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WESTFOREST

A-GIS-based multi-objective decision support system for the optimal management of forests on sensitive sites

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DOWNLOAD 2009 REPORT IN IRISH (pdf 172Kb) 

PROJECT TEAM
Prof. Maarten Nieuwenhuis, University College Dublin*
Charles Harper, University College Dublin
Dr Dermot Tiernan, Coillte
Stephen Clifford, University College Dublin
Brian Clifford, University College Dublin

* Email: maarten.nieuwenhuis@ucd.ie

COMPLETION DATE: August 2012

BACKGROUND
There are many forests planted on western peatlands of Ireland.Their sustainable management is a complex issue. The range of critical environmental and social constraints that needs to be taken into account, as well as the age distribution of the stands, add to the factors to consider in making decisions about the future of these forests. Decision support tools to facilitate the management of stands, based on catchment sensitivity, soil type, National Heritage Areas, amenity provision, economic potential and social acceptability, merit investigation. This applies particularly to forests established on peatlands and other environmentally sensitive areas, where felling and reforestation decisions need to take into account a wide range of economic, social and environmental factors.

OBJECTIVES
The project aims to develop:

  •     a GIS system that contains spatial, contextual and qualitative information on restrictions applicable to western peatland forests (WPFs).
  •     a matrix of the known impacts and restrictions associated with the range of potential forest management practices and land use changes.
  •     a decision support system (DSS) for the sustainable management and redesign of WPFs.
  •     an optimisation module for the DSS to evaluate different courses of action.
  •     a forest management plan for WPFs, based on the optimal DSS prescriptions, drawn up in the context of arrangements with the Forest Service, and compatible with an integrated land use policy.

    PROGRESS
    In order to create a robust decision support system, the study area needed to be as multifaceted as possible, covering environmental, social and economic issues. To this end, two study areas were identified: Nephin Forest and Glennamong Forest in Co Mayo. These areas are near to one another, approximately 16 km from the town of Newport in Co Mayo. The main soil type in Nephin Forest is blanket peat, with patches of mineral soil derived from quartzite, while Glennamong has peat soils over schist and gneiss. Current management focus in Nephin is concerned with timber production in conjunction with a strong emphasis on biodiversity conservation in less fertile areas. Glennamong forest is less focused on timber production due to fisheries restrictions.
    Coillte has provided GIS coverage of these areas, consisting of inventory data as well as soil and water data from the EPA. These data will serve as the initial building blocks for the creation of the DSS. Additional study areas may be added as the project proceeds, to ensure that the resulting DSS can be applied to any medium to large scale forest management planning situation.
    As part of the gathering of information, team members have joined the COST Action FP0804 Forest Management Decision Support Systems (FORSYS). This Europe-wide action aims to define a framework for decision making for sustainable multifunctional forest management. The forum will provide a platform to source information and learn from experiences from others who are developing DDS for forest management.

    ACTIVITIES PLANNED
  •     Completion of literature review.
  •     Development and review of GIS methodologies.
  •     Sourcing of additional data from international sources.
  •     Creation of DDS matrix.
  •     Attend the conference of the Association of American Geographers, April 2010.

    OUTPUTS
    Brian Clifford has been accepted to present a paper at the AAG (Association of American Geographers) annual conference 2010. The meeting will be held in Washington DC, 14-18 April 2010.
    Nieuwenhuis, M. 2009. COFORD's PLANSFM Research Programme: Planning and Implementation of Sustainable Forest Management. Presentation to the COFORD Council, AFBI Field station, Hillsborough, Co Down, 24 July 2009.
    Harper, C. and Nieuwenhuis, M. 2009. PLANSFM - Planning and implementation of sustainable forest management. [Poster presentation.] UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine Research Day, 8 December 2009.

    2008 report

    PROJECT TEAM
    Prof. Maarten Nieuwenhuis, University College Dublin*
    Dr Dermot Tiernan, Coillte
    Stephen Clifford, University College Dublin

    * Email: maarten.nieuwenhuis@ucd.ie

    COMPLETION DATE: December 2011

    BACKGROUND
    Many forests have been planted on the western peatlands of Ireland and their sustainable management is a complex problem. The range of critical environmental and social constraints that needs to be taken into account, as well as the age distribution of the stands, add to the factors to consider in making decisions about the future options for these forests. Decision support tools to facilitate the management of stands, based on, among others, catchment sensitivity, soil type, National Heritage Areas, amenity provision, economic potential and social acceptability merit investigation. This applies particularly to forests established on peatlands and other environmentally sensitive areas, where felling and reforestation decisions need to take into account a wide range of economic, environmental and social factors.

    OBJECTIVES
    The project aims to develop:

  •     a GIS system that contains spatial, contextual and qualitative information on restrictions applicable to the western peatland forests (WPFs).
  •     a matrix of the known impacts and restrictions associated with the range of potential forest management practices and land use changes.
  •     a decision support system (DSS) for the sustainable management and redesign of WPFs.
  •     an optimisation module for the DSS, for the production of alternative plans.
  •     a forest management plan for the WPFs, based on the optimal DSS prescriptions, drawn up in the context of arrangements with the Forest Service, and compatible with an integrated, shared land use policy.

    PROGRESS
  •     Investigated GIS DSSs available within the industry.
  •     Various topics within forest planning were studied, including forest management and water quality, the biomass market, the forest industry in Ireland, employment within forestry, and the history of the western peatland forests.
  •     Reviewed the DSS produced by Coillte for the western peatland area as part of a previous project.
  •     Initial research into restrictions and limitations of forest planning in the western peatlands area.
  •     Field visits to western Ireland were conducted to look at various issues associated with forestry in the area, such as the general physical conditions on the sites, incentives for conversion from farming to forestry, forest management issues on sensitive sites, and to review Sitka spruce field spacing trials in western Ireland.
  •     Established contact with researchers in western Canada who are developing forest management models based on Cellular Automata and agent-based modelling.

    ACTIVITIES PLANNED
  •     Compare different decision support systems used in forestry.
  •     Assess the potential of cellular automata in decision support systems, e.g. Moland.
  •     Develop methodology for a decision support system. Potential methodologies include Cellular Automata and agent-based modelling.
  •     Develop and populate the forest management and land use change impact matrix.

    OUTPUTS
    Nieuwenhuis, M. and Tiernan, D. 2007. WESTFOREST - a GIS-based multi-objective decision support system for the sustainable management of forests on sensitive sites. Irish Timber and Forestry 16(6): 20 - 22.

    Current Internet Presence
    http://www.ucd.ie/forestry website describing WESTFOREST in the context of the PLANSFM research programme (due for launch in March 2009).