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Forests
Special Issues
Sustainable Forest Operations Planning and Management
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Sustainable Forest Operations Planning and Management

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Operations and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2024 | Viewed by 1608

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Vasile Rǎzvan Câmpu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Forest Engineering, Forest Management Planning and Terrestrial Measurements, Transilvania University of Braşov, Şirul Beethoven No. 1, 500123 Braşov, Romania
Interests: forest harvesting; mechanization; time consumption, productivity and labor safety and health in forest operations; ecological effects of timber harvesting on forest ecosystems; wood scaling; wood quality evaluation methods
Dr. Jiří Dvořák

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Forestry Technologies and Construction, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Kamýcká 129, 6 Suchdol, 165 21 Prague, Czech Republic
Interests: forest harvesting; forest mechanization; ergonomics and occupational safety; utilization of biomass
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Rudolf Alexandru Derczeni

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Forest Engineering, Forest Management Planning and Terrestrial Measurements, Transilvania University of Braşov, Şirul Beethoven No. 1, 500123 Braşov, Romania
Interests: forest harvesting; mechanization; productivity, labor safety and health in forest operations; damages during harvesting operations

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Considering the ecological, economic and social role of forests in today’s world, where the population has exceeded 8 billion inhabitants, forest harvesting can only be sustainable, maintaining a balance between the environment, society and economy. Forest harvesting management comprises multiple objectives that must ensure good wood valuing under profitable economic conditions, while attempting to meet the requirements imposed by the sustainable management of forest resources and targets established for each tree stand. Under these circumstances, forest operations must be planned, organized and studied in a way that maximizes production while guaranteeing the health and safety of workers and exerting a minimum negative impact on forest ecosystems at the cost level accepted by society.

Therefore, this Special Issue encourages the dissemination of research results concerning, but not limited to, the following aspects:

  • Innovative planning, machines, technology and work methods in forest operations;
  • Time and productivity studies in forest operations under different conditions, including steep terrains and storm damage;
  • Labour safety and health in forest operations;
  • The impact of forest operations on components of the forest ecosystem (soil, residual stand, soil, water and air pollution);
  • Evaluation of the volumes of wood debris, timber losses and wood consumption resulting from forest harvesting operations.

Prof. Dr. Vasile Rǎzvan Câmpu
Dr. Jiří Dvořák
Dr. Rudolf Alexandru Derczeni
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sustainable harvesting
  • forest operations
  • environmental impacts
  • mechanization
  • time and productivity studies
  • labor safety and health
  • wood debris
  • timber losses

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 2209 KiB  
Article
Assessing the Residual Stand Damage after Thinning with Different Levels of Mechanization
by Eunjai Lee, Sang-Tae Lee, Ho-Seong Mun, Sanghoon Chung and Jae-Heun Oh
Forests 2024, 15(5), 794; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15050794 - 30 Apr 2024
Viewed by 434
Abstract
Thinning is a silvicultural process in which trees are both harvested selectively and systematically removed from a stand to enhance forest management and ecosystem dynamics. However, this practice is challenged by the mechanical damage to residual trees, and the nature of this damage, [...] Read more.
Thinning is a silvicultural process in which trees are both harvested selectively and systematically removed from a stand to enhance forest management and ecosystem dynamics. However, this practice is challenged by the mechanical damage to residual trees, and the nature of this damage, particularly on stand damage during mechanized row-thinning and manual selective thinning, in South Korea is unknown. Therefore, objectives of this study were to compare stand damage levels and wound characteristics between three different thinning operations: manual selective, manual row-, and mechanized row-thinning. After thinning, 12%, 15%, and 10% of the residual damaged trees were observed in manual selective, manual row-, and mechanized row-thinning, respectively. Both types of row-thinning predominantly demonstrated damages at the stem and butt region, whereas in manual selective thinning, the most of the damages occurred on the roots. Manual selective thinning exhibited a slightly larger average wound size (207 cm2) compared to mechanized row- (181 cm2) and manual row-thinning (165 cm2). The wound sizes on the stem in mechanized row-thinning were significantly higher than manual selective (p < 0.05). These results may be helpful in understanding exposure to damage among different thinning types and in managing its occurrence in future practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Forest Operations Planning and Management)
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18 pages, 5628 KiB  
Article
Comparison of Cut-to-Length Harvesting Methods in Tree Plantations in Brazil
by Teijo Palander, Antti Pasi, Annamari Laurèn and Heikki Ovaskainen
Forests 2024, 15(4), 666; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15040666 - 7 Apr 2024
Viewed by 718
Abstract
The aim of this research was to determine the most productive tree-cutting methods, and the factors influencing them, in flat and sloping terrains in tree plantations in Brazil. The study utilized drone-captured video material from harvesting operations in eucalyptus and pine plantations. In [...] Read more.
The aim of this research was to determine the most productive tree-cutting methods, and the factors influencing them, in flat and sloping terrains in tree plantations in Brazil. The study utilized drone-captured video material from harvesting operations in eucalyptus and pine plantations. In both terrains, two cutting methods were compared, differing in the felling to the side method used: either at the edge or inside of the harvesting front. In addition, on flat terrain, the efficiency of forward felling was studied in relation to the aforementioned cutting methods. In sloping terrain, the machines were also equipped with a winch assistance system. The time study data of the harvesting work were processed using a video analysis tool developed for the research. The output data of the cut trees were collected with the automatic measuring system of the harvester. Statistical tests were used to determine the most productive cutting methods by analyzing differences in productivity. With an average tree size of 0.3 m3, cutting productivity was 45 m3/E0h in pine cuttings and 55 m3/E0h in eucalyptus cuttings. The average cutting productivity on flat terrain was about 11 m3/E0h higher than on sloping terrain, mainly due to the time spent attaching the winch assistance system, which was a necessary phase of the work on sloping terrain. The research results suggest that it would be most productive to use sideways felling inside the harvesting front method. However, the need for further research is evident, if we want to precisely identify the factors and work phases in the tree-cutting cycle affecting differences in the productivity of the harvesting chain in tree plantations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Forest Operations Planning and Management)
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