need to monitor
their numbers over vast areas. Forest Institute of RAS designed landscape remote method of
studying the most dangerous pest - Siberian moth. This method provides for the allocation of areas,
the most favourable environmental conditions for its populations of the pest to enter the flash phase.
Reconstruction of the dynamics of insects within the natural systems of the system (in combination
with traditional forecasting methods) allows you to control the number of probabilistic pests and
excludes the suddenness of their mass reproduction.
Areas of woody vegetation damage caused by natural disasters (windfalls, windbreaks) and
confined to certain types of forests and environmental conditions, and degraded as a result of
atmospheric pollution forest areas are usually near large cities and industrial centers. Therefore, the
availability of data on sanitary and forest pathology of forest ecosystems, the breeding places of
pests and probable areas of possible development of adverse natural and anthropogenic processes
allows you to use a variety of remote sensing and ground-based methods of early detection of the
occurrence of such events and to minimize the damage, caused forest landscapes.
2. Technical and practical aspects of distance monitoring of forests
Forest satellite monitoring system is based on developed the technical base, which allows to
obtain the required time to analyze and provide users with the necessary information.
The basis of such a database constitute a means of remote sensing and ground-based processing
of the raw materials. The totality of these technical tools, databases, and the relevant methodology
and software is the aerospace forestry GIS.
The level of development of modern means of remote sensing and processing information on
natural objects to create a comprehensive automated system that can effectively address for forest
dynamics monitoring tasks and implement the collection, analysis, interpretation, accommodation
in data corrections and issue at the request of specific information in the form of various thematic
maps, diagrams and other documents (2).
Receiving materials was used for remote sensing of forest land provided aviation and space on-
board imaging systems (photocopying, scanning, television, infrared thermal, radar, radiometric,
spectrometric), as well as air- and space-based visual observations.
However, forest information obtained from satellites and other distance monitoring methods,
should have a spatial resolution in the range of 5-20 m. Information with a spatial resolution of
several hundred meters can solve a very limited range of tasks related to the assessment of the
forecastingsituation and fire hazard on large areas of forest (the study of the features gathering and
the formation of snow cover, vegetation phenology, thunderstorm and convective clouds, etc.), as
well as small-scale mapping and identification (registration) of areas of large forest fire scars.
In most cases, aerospace survey should be carried out in several regions of the electromagnetic
spectrum. However, if a number of types of works (in particular, the inventory of trees and shrubs in
the desert, evaluation of general situation, determine the logging circuits and other large area of
contrast changes) multispectral survey do not have serious advantages over the single-zone (in a
given range of the electromagnetic spectrum). Selection of the electromagnetic spectrum intervals,
to a large extent depends on the nature of the objects under study and filming of the season, it
should be carried out experimentally. It is proved that the greatest amount of information on forest
conditions allow getting shot in the green, red and near-infrared regions of the electromagnetic
spectrum.
When using photographic multispectral imagery systems performed multispectral cameras. In
order to solve a number of problems on an industrial scale is preferable to use multispectral film,
because it facilitates the process of instrumental and visual interpretation of images without a
significant reduction in the quality of thematic interpretive information.
Also Important the speed of receiving aerospace information. In some cases, for example, to
ensure the effective protection of forests from fires, forest authorities should receive information at
intervals of a few hours (at least two or three times a day). Such surveys efficiency can be achieved
either when used scanning (television) systems allowed in geostationary orbit and allowing to
transmit information on the collection points on the radio channels, or subject to the operators of
visual observations from aircraft (helicopter) or satellite (orbital station) (11).
To solve some problems (analysis of the impact of forest fires, monitoring of forest management,
the study of natural and anthropogenic processes on the territory of the forest fund, sanitary and
forest pathology assessment of forest ecosystems, etc.) the frequency information may be 1-6
months. Therefore, in such cases, can be applied, and scanning (television), and photographic
imaging equipment. However, as practice shows, the likelihood of execution quality photographic
on specific areas is considerably lower (due to the shorter duration of finding a satellite in orbit and
the limited on-board stocks film) than the scanner surveys with operational satellites. In addition, a
scanning imaging system should be preferred, if the incoming information processing is done by
automated methods.
For a successful event for inventory and mapping of forest resources, monitoring the dynamics of
reforestation is sufficient relatively low frequency of surveys (up to several years). Therefore, in
such a situation, the advantage should be given more detailed information and cost, and efficiency
of its production is not so essential.
 Along with the development of methodological aspects of remote sensing and the formulation of
the theoretical foundations of aerospace monitoring of forests a lot of attention is currently being
paid to addressing the problems associated with the modernization of technology of forest
ecosystem research and assessment of their condition. Among the most urgent tasks include
inventory and thematic mapping of forest resources, forest fire protection, monitoring of forest
management, taking into account the current changes in the forest fund.
Optimized methods of creating on the basis of the landscape based on multispectral photographic
a series of small-scale conjugate (1: 200000-1: 1000000) cards: forestry and forest exploitation
funds, geobotanical, sanitary and forest pathology, soil, forest typing, forest fire monitoring,
hydrological types of habitat, hunting management, etc. .
Mapping of forest land with the help of new methods is very effective both in terms of overall
cost-efficiency, and in terms of improving the quality and informative capacity of maping materials.
Significant progress has been made in the development and practical application of new forest
inventory methods and large-scale (1: 50000-1: 100000) mapping of forest land aimed at
identifying forest resources and evaluation of the biological productivity of natural systems.
Actively used photo static methods of forest inventory and mapping of the northern and eastern
parts of the country, trees and shrubs in arid and semi-arid zones.
Developed and widely used methods of the account of current changes in the forest resources
caused by human activities (e.g. deforestation, construction, mining), forest fires and other factors.
Small-scale mapping and inventory of forests, taking into account the current changes in the forest
fund are based on the interpretation of multispectral materials (multispectral) photographed from
satellites (spatial resolution of 5-20 m).
Currently in production practices widely used multispectral scanner information received with
satellite "Meteor" series and used for the analysis of snow cover dynamics, assessment of the
forecasting, the study of thunderstorm and convective cloud, control the development of large forest
fires. This information allows for a more focused and integrated plan and implement tactical and
strategic measures for the protection of forests from fires.
Under the experimental and production testing is a number of other promising methods of
investigation and assessment of the state of forests, based on the use of space-based information.
These include methods of updating the data of forest management in the boreal regions of the
country, control over forest management, analysis of the dynamics of reforestation of burned areas
and clearings, inventory shelterbelt plantings and reindeer pastures, observe the operation of
pastures in arid and semiarid areas, the planning of irrigation and drainage facilities, registration of
environmental changes caused by oil and gas industry enterprises, aided drafting and drawing plans
and maps of forest areas. Identify and justify the list of the main objectives of forestry, the solution
of which is possible and appropriate on the basis of the interpretation of remote sensing data. For
each task specified requirements for materials of remote sensing in terms of the parameters of the
spatial spectral resolution, speed and frequency, aggregation levels of observation.
The solution to all the main forestry problems using aerospace monitoring is based on the use of
modern means of aerospace, optoelectronic, and computer technology along with automated
methods of analysis and processing of aerospace, cartographic and statistical information. Remote
sensing system basically allows you to detect changes that have arisen in the forest fund for the
unchecked period (cutting, burning, construction sites, quarries, highways, channels, damaged
crops, etc.).
