A new proposal for the MCPFE Forest Types classification Feasibility and issues of country reporting Marco Marchetti Italian Academy of Forest Sciences EcoGeoFor – Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Geomatics, University of Molise, Italy European forest area =1004 million ha if we don’t take into account the variability in natural conditions and anthropogenic influences affecting MCPFE indicators Can we correctly evaluate the state of European forests? Today MCPFE reporting: in a country with high ecological diversity… reporting data by BROADLEAVED FOREST makes somewhat fruitless the effort in collecting and processing data on growing stock, tree specie composition, deadwood! deciduous+evergreen forest together no consideration of ecological differences between forest communities (mesophytic/thermophilous/mediterranean sclerophyllous) The European forest types Categories and types for sustainable forest management reporting and policy: Product of an international consortium lead by the Italian Academy of Forest Sciences under EEA contract http://www.eea.europa.eu/ European Forest Types = 14 classes of European forests growing under relatively homogeneous ecological conditions (climatic, edaphic) and levels of anthropogenic modification Applications: 1. possible future reporting of the 7 forest types based MCPFE indicators 2. forest monitoring, with particular reference to large scale forest biodiversity assessments Classification scheme 14 Top level classes for the MCPFE reporting (CATEGORIES) 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 9 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 13 14 14 76 low level classes (TYPES) to describe and document the variety of forest communities that each category comprises Types are intended to stratify national forest data, the 14 categories for data evaluation and international reporting 14 Categories Higher naturalness 1. Boreal forest 2. Hemiboreal and nemoral coniferous and mixed broadleaved-coniferous forest 3. Alpine coniferous forest 4. Acidophilous oak and oak-birch forest 5. Mesophytic deciduous forest 6. Beech forest 7. Montainous beech forest 8. Thermophilous deciduous forest 9. Broadleaved evergreen forest 10. Coniferous forests of the Mediterranean, Anatolian and Macaronesian regions 11. Mire and swamp forest 12. Floodplain forest 13. Non-riverine alder, birch or aspen forest Lowest naturalness 14. Plantations and self-sown exotic forest 13 classes of forest dominated by native tree species Important breaking point of naturalness COVERAGE: forest land as defined in FAO (2004) 76 Types CATEGORIES 1-13 delineation: - changes of ecological forest zones influencing the natural tree-species composition, the length of the growing season (i.e. growing stock), decomposition rate and natural disturbance regimes (i.e deadwood type and amount) - variation in management systems Cat. 14 - Plantations and self-sown exotic forest (planted forest – plantations & planted/seeded component of semi-natural - in the newly proposed FRA reporting tables from Kotka V ?!): - simplification of forest structure (monospecific, regularly tree spacing) - relevant modification in site species composition, when the native vegetation is replaced by forest stands predominantly consisting of non-native (or non-indigenous, exotic, introduced) trees Estimated number of categories per countries, based on a preliminary assessment on ICP level I plots the increased reporting effort is seemingly moderate: the shift will be from the current 3 classes to, on average, 6 reporting categories per country Classification keys • The European Forest Types are provided with a classification key allowing a systematic cross-link (poststratification) of national forest data (e.g. NFIs, forest management plans) to categories and types, based on: – simple ecological information (biogeographic region, water regime, site edaphic condition) – forest dominant tree species (as resulting from NFIs plots dbh data) Nomenclature • The classification key is integrated by a nomenclature, a descriptive frame to characterise categories and types, that includes: – the definition of the category – the geographical distribution of the category – Types descriptions • Types are also referenced to: – Eunis III level classes – EU Habitats Directive Annex I (92/43/EEC) Example of type description Feasibility of the scheme Cross-linking country data to European Forest Types COST action E43 Harmonisation of National Forest Inventories in Europe: tecniques for common reporting Data from a questionnarie circulated within 20 European countries Countries without forest types scheme in NFIs Countries with forest types scheme in NFIs Countries not covered by the questionnarie YES NO 0 5 10 15 20 Most of the European countries included in the survey declare they can easily link NFIs data to European Forest Types A number of countries (Italy, France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Spain, Ireland) volunteered to classify NFIs raw data (plots) by European Forest Types Results will be delivered