Designing And Conducting A Forest Inventory – Case: 9th National Forest Inventory Of Finland

About this book

Designing and Conducting a Forest Inventory – Case: 9th National Forest Inventory of Finland demonstrates in detail all phases of the 9th National Forest Inventory of Finland (1996-2003): the planning of the sampling design, measurements, estimation methods and results. The inventory knowledge accumulated during almost one hundred years is consolidated in the book. The purpose of the numerous examples of results is to demonstrate the diversity of the estimates and content of a national forest inventory.

The most recent results include the assessment of the indicators describing the biodiversity of forests. The Finnish NFI has been and is a model for many countries worldwide. The methods and results of Designing and Conducting a Forest Inventory – Case: 9th National Forest Inventory of Finland are set in the international context and are applicable globally.

Designing and Conducting a Forest Inventory – Case: 9th National Forest Inventory of Finland provides a valuable information source for countries, institutions and researchers planning own inventories as well as modifying the existing ones, or seeking the applicable definitions and estimation methods to use in their own inventories.

Contents

Preface
Acknowledgements

1. Introduction
1.1 Climatic conditions and forests of Finland
1.2 Early attempts to assess forest resources
1.3 The development of the National Forest Inventories in Finland
1.4 The use of the forest inventory results in forest policy
1.5 The use of national forest inventory data in the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol reporting
1.6 The role of national forest inventory in assessing the status of biodiversity
1.7 The content and structure of the book, further results of NFI9

2. Design and Measurements
2.1 Field sampling design
2.1.1 Sampling simulation
2.1.2 South Finland
2.1.3 North Finland (excluding North Lapland)
2.1.4 North Lapland
2.2 Assessment units
2.2.1 Angle count plots
2.2.2 Stands
2.2.3 Other assessment units
2.3 Locating the field plots
2.4 Administrative information
2.5 Land use and classification of forestry land
2.6 Site variables
2.7 Soil variables
2.8 Drainage situation
2.9 Taxation class
2.10 Retention trees to maintain biodiversity of forests
2.11 Description of the growing stock of the stand
2.12 Damages
2.13 Silvicultural quality of stand
2.14 Accomplished and proposed measures
2.15 Key habitat characteristics
2.16 Tally tree measurements
2.17 Epiphytic lichens
2.18 Keystone tree species
2.19 All tree species
2.20 Dead wood measurements
2.21 Equipment for measurements
2.22 A correction to the height measurements of year 2001
2.22.1 The height correction models for the sample trees not re-measured
2.22.2 Models for correcting the height increments
2.23 Training and quality assurance
2.24 The workload and costs

3. Estimation Methods
3.1 Estimation of areas
3.2 Estimation of the current growing stock
3.2.1 Mean values per area unit
3.2.2 Mean diameters
3.2.3 Predicting sample tree form factors, volumes and timber assortment proportions
3.2.4 Predicting form heights for tally trees
3.3 Estimation of volume increment
3.3.1 Increment of a sample tree
3.3.2 Increment of survivor trees
3.3.3 Increment of drain
3.3.4 Total increment
3.4 Estimation of the volume of dead wood
3.5 Assessment of sampling error
3.5.1 Sampling error of ratio estimators
3.5.2 Sampling error of total volumes and aggregates
3.6 Thematic maps

4. Results
4.1 The areas of land use classes and their development
4.1.1 Forestry land
4.1.2 Forest land
4.1.3 Land classes based on FAO definitions
4.1.4 Land use changes based on the observations on the plot
4.1.5 Ownership information
4.2 Restrictions on forestry and area available for wood production
4.3 Soil classification and the areas of site fertility classes on mineral soils
4.4 Peatlands and their site classes
4.4.1 Peatland area and its changes
4.4.2 Land classes of peatlands
4.4.3 Drainage situation of peatlands
4.4.4 Principal site classes and site fertility classes on peatland soils
4.4.5 The thickness of the peat layer
4.5 Tree species dominance and composition
4.5.1 The dominant tree species
4.5.2. Tree species dominance by site fertility classes
4.5.3 Tree species mixtures
4.6 Age and development classes
4.6.1 The age distributions of stands and their changes
4.6.2 The development classes of stands and their changes
4.7 Growing stock
4.7.1 Mean volume estimates by tree species
4.7.2 Total growing stock estimates
4.7.3 Volume estimates of saw-timber
4.8. Volume increment
4.8.1. Increment estimates
4.8.2. Uncertainties in increment estimates and comparisons with estimates from earlier inventories
4.8.2.1 Sampling error
4.8.2.2 Changes in definitions, measurements, and estimation methods
4.8.2.3 Annual variation in increment
4.8.3. Forest balance
4.8.4. Changes in annual volume increment estimates since the 1950s
4.8.4.1 Changes in annual volume increment by age classes on mineral soils
4.8.4.2 Changes in annual volume increment estimates on peatland soil forests since the 1950s and the effect of peatland forestry on the increment
4.9 Protected areas
4.10 Forest damage
4.11 Silvicultural quality of forests
4.11.1 Silvicultural quality
4.11.2 Methods and success of regeneration
4.12 Management activities
4.12.1 Accomplished and proposed cuttings
4.12.2 Accomplished and proposed silvicultural measures
4.12.3 Drainage operations
4.13 Biodiversity indicators
4.13.1 Biodiversity measurements in NFI
4.13.2 Key habitats
4.13.3 Dead wood
4.13.3.1 The volume and quality of dead wood
4.13.3.2 Dead wood in forests not available for wood production
4.13.3.3 The volume of usable dead wood
4.13.4 Keystone tree species
4.13.5 Retention trees

5. Discussion
5.1 The development of volume and increment:, new estimates from NFI9
5.2 Estimation and error estimation
5.3 Comparisons of the NFI8 and NFI9 designs
5.4 Some experiences of the new measurements
5.5 Experiences with the new measurement devices
5.6 Changes in the design for NFI10

Appendix
References
Subject Index