Opportunities for recognition of environmental satellite images of transformation, man-made
objects and landscape characteristics are based on the spectral differences between non-forest land
and wooded areas with a predominance of certain tree species. High resolution pictures (5-10-20 m)
also allows you to define the parameters of a number of area changes (e.g. logging), their
distribution in the territory of quarters (forestry), the appropriate method of logging, road
construction and other infrastructure with the regulations and standards .
To identify and assess changes in the forest fund provided joint analysis of satellite imagery,
mapping and forest inventory information online. This allows reliable determination and
classification of ecological transformation, rapid registration of cases of violation of the order of
forest management and development of forest resources, effective evaluation of forest stands
condition and allows to make the necessary adjustments in forest variables and mapping materials
stored in databases.
In order to timely update of cartographic and taxation information and application data on
anthropogenic changes in forest cover on forest maps and forest management requires accurate
binding plates space images. Currently, this problem is solved in an interactive mode using control
points, lockable in the photographs and cartographic materials.
3. Modern surveying systems and technical processes of the Earth remote sensing
Earth remote sensing - receive information about the Earth's surface and objects on it, the
atmosphere, the ocean, the top layer of the earth's crust contactless method in which the recording
device is removed from the object of research for a considerable distance. Common physical basis
of remote sensing is the functional relationship between registered settings own or reflected light of
the object and its biogeophysical characteristics and spatial location. The method consists in the
interpretation of the measurement results of the electromagnetic radiation that is emitted or reflected
by the object and is registered in some distant point in space from it (8,11).
 For remote sensing methods include photographic and filming, which is a significant limitation
is that the film emulsion layer is sensitive only to radiation in the visible or close to it parts of the
electromagnetic spectrum.
In the modern form of remote sensing are two interrelated areas - natural sciences (remote
research) and engineering (remote sensing), which is reflected in the widespread English terms
remote sensing and remote sensing techniques. Understanding the nature of the remote sensing is
ambiguous. As the subject of remote sensing as a scientific discipline the spatio-temporal properties
and relations of natural and socio-economic targets that appear directly or indirectly own or
reflected radiation, the recorded remotely from space or from the air in the form of two-dimensional
image - a picture. This essential part of aerospace remote sensing called sounding, which
emphasizes its continuity with traditional aerial methods. aerospace sensing method is based on the
use of images, which, as practice shows, are the greatest opportunities for the integrated study of the
Earth's surface.
RS methods based on the use of sensors, which are placed on the spacecraft and the
electromagnetic radiation is recorded in a format substantially better adapted for digital processing
and a substantially wider range of the electromagnetic spectrum. Most methods using reflected
infrared radiation, thermal infrared and radio frequency range of the electromagnetic spectrum.
In all countries, effective stimulus to the development of space sounding requests are military
agencies. With the introduction of space techniques and modern digital technology aerospace
sensing is becoming increasingly important economic value and becomes an indispensable element
in the natural history of higher education universities, transformed into a powerful tool for studying
the Earth from the local studies of the individual components to the global study of the planet as a
whole. Therefore, in presenting the various aspects of space sounding it is advisable to treat it as a
research method, effectively applied in all the earth sciences, and above all in geography.
Remote sensing materials are part of a larger system of collection, processing, recording and use
of data. A well-designed system remote research should be focused on solving specific geological
tasks that determine the choice of the orbits of space vehicles, a set of sensors, the nature of the
collection, processing and transmission to the ground-based primary data and the type of
submissions.
Remote sensing systems developed in two versions - orienting image and focused on the numbers.
The first embodiment is designed for visual interpretation of materials that are provided by photos.
The second takes into account the possibility of computer recognition of geological and other
images. Figurative and numeric options of remote sensing complement each other. Although the
technology is automatic recognition came later and is associated with progressive and expensive
technical support, visual analysis and geological (environmental) interpretation of the photo-
materials retain its leading position. Understanding the causes of this situation, it is necessary to
consider the main methods of obtaining remote sensing data and compare the principles underlying
the automatic and visual interpretation remote sensing methods (11).
The components of ideal remote-sensing circuit are a source of electromagnetic radiation, the
radiation propagation process and its interaction with the object substance, the response signal, data
logging, and provide them to consumers. In this model, the source generates electromagnetic
radiation with a high energy level over the whole range of wavelengths, the radiation intensity of a
known value which does not depend on the wavelength. The radiation does not interact with the
atmosphere and extends there through without energy loss. Incident radiation interacting with the
object substance, resulting in an own secondary or reflected radiation, uniform in the whole range
of wavelengths.
The radiation from the object falls on the sensor, which records the spatial information. The ideal
sensor must have a simple and compact structure and have a high accuracy. Furthermore, it should
consume little power for its operation. Data recorded by the sensor is transmitted to a ground
station, which instantly transformed into interpretable form that allows you to identify all the parts
of the object being studied for their physical, chemical and biological properties. In this kind of data
are provided to customers who, however, must have extensive experience in the use of their remote
sensing materials.
Of course, in practice ideal remote sensing system does not exist for the following reasons:
1. Neither the source is not able to provide flux uniformity both in space and in time.
2. Due to the interaction of radiation with the gas atmosphere, the molecules of atmospheric water
vapor and particulate emission intensity changes and its spectrum.
3. The same substance may have a different spectral sensitivity for different conditions. At the
same time, the spectral sensitivity of different substances may coincide.
4. In practice, there is no ideal sensor with which it would be possible to record all wave lengths
of the electromagnetic spectrum.
5. Due to technical limitations, data and their interpretation is sometimes carried out with a time
delay. The format of the transmitted data may also be different from that which the consumer is
required, and as a result the consumer receives data in the format only after some time.
6. Consumers may not have the necessary information about the parameters of remote sensing
data collection and do not have enough experience for analysis and decoding.
Schematic diagram of the implementation of aerospace research includes basic process steps:
obtaining a picture of the object of research and further work with images - their interpretation and
photogrammetric processing, as well as the ultimate goal of research - compiled by the pictures
map, geographic information system, developed by the forecast. Because obtain the necessary
characteristics of the object being studied only for images without field definitions, without
recourse to the "truth of the earth" in most cases is not possible, their calibration. An important
element for snapshots research is an assessment of the validity and accuracy of the results. For this
we have to involve other information and process it in other ways, which requires additional costs.
Remote sensing can be considered as part of the information system. In many areas of the remote
sensing data are a key component in the decision-making process. The start point, which is also the
end point of the whole process - requests for information teams. Essentially, the consumer, or rather,
it needs - is the most important element of any management information system. The diagram
presents the various disciplines associated with the Earth and its resources. Globe in the background
symbolizes the global scope of the system. Information requests are logically connected with the
requirements of production customers and consumers to remote sensing content .
The best way to use the surface of the Earth observation data from satellites is to analyze them
together with information from other sources - in this case, they are a necessary part of the process
of decision-making and modelling in any subject area. Another important principle of remote
sensing - multicomponent - is realized in the form of different survey methods and data analysis.
Bibliography
1. Aerospace methods in the protection of nature and forestry / Ed. Sukhikh V.I., Sinitsyna S.G.,
M .: Forest industry.1979 - 288 p.
2. Remote sensing in forestry / Danyulis E.P., Zhirin V.M., Sukhikh V.I., Elman R.I., M .:
Agropromizdat, 1989 -223 p.
3. Remote sensing: a quantitative approach / Sh. M .Davis, D.A. Landgrebe, Т.L. Phillips and
others. Ed. F. Svejna and S. Davis. M.: Nedra, 1983. - 415 p.
4. Dmitriev I.D., Murakhtanov E.S., Sukhikh V.I. Forest aviation and aerial photography M .:
Agropromizdat, 1989. - 366 p.
