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Forests
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Intensity of Forest Management—Selected Papers from FowiTa German Forest Sciences...
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Intensity of Forest Management—Selected Papers from FowiTa German Forest Sciences Conference (Sessions 10–14)

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 April 2017) | Viewed by 23098

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Henning Meesenburg

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Northwest German Forests Research Station, Department of Environmental Control, Grätzelstrasse 2, D-37079 Göttingen, Germany
Interests: forest monitoring; biogeochemistry of forest soils forest hydrology; biogeochemical and hydrological modeling; soil solution; climate change adaptation of forests

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

While the productive function has been recognized as an important service of forests as of several centuries ago, other ecosystem services have emerged only in recent years as significant tasks for forest management. Since there are several trade-offs between the different ecosystem services, forestry has to set priorities with respect to their desired fulfillment. Here, the intensity of forest management, in terms of utilization intensity, thinning intensity, length of rotation periods, and regeneration system, is an important instrument for the fine-tuning of the different ecosystem services.

In this context, this Special Issue welcomes papers dealing with options of forestry to adjust ecosystem integrity and regulating services such as nutrient and water cycles while maintaining provisioning services, e.g., biomass production. Particularly, papers with a focus on practical applications are invited. Papers may cover the following topics:

  • Nutrient cycles and nutrient losses in near-nature forest ecosystems and productive forests
  • Water related ecosystem services of forests
  • Adapted forest technology as prerequisite for sustainable forestry
  • Utilization intensity as fine-tuning for the solution of trade-offs
  • Urbanization and forestry

Dr. Henning Meesenbur
Guest Editor

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

  • ecosystem services
  • water cycle
  • nutrient cycle
  • sustainability
  • trade-off
  • biomass production

