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Review

Challenges Facing the Improvement of Forest Management in the Hyrcanian Forests of Iran

1
Department of Forest Resources Management, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
2
Department of Forestry and Forest Economics, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj 146899-5513, Iran
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Forests 2022, 13(12), 2180; https://doi.org/10.3390/f13122180
Submission received: 7 September 2022 / Revised: 30 November 2022 / Accepted: 13 December 2022 / Published: 19 December 2022
(This article belongs to the Section Forest Ecology and Management)

Abstract

We address two main challenges facing the implementation of sustainable forest management (SFM) in the Hyrcanian forest of Iran: inconsistent forest policy and the use of outdated science and techniques. We propose the Sustainable Hyrcanian Forest Management Model (SHFMM) as the best currently available solution to achieve improved management of the northern forests of Iran. The management of the Hyrcanian forests suffers from a lack of scientific knowledge and state-of-the-art technologies. There is a pronounced difference in the mindsets of older and new-school forestry scholars regarding how to approach these deficiencies: the old-school mentality prefers conventional forestry despite its limitations, whereas more recently trained scholars believe that the adoption of 21st-century technological advances would lead to improved management. The lack of trust between policymakers and local communities is another significant challenge and has resulted in conflicts over management practices in the Hyrcanian forests. We suggest that the Hyrcanian Sustainable Forest management model (SHFMM) would provide a hierarchical framework for making decisions. Using this model, each sector—whether state or private—is empowered to make decisions. Further, it encourages all sectors to work together in its holistic implementation. The SHFMM is based on the outcomes of several independent studies of forest management in the Hyrcanian forest. Despite its site specificity, many lessons learned during its development could be applied elsewhere.
Keywords: sustainable forest management; the Hyrcanian sustainable forest management model; forest science; forest technology; Analytic Hierarchy Process; Iran sustainable forest management; the Hyrcanian sustainable forest management model; forest science; forest technology; Analytic Hierarchy Process; Iran

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MDPI and ACS Style

Goushehgir, Z.; Feghhi, J.; Innes, J.L. Challenges Facing the Improvement of Forest Management in the Hyrcanian Forests of Iran. Forests 2022, 13, 2180. https://doi.org/10.3390/f13122180

AMA Style

Goushehgir Z, Feghhi J, Innes JL. Challenges Facing the Improvement of Forest Management in the Hyrcanian Forests of Iran. Forests. 2022; 13(12):2180. https://doi.org/10.3390/f13122180

Chicago/Turabian Style

Goushehgir, Zahra, Jahangir Feghhi, and John L. Innes. 2022. "Challenges Facing the Improvement of Forest Management in the Hyrcanian Forests of Iran" Forests 13, no. 12: 2180. https://doi.org/10.3390/f13122180

APA Style

Goushehgir, Z., Feghhi, J., & Innes, J. L. (2022). Challenges Facing the Improvement of Forest Management in the Hyrcanian Forests of Iran. Forests, 13(12), 2180. https://doi.org/10.3390/f13122180

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