5. Knizhnikov Y.F., Kravtsova V.I., Tutubalina O.V. Aerospace methods of geographical research.
Moscow: Publishing Center "Academy", 2004. - 336p.
6. Kronberg P. Remote study of the Earth: Bases and methods of remote research in geology. M .:
Mir.1988. - 343 p.
7. Labutina I.A. Decoding Aerospace Images. A manual for university students. - Moscow:
AspectPress, 2004.-184 p.
8. Lurie I.K. Geoinformation mapping. Methods of geoinformatics and digital processing of space
images: Tutorial-M .: KDU, 2008 - 424 p.
9. Sukhikh V.I., Gusev N.N., Danyulis E.P. Aerial methods in forest management. M.: The forest
industry. 1977. - 192 with.
10.Ris U.G. Fundamentals of remote sensing. Moscow: Technosphere. 2006.- 336 pp.
11. Chandra A.M., Ghosh S.K. Remote sensing and geographic information systems. M .: The
Technosphere, 2008.- 312 p.
 AGRO-FORESTRY SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT

CONTENT
FOREWORD
INTRODUCTION
1. POSSIBILITIES OF COMBINING THE FOREST VEGETATION WITH
AGRICULTURAL AND/OR LIVESTOCK CROPS
2. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MAIN AGRO-FORESTRY SYSTEMS
2.1. Mixed crops
2.2. The forest belts for crops protection
2.3. Water protection forest plantations
2.4. Anti-erosion forest plantations
2.5. Silvopastoral systems/ Tree pastures
QUESTIONS TO SELF EVALUATION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
GLOSSARY
 INTRODUCTION
The agro-forestry systems refer to widespread and extensively applied practices in forestry.
The presentation of the study "Trees, food and people" by J.B Bene, H.W. Beall and A. Cote from
1977, (cited by Mihăilă Elena et. al, 2012) served as a great impulse to the development of this
science. They laid the stress on the importance of the research for improving the agro-forestry
systems. As a first and immediate result of the debate on this study was the establishment of the
International Research of Agro-forestry Systems (ICRAF), with localization in Nairobi, Kenya [1].
The agro-forestry systems comprise all land use systems in which forest species are
deliberately maintained or introduced into agricultural or zootechnical production in order to benefit
from the interaction of environmental and economic outcome. It is a broad concept that includes all
forms of association between trees and/or shrubs, on the one hand, and agricultural crops and/or
animals, on the other hand. The agro-forestry systems integrate trees with various crops and/or
animals having as a main objective the reduction of the possibility of certain risks (desertification,
land degradation etc.) and the increasing of total production. The (foreseeable) augmentation of the
production is a major objective of rural development, but it is not a single expected benefit of agro-
forestry systems.
The term “agro-forestry systems” represents a new concept or it is often used with a partial
and inconclusive meaning, although there existed an association of trees and / or shrubs with
agricultural crops, pastures and animals that has been practiced for a long time in different ways,
combining components from different disciplines (forestry and agriculture). There is an outlined
interdisciplinary field, equally divided by foresters and agriculturists. Thus, the agro-forestry
systems must be each time analysed from two points of view. The main purpose of setting up such
systems is getting a more diversified, qualitative, and supplementary production, ensuring high
environmental and economic stability. Simultaneously, the importance of agro-forestry systems
increases on account of the climate changes and ecosystem degradation. They ensure the long-term
augmentation of environmental quality and natural resource conservation. As for short-term
intensification, the agro-forestry systems can support the ecosystem balance and functionality,
increase their diversity, reduce greenhouse gas (through carbon storage) and have favourable socio-
economic effects (ensuring job places, qualitative and varied products, etc.).
In current circumstances, there are no measures undertaken concerning agro-forestry
systems towards insuring their stability, specialization and productivity. Agro-forestry systems
should replace the systems undergoing degradation, instability and those from drought and aridity
affected areas. The integration of trees into farming systems ensures a more efficient light, water
and nutrients use, as compared to pure agricultural crops [1, 2].
 1. POSSIBILITIES OF COMBINING THE FOREST VEGETATION WITH
AGRICULTURAL AND/OR LIVESTOCK CROPS
In agro-forestry systems there are three categories of elements or components: woody
species (trees and shrubs); herbaceous species (agricultural crops and forage species); animals.
In every agro-forestry system there should be a forestry component (woody species - trees,
shrubs), without which one cannot talk about an agro-forestry system. The combination of forest
vegetation with agricultural crops and/or livestock is differentiated, obtaining various agro-forestry
systems that can be classified in different ways. The main feature of agro-forestry systems is that
the combination of components is performed simultaneously and on the same land [1].
The simplest and most general classification, based on the three components is the
following:
1. agro-forestry systems in which forest species are cultivated with agricultural species;
2. silvopastoral systems where the trees are combined with forage species or with animals;
3. agrosilvopastoral systems where forest species are associated both with animals and with
agricultural species.
Taking into account the structural features of these associations (spatial and temporal
arrangement of the system components, the main functions performed by system components, the
manner of organization, the socio-economic level and management) more specific classifications can
result (Table 1).
Table 1. Main criteria of agro-forestry systems classification and the main agro-forestry systems
(Mihăilă Elena et. al, 2012) [1].
Spread and the way of
Structure and functions of agro-forestry systems
organization
Structure
(type and arrangement of the Socio-
Function (the role and/or
components, especially the wood Use of land economic and
benefits of the
component) fund management
components)
Type of Arrangement of the level
components components
Agro-forestry IN SPACE (SPACIAL) PRODUCTIVE IN THE BASED ON
systems Agro-forestry systems in FUNCTION FOREST EXISTING
(agricultural dense mixture Food (intercropping) FUND TECHNOLOG
crops and (intimately-mixed Forage (tree pastures) Intimately- Y
trees/shrubs) cultures) Fire wood (intimately- mixed DEGREE
Silvopastoral Agro-forestry systems in mixed cultures, cultures Low
systems rarefied mixture (tree intercropping) Forage productivity
 (pasture / pastures) Wood accessory products
animals and Agro-forestry systems in (protection forest belts)
trees) strips (protection forest Other products source
Agrosilvo- belts, intercropping) PROTECTIVE IN Average
pastoral Agro-forestry systems FUNCTION AGRICUL- productivity
systems with borderline trees Windbreaks (protection TURAL High
(agricultural (trees on the edge of forest belts) FUND productivity
crops, plots or fields) Shelter (protection forest Intercroppin BASED ON
pasture / IN TIME (TEMPORAL) belts) g SOCIO-
animals and Similar, common Soil conservation (tree Protection ECONOMIC
trees) (intercropping, protection pastures, protection forest belts CONSIDERA
Other forest belts) forest belts) Tree -TIONS
systems Partially overlapped, Moisture conservation pastures Commercial
(clusters of intersected (intimately- (protection forest belts) Agrosilvo- Intermediate
multifunction mixed cultures) Shade for crops, animals pastoral Subsistence
al trees, tree Consequent (cycle crops and people (protection systems
beekeeping for improving the soil forest belts, tree
etc.) fertility) pastures).

The use of land fund is a classification criterion, determined by specific country use
categories and the type of the household in one or another category of use. According to this
criterion agro-forestry systems are classified into [1, 2, 3, 4]:
I) agro-forestry systems in forestry fund, classified into:
 intimately-mixed cultures;
 source of forage for animals;
II) agro-forestry systems in agricultural fund, also classified into:
 intercropping;
 field protective forest belts, water protective forest belts;
 silvopastoral systems (tree pastures);
 agrosilvopastoral systems.