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

2201 KiB  
Article
Is Biomass Accumulation in Forests an Option to Prevent Climate Change Induced Increases in Nitrate Concentrations in the North German Lowland?
by Stefan Fleck, Bernd Ahrends, Johannes Sutmöller, Matthias Albert, Jan Evers and Henning Meesenburg
Forests 2017, 8(6), 219; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8060219 - 21 Jun 2017
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 6037
Abstract
The North German Lowland is a region with locally high nitrate (NO3−) concentrations in seepage water, inducing an increased susceptibility to the effects of climate change. The future risk of rising NO3− concentrations in seepage water from forests [...] Read more.
The North German Lowland is a region with locally high nitrate (NO3−) concentrations in seepage water, inducing an increased susceptibility to the effects of climate change. The future risk of rising NO3− concentrations in seepage water from forests was quantified for four regions in the North German Lowland using climate projections and a modelling system comprising submodels for forest stand development (WaldPlaner), water budgets (WaSiM-ETH), and biogeochemical element cycles (VSD+). The simulations for the period from 1990 to 2070 included three different forest management scenarios (reference, biodiversity, and climate protection) and showed a general decrease in groundwater recharge which could hardly be influenced by any of the management options. The simulated soil organic matter stocks adequately represented their past increase as expected from the National Forest Soil Inventory (NFSI), but also showed a future decline under climate change conditions which leads to higher organic matter decomposition and a long-lasting increase of NO3− leaching from forest soils. While the climate protection oriented scenario shows the highest increase in NO3− concentrations during the projection period until 2070, the biodiversity scenario kept NO3− concentrations in seepage water below the legal thresholds in three of four selected model regions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Intensity of Forest Management—Selected Papers from FowiTa German Forest Sciences Conference (Sessions 10–14))
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2129 KiB  
Article
Quantification of Phosphorus Exports from a Small Forested Headwater-Catchment in the Eastern Ore Mountains, Germany
by Stefan Julich, Raphael Benning, Dorit Julich and Karl-Heinz Feger
Forests 2017, 8(6), 206; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8060206 - 10 Jun 2017
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 5121
Abstract
Phosphorus (P) export from forest soils is mainly driven by storm events, which induce rapid flow processes by preferential flow bypassing large parts of the soil matrix. However, little is known about the dynamics, magnitude, and driving processes of P exports into surface [...] Read more.
Phosphorus (P) export from forest soils is mainly driven by storm events, which induce rapid flow processes by preferential flow bypassing large parts of the soil matrix. However, little is known about the dynamics, magnitude, and driving processes of P exports into surface waters. In this paper, we present the results of a monitoring study in a small forested catchment (21 ha) situated in the low mountain ranges of Saxony, Germany. During the fixed schedule-sampling (weekly to bi-weekly sampling frequency for a three-year period), a mean total-P concentration of 8 μg·L−1 was measured. However, concentrations increased up to 203 μg·L−1 during individual storm flow events. Based on the analyzed concentrations and continuously measured discharge we calculated mean annual export rates of 19 to 44 g·ha−1·a−1 for the weekly sampling frequency with different load calculation methods. If events are included into the annual load calculation, the mean annual export fluxes can be up to 83 g·ha−1·a−1 based on the different load calculation methods. Predictions of total-P export rates based on a sampling strategy which does not consider short-term changes due to factors such as storms will substantially underestimate P exports. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Intensity of Forest Management—Selected Papers from FowiTa German Forest Sciences Conference (Sessions 10–14))
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286 KiB  
Article
Influence of Forest Harvest on Nitrate Concentration in Temperate Streams—A Meta-Analysis
by Anne-Christine Mupepele and Carsten F. Dormann
Forests 2017, 8(1), 5; https://doi.org/10.3390/f8010005 - 22 Dec 2016
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 5549
Abstract
Forest harvest alters natural nutrient cycles, which is reflected in stream water run-off from harvested catchments. Nitrate is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but increased concentrations in rivers, lakes, and oceans have contributed to eutrophication and anoxic conditions. Based on a literature [...] Read more.
Forest harvest alters natural nutrient cycles, which is reflected in stream water run-off from harvested catchments. Nitrate is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but increased concentrations in rivers, lakes, and oceans have contributed to eutrophication and anoxic conditions. Based on a literature review, we assessed the impact of three different harvest methods—clearcut, patchcut, and selective harvest—on nitrate concentrations in temperate forest streams. In a meta-analysis, the influence of harvest methods and additional environmental variables was analysed. Nitrate concentrations are significantly influenced by harvest methods, forest composition, site altitude, and time passed after the harvesting. The remaining unexplained between-site variability is small compared to the between-site variability explained by the model, indicating the model’s validity. The effect of forest harvest is most pronounced in coniferous and deciduous forests, where clearcuts and patchcuts result in high nitrate run-off three to five years after harvest. Mixed forest plots can compensate for clearcut and patchcut, and do not show a significantly increased nitrate concentration after harvest. Selective harvest at low intensities succeeded in maintaining nitrate levels similar to control or pre-harvest levels in coniferous and mixed forests, and showed a positive but not significant trend in deciduous forests. Coniferous and deciduous monocultures clearly face the problem that nitrate wash-out cannot be minimized by reducing clearcut to patchcut harvest, whereas mixed forests are more suitable to diminish nitrate wash-out in both clearcut and patchcut. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Intensity of Forest Management—Selected Papers from FowiTa German Forest Sciences Conference (Sessions 10–14))
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1568 KiB  
Article
The Biodiversity Benefits and Opportunity Costs of Plantation Forest Management: A Modelling Case Study of Pinus radiata in New Zealand
by Nhung Nghiem and Hop Tran
Forests 2016, 7(12), 297; https://doi.org/10.3390/f7120297 - 28 Nov 2016
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5805
Abstract
This study modelled the potential biodiversity benefits and the opportunity costs of a patch-clear-cutting strategy over a clear-cutting strategy for Pinus radiata in New Zealand. Patch-clear cutting is a special case of clear cutting involving the removal of all the trees from strips [...] Read more.
This study modelled the potential biodiversity benefits and the opportunity costs of a patch-clear-cutting strategy over a clear-cutting strategy for Pinus radiata in New Zealand. Patch-clear cutting is a special case of clear cutting involving the removal of all the trees from strips or patches within a stand, leaving the remainder uncut or clear cutting a series of strips or patches. A forest-level optimisation model was extended to include uncertainty in timber growth, plant diversity, and cutting costs. Using a species-area relationship and economies of cutting scale, the net present value and optimal rotation age under alternative management strategies were calculated. Results suggested that the optimal rotation ages were similar (24 and 25 years) for the two cutting strategies. Patch-clear cutting provided higher biodiversity benefits (i.e., 59 vs. 11 understorey plant species) with an opportunity cost of 27 NZD (18 USD) per extra plant species or 1250 NZD (820 USD) ha−1. However, the true benefits of patch-clear cutting would be even greater if other benefits of stand retention are included. Our research can potentially inform local decision making and inform international systems of payment for environmental services, such as the REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) program, to conserve biodiversity in developing countries with plantation forests. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Intensity of Forest Management—Selected Papers from FowiTa German Forest Sciences Conference (Sessions 10–14))
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