Forest Restoration and Regeneration after Natural Disasters
A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Natural Hazards and Risk Management".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 January 2023) | Viewed by 4528
Special Issue Editors
Interests: applied ecology; forest ecology; forest restoration
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The forests are of Earth’s most biodiverse and carbon-dense ecosystems and provide important ecosystem services at both local and global scale (i.e., climate regulation, carbon cycling, food resources). Tropical forests cover only 8% of Earth’s land surface but harbor more than half of terrestrial biodiversity and store one-third of terrestrial carbon. However, natural disasters (i.e., fire, hurricanes, landslides, volcanic eruptions) are important drivers that threaten forest ecosystems. They can trigger biodiversity loss and forest degradation, and consequently the release of greenhouse gas emissions and increased effects of global climate change. Thus, integrating the knowledge and understanding of how multiple factors shape forest recovery after natural disasters can significantly increase the effectiveness of attempts to mitigate climate and biodiversity crises. Therefore, forest restoration is an important global objective to safeguard the ongoing contributions to people and biodiversity during the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Specifically, understanding the processes related to natural forest recovery is essential to improve management criteria for different restoration methods. Passive restoration, which removes the source of disturbance to promote natural regeneration, has been demonstrated as the most cost-effective method for forest recovery; meanwhile, active restoration is recommended in degraded areas where natural regeneration is limited. Both passive and active restoration methods have been important complementary methods. We highlight the need to develop cost-effective restoration approaches and provide high levels of direct financial benefits to increase the persistence of secondary forests and the protection of old-growth forests. There have also been significant advances in the knowledge and technology of ecological restoration that have remarkably improved forest recovery after natural disasters. However, these developments are still poorly understood throughout the world.
This Special Issue aims to increase our understanding of how natural disasters affect forest ecosystems' diversity, structure, functioning, and dynamics, providing knowledge to inform adaptation strategies for the active and passive restoration, rehabilitation, and sustainable forest management. We encourage contributions from around the world in all fields of study related to the ecological restoration of forest ecosystems based on methods typically used in contrasting context-dependent conditions.
Prof. Dr. Sebastião Venâncio Martins
Dr. Pedro Manuel Villa
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
- active restoration
- assisted natural regeneration
- biodiversity recovery
- climate change
- ecological disasters
- fire impacts
- forest resilience
- forest management practices
- forest resistance
- forest disturbance
- forest restoration
- ecosystem services
- natural regeneration
- passive restoration
- secondary succession
- second-growth forest