This classification takes into account, primarily, different ecological conditions and
secondly, the priority, forestry production. The mentioned agro-forestry systems also represent the
most common combinations of these three components. Some of these were practiced over time and
continue to be practiced, perhaps in a less organized form, the others, such as forage for animals and
intercropping, are innovative for us.
 2. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MAIN AGRO-FORESTRY SYSTEMS
2.1. Mixed crops
The intimately-mixed crops are agro-forestry systems, which consist of agricultural
species growing among the ranks of young plantations of forest species in order to achieve
maintenance, diversification of production and the improvement of soil properties.
Therefore, for a long-term, the main objective of this system is the realization of wood
production in a short period of time and of a better quality. By maintaining the agricultural crops,
the forest crop benefits of more maintenance than usually and, in some cases, even of an additional
supply of water (when crops are irrigated). Likewise, by maintaining the agricultural crops within
the system and, implicitly, the forest ones, the problem of employment in forestry is solved,
difficult to attain in forestry work. The agricultural production, obtained within this agro-forestry
system, can compensate the workforce expenses, also contributing to revenue growth in rural areas.
The association of agricultural species with the forest ones is fulfilled beginning with the
plantation establishment until these finally reach the substantial state. This can be achieved on
forest plantations, installed according to large plantation schemes (from 2.00 x 1.00 m to 7.00 x
7.00 m) in order to allow the mechanization of maintenance work and/or harvesting crops [1].
The most effective and sustainable intimate mixed cultures are those that optimize the
demanded space and the existing resources by avoiding the competition between the two
components – trees and agricultural crops. It is necessary to consider the challenges involved by
intimately-mixed cultures:
 the identification of installation difficulties and finding the best ways of establishing
these agro-forestry systems,
 the use of the most appropriate compositions, respectively, the use of the agricultural
species that are less competitive for forest species than the weeds,
 the knowledge of plant dynamics within the intimately-mixed of crops etc.
Stationary conditions (soil and climate) may represent the limiting factors in the
development of some cultures in the intimate mixture. For example, this system is not used in areas
with poor soil, primarily because of the fact that agricultural species contribute to more pronounced
soil depletion, and because the fact that forest species are hardly planted here, comparing with
agricultural species.
Forest species, preferred for association with the agricultural ones, in this type of agro-
forestry system, usually grow rapidly, such as: Euro American poplars, acacia, and paulownia.
Species with moderate growth can be also used, such as ash, walnut; or those with a slow growth
rhythm (oak species). Agricultural species used within this agro-forestry system are: corn,
sunflower, soybean, medicinal and aromatic plants (lavender, mint, fennel, etc.), vegetable species
etc [1].
Intercropping is another type of agro-forestry system, where the crops are installed and
developed between bands (strips) of trees and/or shrubs (consisting of one or two lines/rows),
located at distances determined by the main goals of production system.
The distance between the bands varies, depending, therefore, on the objectives and priorities
set within the agro-forestry systems, being equal to the multiple of equipment width, used for
maintenance works and harvesting of crops (the distance larger than 12 m). The plantation distance
between the trees varies from 0.75 m, if their main function is to fight the soil erosion, and 2 m, if
timber or fruit production is intended [1].
The purpose of building this system is to increase the basic production agricultural
component, to diversify the system overall production (both for long and short terms) and to
improve its quality. The presence of trees in agricultural crops helps to stabilize the soil by stopping
the erosion and reducing the landslides. It also facilitates water infiltration into the soil. The trees
canopy protects the agricultural crops from the winds and reduces the effect of torrential rains.
However, the presence of the trees improves the circulation of nutrients, increases culture diversity,
and embellishes the landscape. Within this agro-forestry system the crops coexist simultaneously
with the trees, being the first to provide the annual production; while the trees grow, develop and
become mature over a longer period of time. Thus the production diversifies on the same area of
land and, hence, the income increases, derived from both, the crops and the forestry. The presence
of trees in the intercropping system can prevent certain loss of production, due to climate anomalies
(heavy rain, strong winds etc.).
Forest species used in intercropping are: fruit shrubs, poplar, oak, ash, cherry, chestnut, pine,
paulownia, walnut. In order to achieve a stable and sustainable agro-forestry system, forestry
species must fulfil following conditions, requirements. They have to:
 adapt to the environmental and soil conditions where they are going to be planted;
 be in weak competitiveness relationship with agricultural species;
 provide one or more high-quality products (wood, bark, wood tar, leaves, flowers, fruits,
tannins, etc.);
 be fast breeders (trees with an average growth rate can be also used, but having a high
value), so they can fulfil, as soon as possible, the protection and the production functions;
 present an optimum degree of shading for crops, with the intent that their production does
not to diminish;
  have a deep developed root system and a less laterally developed one, in order to support
the circulation of mineral elements, thus avoiding the competition with agricultural crops
species;
 not to produce chemical substances inhibiting the growth and development of agricultural
crops;
 attract and host birds/ insectivorous or predaceous mammals, useful for biological control
of agricultural pests; they must not be hosts for crops dangerous pests and diseases.
The categories of agricultural crops, used in intercropping, are:
1. basic agricultural crops – cereal, technical, vegetables (corn, wheat, barley, oats, sugar beet,
potatoes, beans, peas);
2. forage species belonging to graminaceae (false oat-grass, cocksfoot, fescue, rye brome,
bluegrass, ryegrass, field grass, couch grass etc.) and leguminous plants (clover, alfalfa,
sainfoin, trefoil, melilot etc.) (many of forage species offer high production in the shade of
the trees within the intercropping system);
3. specialized crops (trees and ornamental shrubs, fruit shrubs, medicinal species as ginseng
etc.);
4. energy crops producing the biomass (herbaceous species as phalaris, miscanthus etc.).
As all agro-forestry systems, the most efficient and sustainable intercropping are those
which avoid competition between the two components – trees and agricultural species.
Intercropping is a type of agro-forestry system with a poorer spreading and, to a certain extent, it is
a novelty. However, where such cultures were installed they presented an innovative method of land
use. The realization of these cultures, respecting the management plan resulted in crop protection,
the diversification of production and, thus, the acquiring of additional income. The undertaken
experiments have shown that this agro-forestry system provides multiple benefits in terms of natural
resources preservation [1].
2.2. The forest belts for crops protection
Protection forest belts are formations of forest vegetation (strips of trees and/or bushes) of
different lengths and relatively narrow widths, located at a certain distance from each other or
towards a target, in order to protect it against the effects of harmful factors and to improve the state
of that object [1, 4, 5, 6].
They represent one of the best known type of agro-forestry systems in the temperate zone.
Besides the protective function they perform (especially that of decreasing the wind speed),
the field protection forest belts improve the growth and development conditions of agricultural
crops and thus, the agricultural production, ensuring at the same time, high quality forest production
(wood, accessory products).
 The presence of trees on the farmland, in form of protection forest belts, has a number of
advantages, which include [1, 4, 7, 8]:
1. Improvement of microclimate conditions due to albedo modification, decrease of the diurnal
amplitude of air temperature by 1-40° C and of the annual amplitude of air temperature by 1-20°
C , wind speed reduction by 31-55% in sheltered zone and by 10-15% in exposed areas, snow
retention, unproductive evapotranspiration reduction up to 30%, increase in near-surface air
humidity by 3-5%;
2. improvement of soil fertility and conservation conditions, reducing erosion and water leakage
on slopes, reducing deflation and bringing it to a grinding halt, soil moisture increase, soil
enrichment with humus and other nutrients and its pH change as a result of decomposition of
organic substance from leaves and roots;
3. improvement of the neighbouring agricultural crops conditions for growth and development
(reducing transpiration in plants, avoidance of crops’ uncovering and avoidance of dust storms)
up to a distance equal to 20-30 times the height of the shelterbelt, in the leeward (sheltered zone)
and 5-12 times the height of the shelterbelt in the windward (exposed area);
4. reducing the loss of water from the ground surface, watercourses, lakes, pools etc.)
5. increasing the production of wood mass and accessory products;
6. increasing the area covered with forest vegetation;
7. the protection of economic and social objectives and communication means (the protection
forest belts prevent snow drifts, by accumulating snow within themselves and in their immediate
proximity);
8. creating favourable conditions for fauna development;
9. enhancement of zone biodiversity;
10. improvement of carbon stocks;
11. energy conservation;
12. landscape reconstruction and improvement.
Although the primary role of protection forest belts is to protect the agricultural crops, the
resulting agro-forestry systems have also some economic benefits, such as:
 increasing agricultural production and improving its quality;
 diversification of production on the same land area and thus diversification of income,
which can derive from either agricultural crops or forest crops.
 ensuring the sustainability of agricultural systems by creating cultures which are more stable
over time and avoiding possible loss of production.
Some disadvantages of protection forest belts are highlighted, such as: reduction in arable
land, harvest decrease on the areas, situated immediately near the protection forest belts, due to
sunstroke or shading phenomenon and tree root system competition. They can also be hosts for crop
pests, and can require relatively high costs while planting them. However, the research conducted
by various groups has demonstrated that the harvest, which is lost from the areas necessary for
planting the protection forest belts, is recovered up to 20 times more through the crop increase,
obtained in the protected areas. The costs required for planting the protection forest belts are tenfold
recovered only by capitalizing the wood material, constantly extracted during tree cleaning and
removal. Speaking about the pests, forest species that can really serve as hosts for agricultural crop
pests are known and are not used for afforestation [1, 4, 5, 6, 7].
2.3. Water protection forest plantations
Watercourse forest protection belts, and those of lakes and ponds are strips of trees having
certain widths, which are planted between agricultural terrains, pastures and water surfaces, or
between the existing dams, along the watercourses and water surfaces, in order to protect the quality
of water, stabilize the riverbanks and prevent the flood or lessen their effects, in order to increase
the quality of surrounding agricultural terrains and pastures.
Generally, the issues related to water protection forest belts were enlisted into the category of
those connected to the common problems of the forest protection belts. Watercourse forest
protection belts show certain characteristic features, that distinguish them from other types of forest
belts, and namely [1, 5, 6, 7, 8]:
 watercourse forest protection belts cover dozens or even hundreds of kilometres, crossing and
serving much larger regions than the field protection belts;
 the width of this type of the forest belts is usually much larger than that of field protection belts;
it can vary between 30 and 300 m and may consist of one or more bands, less than 100 m in
width, alternating with free corridors.
Planting water protection forest belts is required because of the systematic removal of
existing forest vegetation along the watercourses, around lakes or ponds, in order to expand the
agricultural terrains or use the terrains for the community development.
The lack of vegetation on the banks of watercourses increased the risk of flooding and
favoured the discharges of residual elements into the surface waters; other negative aspects are bank
erosion, degradation of aquatic habitats and acceleration of deposition of sediment in the streams,
lakes and ponds.
Water forest protection belts perform multiple functions, the most important being the
protection functions:
1. protection against drought and erosion;
2. reduction of wind erosion;
3. fixing the banks;
 4. reducing water evaporation from rivers;
5. ensuring constant flows;
6. stopping powerful air currents (particularly damaging), as those that cause dust storms;
7. moistening the slopes, through large amounts of water and snow accumulation through
promoting infiltration and groundwater leakage power;
8. diminishing the damages caused by floods;
9. dig protection during high floods.
Although these forest protection belts are very important, great amount of money is needed
for their plantation. That is why their plantation cannot be achieved without national projects and
funds provided by state.
The first step in designing such types of forest protection belts is the establishment of the
priorities. Before choosing and selecting the type of forest belt to be planted in a certain area, every
water flow should be analyzed, in terms of climatic and stationary conditions, the presence or
absence of forest vegetation and other main functions that the forest belt should perform (the
stabilization of riverbanks, filtering the pollutants, arising from agricultural or industrial residuals,
etc.). For the reason that it is impossible to plant protection forest belts along the entire length of a
river, those places must be carefully selected, ensuring their maximum efficiency. Choosing the best
solution for the forest belt installation, involves choosing the species for the forest belt, in
accordance with the stationary conditions and their location, taking into account the main disturbing
factors. Installing water protection forest belts comprises the existence of three zones on both banks
of the water, performing different functions and installed in a certain way [1, 5, 7].
Zone I is the area situated immediately next to water and it corresponds to banks of the water.
Fast-growing trees and shrubs that supports long-term flood are recommended for this area. This
band of trees:
 realizes consolidation of the banks;
 ensure a moderate water temperature;
 intensifies the aquatic activity due to the organic material which is provided by forest
vegetation;
 is the last filter for pollutants that come from agriculture;
 decreases the fluctuations of the water flow.
Zone II, wider than the first, is located next to the first one and consists of species of trees
and shrubs growing rapidly, that tolerate short-term stagnation of water. The forest vegetation has
the following functions:
 retains and absorbs nutrients;
 assures water infiltration;
  enhances biodiversity;
 assures wood and non-wood products, which have multiple purposes.
It is important that the made choice is taking into consideration the root system and the shape
of the crown of the species. The species roots transform the pollutants that come from adjacent
lands, preventing them from reaching the water. Trees provide shade that lowers the water
temperatures, as a result, the growth of algae is diminished and the oxygen content in the water
increases. A forest belt with an impenetrable structure (trees and shrubs) has the role to slow the
flow of water from the soil surface and to favour its infiltration. The belt density will be set
according to its primary role of the belt and the size of the watercourse.
Zone III is located near the crops or pasture and consists of herbaceous species, perennial
forage, which serve for:
 ensuring the water infiltration;
 ensuring filtering substances from agriculture.
The existing perennial grass species cultivated in the area can be used or they can be also
grown. It is recommended, however, that they have strong stems, strong enough to be able to
withstand flooding. The main role of herbaceous species is to cover the soil and decrease the speed
of the water flow, allowing its infiltration. This band will be maintained by repeated cuts to prevent
deposition of dead organic matter in thick layers.
The choice of tree autochthonous species, shrubs and herbaceous species of the area is more
advantageous because they are better adapted to the local conditions. Although, rapidly growing
exotic species can also be selected, they can provide wood and non-wood products with multiple
uses. A forest belt consisting of a single species performs fewer functions and is more vulnerable
than one made up of different species. The most common tree species used in making these curtains
are the poplar, willow, alder, ash etc.
A forest belt, capable of performing multiple functions, must contain all three strips of
vegetation stated above, and be parallel to the water. The broader the belt of protection is the greater
effect it has and it is long-lasting. Depending on local particularities, its width may be larger or
smaller along the watercourse, or absent in some parts. Depending on the terrain, a band may be
missing. It is the case of floodplains, almost horizontal or slightly inclined, with fine silts and
gravel, free of surface or ground erosions phenomena.
In order to maintain a state of good growth of trees and shrubs used in planting and fulfilling
the protection functions in all aspects, it is necessary to take care of forest belts throughout their
existence. By improving water quality, ensuring a constant flow of water, increasing soil
productivity, providing favourable conditions for developing agricultural crops, beautifying the
landscape, increasing biodiversity, etc., water forest protection water belts contribute to the
fulfilment of some agro-forestry systems, capable of meeting equitably the needs of all members of
the society, not only locally, regionally but also globally [1, 4, 5, 7].
2.4. Anti-erosion forest plantations
Landscape forest belts, set on sloping hillsides, are important to stop erosion. Streams of
water formed above the belt are retained by litter and easily infiltrate into the soil, but the solid
particles clog up. Even if some of the water passes through the forest belt, its turbidity decreases.
For steeper slopes there is a specific forest protection system. This system combines the look
of recovery of less productive land, damaged by exogenous processes - ravines, exhausted quarries
and sand. Information concerning the protection of the soil located on slopes in the steppe belt
through planting trees and shrubs refers to the first half of the 19 th century. V.V. Dokuceaev included
forestry protection on the slopes in its plan for agricultural reform on chernozioms and black soils.
Later on, this problem was successfully studied by C.N. Vâsoţki, E.E. Kern, N.l. Sus, A.S.
Kozmenko, V.N. Sukaciov, S.V. Zonn, etc [9].
The distinctive characteristic of the anti-erosion forest belts is that their age and, therefore,
their height do not play a crucial role: they begin to exercise protective functions in about 3-4 years
of their existence, obviously, from the beginning not in full measure. Two main functions of the
landscape sloping hillsides forest belts can be mentioned:
1) runoff regularization, aimed at retaining a part of the flow and directing another part of
water towards the desired course, through the use of hydraulic structures and constructions, as well
as, using the spillways grass;
2) water absorption and warping, which consists of adsorbing the ground water which flows
crossing the forest belt and restraining (warping) the solid deposits. A crucial role is played by the
width and density of the forest belts, their floral composition, litter depth, physical properties of the
soils, and predominantly, their structure and permeability.
These two examined functions are closely interrelated and interconnected, therefore both of them
should be taken into consideration while installing the forest belts. D. L. Armand, (cited by
Krupenikov I.A, 2004), associates the anti-erosion forest belts with those designed for the
protection against the wind. In relation with the majority of the regions of the Republic of Moldova,
this is partially correct; because the behaviour of water depends on the surface of the slope, which is
subject to a very large extent, on the slope hillsides. By means of the calculations, field observations
and spray irrigation, M.N. Zaslavski, followed by V.S. Fedotov showed the main differences of
these two main types of protection forest belts, especially on slopes, beginning with the inclination
2-3 ° [9].
Anti-erosion forest belts are set up across the slope: if this is not uniform according to its
display, then the predominant feature should be considered. On corrugated slopes forest belts can
have a sinusoidal character. On chernozioms or black soils, including their eroded varieties to a
moderate degree, the best species of shrubs are wild privet, Tartar dogwood, blackthorn, raspberry,
blackberry, red osier; it is possible also to find white acacia, the wild olive, and even the poplar and
the oak. Such a type of forest belt with an area of 1m2, can absorb over 250 litres of water in about
30 min; this is a very significant amount. In the forest belts, with dense bushes, the clogging of solid
particles occurs very actively, because of the litter. A large amount of these particles is deposited at
a distance of 1.5-2.5 m from the upper edge of the forest belt that determines the width of the belt to
be more than 5 m. It is necessary, if possible, to plant the bushes not far away from each other,
calculating the spacing between rows and according to the formula: 0.8 to 0.5 x 0.75 to 1.0 m. In
case of strong rainfall, some liquid leakages pass through the forest belt, but their turbidity is
reduced to 90 %. This confirms the anti-erosion role of the forest belts even while strong rainfalls
[6, 7, 8, 9].
The desired botanical assortment for the forest belts was already mentioned. The dominant
role here can be played by wild privet, the representative of the cornaceae family: it is a shrub with
a height of 2-5 m, has an aboriginal aspect and is extremely durable and ecologically adaptable, it
forms a very compact thicket, it is nectareous, abundant in inedible fruit, but they can be used for
preparation of green and black paint for the textiles, resistant to trimming. It primarily and certainly
consists in high protection function. Close to this species according to the environmental resistance
is the Tartar maple. It has a high anti-erosion protection function [9, 10].
Various soils have a different anti-erosion resistance. This, in fact, determines the distance
between the protection forest belts. On clay loam and clay loam tacked chernozems, including their
varieties of weak eroded hillsides with slopes below 5 ° this distance is about 400 m, on carbonate
chernozems and ash soil with the same composition, the distance is about 300 m. On worked
steeper slopes (5-8°), the distance between the forest protection belts, intended for the regularization
of leakage must be reduced to 200 m, on moderately and strongly eroded soils, irrespective of their
genetics - up to 150-200 m. On eroded soils with slopes over 5°, particular attention should be paid
to the discharge of the excess water drain into the hydrographical system through grassed outlets
and hydraulic structures. On long slopes or convex parts of them, the first forest belt should be
placed on the line crossing small slope towards the bigger one [8, 9].
Anti-erosion protection forest belts founded after all rules are not intended to torrential rains
of 1, 5, 10 % of assurance, that, on average time in 10 years they cannot withstand the load rains
and even may be destroyed in some places where the water coming from above will be
concentrated. Through the field observations over 10 years, the effectiveness of the protection forest
belts with a width of 3 m has been highlighted, but during this time there were no strong rainfalls,
yet it can be assumed that narrow protection forest belts will be broken. To avoid this, earth walls
built on the upper and lower edge of the protection forest belt can be effective in retaining the water.
This is particularly important if the slope is located closely to the outlets, or even better – next to
grassed spillways. The construction of such waves helps to ensure the discharge of the water in
excess from the heavy rains, the middle part of the wave must be 30-50 cm higher than its terminal
points [9].
Even the combination of protection forest belts and agro-technical measures designed to
protect arable land cannot fully insure the retention of the surface runoff during the heavy rain falls.
Therefore, such constructions are significant, even if they do not work long. However, the waves
and protecting forest require periodic repair and planting shrubs, especially after torrential tears.
The lines of bushes on the slopes play a protective role against the wind. As stated by the US
researcher Shepil in 1973 (cited by Krupenikov IA, 2004) from 50 to 72 % of the particles of soil
during deflation are moved by saltation, this means that the air layers rise the solid particles of earth
at a height up to 1 m. To enhance the protection against the wind it is proposed to plan protection
forest belts along the upper tree line a single row of walnut. Its dense crown will protect the soil
from wind, and, as a result, the deflation higher than 1 m from the ground surface will be reduced
[9].
Orchards and especially vineyards located on the slopes are not resistant to erosion caused by
torrential rains. The proper placement of orchards will decrease the harmful effects of the wind and
torrential waters. Generally, some agro-technical measures are sufficient in the orchards, but they
need at least one row of forest belt for protection against adverse winds.
The soils of the vineyards suffer much because of torrential erosion: energetic surface erosion
gullies can be observed, both deep and wide. This can be easily noted in many vineyards. Such a
situation is explained by two main reasons:
1. The most of the vineyards adapt to eroded soils; the grapes get along easily with low
humus content in soils, with high carbon content; the low degree of soil erosion specific
for this culture is practically not reduced, and the quality of grapes, in particular, the
sugar content increases. This confirms the concept that vineyards should be established
on slopes and plateau and in order not to create territorial rivalry for the field crops.
2. The maintenance of the soil between the rows of grapes in the areas where the soil is
actually in the state of black field has to be given a special attention, as it has a low
erosion resistance. This territory demands agro-technological protection of the soil and
becoming overgrown with grass, namely in the space between the grape rows, as the
grass reduces erosion up to three times. However, it doesn’t stop completely the erosion,
so that the production of grapes is reduced with 30 % on lands strongly affected by
erosion.
 The research showed that long slopes with a bias below 5 ° occupied by vineyards, need the
creation of forest belts with a distance of 200-300 m between the rows, the protective forest belts
located on hillsides with slopes of 5-8 ° need over 150 m distance and the area with slopes bigger
than 8° need the distance of 100 m between the rows. The protection forest belts must be displayed
in three lines, sometimes with a width not exceeding 3 m, occupied by currant, raspberry and other
shrubs; the width between the rows should be less than 1 m, the distance between the bushes in a
row should not go over 0.3-0.5 m [8, 9].
2.5 (Agro) Silvopastoral systems/ Tree pastures
The term (agro) silvopastoral means an anthropic system in which the components such as
forestry, pasture, livestock and crops efficiently interact in the same area of land and even in a more
arid climate, having economic and environmental favourable consequences [2, 3].
The Anglo-Saxon countries usually use the term agro-forestry (agro-forestry) but the Latin
countries use the term agrosilvopastoral, with established names such as dehesa in Spain and
montado in Portugal. The largest agrosilvopastoral areas can be mentioned in the southwestern
Iberian Peninsula, covering 3.5-4 million hectares; in California and western Oregon (USA) where
there are other 1-1.5 million hectares and they are constantly expanding, both in southwestern
Europe and in western North America, together with the global climate warming and desertification
of agricultural land. Beginning with the last century we used the term silvopastoral, particularly for
the arrangement of pastures [2, 3].
Initially, the silvopastoral systems were associated just with animal grazing in the forest.
Nowadays, in areas of Mediterranean climate of Spain, France, Italy and Greece the grazing in
forest is a very habitual practice. This practice is known as silvopastoral system in there countries.
The main objective is grazing. In some cases, wood production is a secondary objective. Over time,
the objectives set by practicing these systems varied, from the manufacture of wood to the
production of forage and/or livestock production. Therefore, if there is a similarity between forest
species and feeding species, this will be considered a silvopastoral system. A forest belt that protects
a pasture or a zoo technical farm will be assigned to the category of silvopastoral systems, as both
the pasture and the zoo technical farm are strictly related to animals (their growth, shelter, etc.).
In any area these silvopastoral systems would develop, the trees are those that define the
landscape scenery and have a key role in the functionality of the pastures. Although grazing in the
forest has been practiced for a long period of time, it must be emphasized that in current
understanding, the silvopastoral system (pastures with trees) should not be confused with afforested
pastures. The first term refers to trees that are separately distributed on a pasture on which livestock
is grown, but it is a part of the agricultural fund, while afforested pastures are have a greater or an
equal consistency than 0.4, these are included in the land forest vegetation, where the animal
growing is not permitted.
In a broad sense, it can be considered that the silvopastoral systems have three components:
forest species, animals and pastures. The most important type from the agro-forestry systems, in
terms of the occupied area and in terms of productivity is the tree pasture. Forest species are located
within the uneven pasture as well as in groups or in the form of strips, composed of a row of trees.
The number of trees can vary from 10 to 100 pieces per hectare. The role of trees in the
silvopastoral systems is to provide shelter and protection to animals, to increase the productivity of
pastures, by changing the microclimate conditions, indirectly increasing the milk and meat
production provided by the animals. The threes must develop a large crown, in order to provide a
shelter for animals on a big surface; it should be rare, as well, in order to allow the growth of
herbaceous species under the crown. Furthermore, the trees on pasture explore a larger volume of
soil, enhance the slopes against landslides, reduce surface and depth erosion of the soil, decrease the
amplitude of the temperature of air and soil, protect the herbaceous plants, the forage and the
animals from insolation and dehydration, wind, rainfall, retain the precipitation (the snow melts
slowly), produce additional firewood, fruits and forage, constitute a habitat for many species of
birds, which, in turn, consume harmful agricultural crops insects, regulate the flow of water and
nutrients in the soil and fix the carbon, and embellish the landscape [1, 2, 3].
The trees from the silvopastoral systems are species of a rustic nature, resistant to adverse
climatic, edaphic, anthropogenic factors; they are able to exploit the productive potential of the
territory. Some examples of trees can be: varieties of oak, walnut and wild pear. Although, obtaining
a pasture with trees is quite difficult and expensive, developing silvopastoral systems in traditional
countries of the Mediterranean basin confirm their viability and productivity. An important problem
in the development of tree pastures is to protect the trees, from their plantation until they reach great
heights. The procedure can be realized when the seedlings are small, with growing tubes (with the
height up to one meter) and as the trees grow, stem protective nets can be used.
The trees have a highly variable density ranging from (15) 20-100 (200) pieces / ha with a
crown coverage degree of (5) 10-50 (70) % and a strain occupancy degree of 2-10 (15) m2/ha. They
fulfil multiple functions, as: reducing the action of the wind, creating a microclimate favourable for
grassy meadows and agricultural crops, creating shade for animals, also having an important role in
the circuit of the fertilized nutrients, especially phosphorus and potassium, anti-erosion protection,
etc. The productive tree function is quite significant, achieving an average of 800-5000 kg/ha of
firewood, 200-600 (800) kg ha / of acorns, 500-1500 (2000) kg/ha of cork, depending on the species
of oak (Querqus ilex rotundifolia, Q.suber, Q.faginea, Q.pyrenaica, etc.). It has to be mentioned that
oak leading cutting of the crown is done once every 10-15 years, resulting in firewood. Peeling is
done every 9-12 years for cork. The life of oak trees is 150-300 years [1, 2, 3, 10].
The most important product from the agrosilvopastoral system on the market is the animal
products. The optimal charging for bovine animals is 0.2-0.4 AU/ha and year (AU is an
international unit of equivalence between animals. 1 cow: 1 AU; 1 sheep: 0.12 AU; 1 goat: 0.12
AU), noting the extensive character of this agrosilvopastoral. On the same surface cattle and pigs
are raised together, each one using a specific resource. Cattle and sheep mainly consume grass, the
goats eat shoots, pigs eat acorns and roots, etc. During the last years there were raised such species
as deer, roe deer, mouflon, wild hog, wild hare, partridge, etc. The charging with these animals is
10-20 pieces / km2 for ungulates and 10 pieces/ha for hares, etc [1, 2, 3].
The type of pasture (meadow), the third component of the silvopastoral systems, is an
important element within this system, its quality and productivity being directly related to the
livestock production. The choice of forage species with high nutritional value (Festuca sp., Agrostis
sp., Carex sp., Poa sp., Bromus sp. etc.), together with the technological measures, are important in
improving permanent pastures, increasing the production and its quality and the possible
development of grassy carpet. Technological measures include the following categories of work [1,
2, 3, 10]:
a. improvement works;
b. regeneration of the grassy carpet, through surface measures;
c. total regeneration, through sowing;
d. anti-erosion protection works.
The improvement works include: anti-erosion work, improving aero hydric regime through
desiccation, drainage, scarification, removing the unwanted woody vegetation etc., adjusting the
soil acidity, improving saline soils characteristics, and other works.
The regeneration of the grassy carpet is achieved by two groups of works: fertilizing and
over seeding. If the fertilization (chemical and organic or grazing) is carried out properly, it ensures
the regeneration of the grassy carpet, increasing its productive potential and especially following a
positive development direction. These types of work can be performed on meadows covered with
80 % by herbaceous vegetation and valuable species have a high participation (over 75 %). Over
seeding is recommended in the areas where the soil has 60-80 % coverage with vegetation and the
valueless species have a shareholding of at least 25-30 %. Correspondingly, it is recommended in
situations when, because of the slope or type of the soil, the total regeneration sowing cannot be
applied. In this case, a deep ploughing of the soil by destroying part of celery is implemented,
possibly preceded by combating worthless species (chemical or mechanical) and completing the
grassy carpet with valuable species using appropriate methods. Seeding rate will be lower than the
norm used for total regeneration by 25-30 %. The seeding regeneration is applied to the sowing
areas where: the soil is below 60 % covered with vegetation or when the valueless species have
greater participation than 25-30 %, there is flat or sloping land, mechanization difficulties are
encountered. Performing the full destruction of the grassy carpet and meadows shall be done using
specific technologies. Anti-erosion protection works are needed on areas with steep slopes, where
the soil is poorly covered with vegetation or areas where the intervention works and exploitation
can trigger serious erosion processes. In all these cases, establishing fertilizers and amendments, the
dosage and period of implementation must be correlated with soil agrochemical and the way of
procedure, the indicated doses for each typological unit being indicative [1, 2, 3].
A successful silvopastoral system requires knowledge of the characteristics of grass growth
and forage species, duration, optimum loading capacity of grazing animals in order to prevent
degradation of pastures, depletion of forage species and deterioration and damage of the seedlings.
The trees have a decisive role in increasing the productivity of the pastures and ensure decent living
conditions for animals. There are many important elements that justify the revival and development
in our country of silvopastoral systems. These silvopastoral systems have a long tradition in many
countries, where they developed and improved, and have brought great ecological, economic and
social benefits.
Instead of conclusions
Different agro-forestry systems are traditionally used in many parts of the world, this fact
shows that some of them have already passed the test of practical experimentation. In the near
future it is expected to be adopted. Far and wide, such systems could be easily adapted to the
climate and/or technological changes, from the agricultural and forestry domain (also including the
development of new technologies) or adapted to socio-economic and/or environmental conditions.
The advantages of agro-forestry systems consist in complex land use, both in terms of
agriculture and forestry, thus ensuring sustainable management of natural resources. These can
provide diverse products and services: food for humans, forage for animals, wood material, fruits
and seeds of trees and shrubs, leaves for sericulture, flowers for beekeeping, flowers, fruit and bark
for medicinal tea, tannin for industrial processing, mushrooms, to which we can add the
environmental benefits (improvement of climatic and soil conditions, carbon storage, landscape
embellishment etc.).
However, without systematic research and in the soil and climate conditions of our country,
the easiest way to test the usefulness of agro-forestry systems is their application in practice by the
owners. The reason why you should choose agro-forestry systems is that time and space mixture of
forest species with agricultural ones can be, in certain circumstances, more profitable, from the
ecologic, economic and social points of view, than the separate cultivation of forest or agricultural
species.
In order to identify these requirements, it is necessary to know the biological interaction
between the two cultures, on the one hand, and the economic and social aspects, specific to these
culture systems, on the other hand, knowing that beneficial biological and economic interactions
(the effects of which are manifested on a long run) define the concept of sustainable agro-forestry
systems. Although, in the most cases, agro-forestry systems are applied in specific conditions of
subsistence (or survival) economy, they can be tested and treated from the perspective of economic
theory, emphasizing the interactions of biological, economic and social development between the
agro-forestry system components.

QUESTIONS TO SELF EVALUATION

1. Explain the essence of the main agro-forestry systems.
2. Define the term of protection forest belts.
3. Define the term of intercropping.
4. Highlight the possibilities of association of forest vegetation with agricultural and/or
livestock crops.
5. List the defining elements of the silvopastoral system.
6. Highlight the importance of protection forest belts.

GLOSSARY
Agro-forestry systems – comprise all land use systems in which forest species are
deliberately preserved or introduced in agricultural or zootechnical production in order to benefit
from the result of ecological and economic interaction.
Crops in intimate admixture – are agro-forestry systems, which consist in cultivating the
agricultural species among the ranks of forest species of a young plantation in order to achieve a
good maintenance, a diversification of production and an improvement of soil properties.
Intercropping – is an agro-forestry system in which the agricultural crops are installed and
grown between bands (strips) of trees and/or shrubs (consisting of one or two lines), positioned at
distances determined by the main production goals of the system.
Protection forest belts – are formations of forest vegetation (strips of trees and/or scrubs),
having different, relatively narrow, lengths and widths, located at a certain distance from each other
or from a target, in order to protect it against the effects of harmful factors, and to improve its
condition.
 Silvopastoral/ agrosilvopastoral system – an anthropic system in which the forest,
pastoral, livestock and agricultural crop components beneficially interact on the same area of land,
in a more parched climate, having favourable economic and environmental consequences.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Mihăilă, E., Costăchescu, C., Dănescu, F. (2012) Sisteme agrosilvice. In: Revista de
Silvicultură şi Cinegetică. Anul XVII/Nr.30. p. 59-66. ISSN 1583-2112.
2. Maruşca, T. (2012) Recurs la tradiţia satului. Opinii agrosilvopastorale. Braşov: Editura
universităţii „Transilvania”. 463 p. ISBN 978-606-19-0076-3
3. Maruşca, T. (2012) Sistemul agrosilvopastoral durabil, in contextul incălzirii globale a
climei. In: Revista de Silvicultură şi Cinegetică. Anul XVII/Nr.30. p. 67-77. ISSN 1583-
2112.
4. Neşu, I. (2012) Perdelele forestiere de protecţie a culturilor agricole – o necesitate. In:
Revista de Silvicultură şi Cinegetică. Anul XVII/Nr.30. p. 56-58. ISSN 1583-2112.
5. Kalinicenko, N.P. (1986) Antierozional silvomelioration. Moscow, Agropromizdat. 277 p. (in
Russian)
6. Mihin, V.I. (2006) Landsafts silvomelioration. Voronej, Voronej State Silvo-Technical Academy. 127
p. (in Russian)
7. Paramonov, E.G., Simonenko A.P. (2007) The basics of agrosilvomelioration. Barnaul, Publishing
House AGAU. 224 p. (in Russian)
8. Romanov, G.G. (2012) Landsafts silvomelioration (electronic version): raining and methodical
complex for students on specialty 250201 "Forest management", Siktivkar Forest Institute", Siktikvar;
SFI. Retrieved from http://lib.sfi.komi.com.
9. Krupenicov, I., Ursu, A., Junghietu, I. (2004) Influenţa plantaţiilor forestiere asupra
proceselor eroziunii prin apă şi vînt. In: Eroziunea solului. Esenţa, consecinţele,
minimalizarea şi stabilirea procesului / red. resp.: Dan Nour, trad.: D. Balteanschi. – Ch.:
Pontos (F.E.-P. “Tipogr. Centrală”). p. 128-194. ISBN 9975-926-73-8
10. Chiriţă, C. and others. (1981) Pădurile României. Bucureşti: Editura Academiei. 559 p.
Contact details
Alecu Russo Balti State University Бельцкий Государственный Университет имени
38 Pushkin str., Алеку Руссо
Balti, MD - 3121 ул. Пушкина, 38
vpritcan@yahoo.com г. Бельцы, MD - 3121
http://www.usarb.md vpritcan@yahoo.com
http://www.usarb.md