to the COST ACTION by june 2007 A second way to cross-link NFIs field plots to EFTs are Label to label bridging functions • applicable and convenient in the countries having already NFIs forest types schemes to stratify ground plots, provided that: such classifications are grounded on same diagnostic criteria as the European forest types (e.g. actual forest vegetation, forest tree species composition, site ecological conditions, etc) Label to label bridging function: Italy 14 first level classes (CATEGORIES) 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 9 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 13 14 14 75 second level classes (TYPES) 76 second level classes (TYPES) Cross-reference at the type level Italian NFIs forest types 20 classes of semi-natural forests grounded on forest physiognomy; 3 classes corresponding to forest plantations EUROPEAN FOREST TYPES ITALIAN NFI FOREST TYPES CATEGORY TYPE CLASS (code). Dominant species 3. Alpine coniferous forest 3.1 Subalpine larch-arolla pine and dwarf pine forests 1. Larch, Arolla 3.2 Subalpine and montane spruce and montane mixed spruce-fir mixed forests 2. Spruce 3.3 Scots pine and Black pine forests 4. Scots pine 4. Mountain pine 3. Fir 5. Black pine 4. Acidophilous oak and oak birch forest 4.1 Acidophilous oak-dominated (Q. petraea, Q. robur) 9. Sessile oak, Peduncolate oak 5. Mesophytic deciduos forest 5.2 Sessile oak-hornbeam forest 12. Horn-beam 5.8 Ravine and slope forest 14. Maple, lime 6. Beech forest 6.3 Subatlantic submontane beech forests 8. Beech 7. Montane beech forest 7.3 Apennine-Corsican montane beech forests 8. Beech, fir STRATIFICATION OF NFIs plots by categories European Forest Types nomenclature + key by field survey plots are assigned to NFI forest types dominant species & basic ecological information EUROPEAN FOREST TYPES ITALIAN NFI FOREST TYPES CATEGORY TYPE CLASS (code). Dominant species 12. Floodplain forest 12.1/2 Riparian/fluvial forest 13. Alders 12.1/2 Riparian/fluvial forest 13. Aspen 12.1 Riparian forest 13. Willow 12.3 Mediterranean and Macaronesian riparian forest 13. Plane tree 13.2 Italian Alder forest 14. Italian alder 13.4 Southern boreal birch forest 14. Birch 14.1 Plantation of site-native species 19. Plantations of native broadleaves (e.g. cherry, walnut) 13. Non-riverine alder, birch or aspen forest 14. Plantatations and self-sown exotic forest 20. Plantations of native conifers 14.2 Plantations of not-site-native species and self-sown exotic forest 14. Self-sown stands of Robinia pseudoacacia, Ailanthus altissima 18. Plantation of Popolus clones 19. Plantations of Eucalyptus 20. Plantations of Pseudotsuga menziesii or Pinus radiata or of other exotic conifers ITALY = 11 categories classification of forest vegetation communities BASED ON FOREST MANAGEMENT PLANS DATA Label to label bridging function: Slovenia The way ahead: MCPFE reporting • The European Forest Types have been presented and discussed in the MCPFE Workshop on “Pan-European understanding of forest classification” (November 2006, Bled Slovenia) • The system was recognized as scientifically sound and bridging functions developed in Italy/Slovenia were regarded as proofs of the feasibility of the scheme at country level: no additional data collection is required to link avalaible dbs to European Forest Types Reccomendations from the MCPFE Workshop • To present the proposed 14 main Categories of the ‘European Forest Types’ for consideration and if possible for adoption by the MCPFE Expert Level Meeting (5-6 June 2007) as the standard for the seven MCPFE indicators which require reporting ‘by forest type’ • Actions (training at a regional level, development of tools to cross-references national forest type classifications to the proposed pan-European scheme) are needed in order to strengthen capacity and to facilitate implementation in many countries • The case-studies (Italy, Slovenia) showed that most of the data needed to classify forests into the Forest Types are readily available in most countries, however, it was recommended that more case-studies would be valuable (cf. in this direction goes the COST ACTION test) Final remark Experts concluded that some additional forest types would be useful in some categories when validation at a national level suggested such a need and that for certain forest types some definitions need more clarification and should be redefined: e.g. the Slovenian evaluation showed the need of a ‘silver fir forest’ type Category 14, Plantations and self sown exotic forest; this category would need further elaboration, e.g. by adding types to separate highly managed plantations of non-native species from more ‘naturalized’ plantations, which may host more natural biodiversity (e.g. Picea sitkensis old plantations in UK) Before accomodating new types into the scheme, would not be better to wait for a first round of application of the scheme at EU level (to have a better overview of new types needed at EU level)? The question is not to agree on a classification fully reflecting the variety of forest condition at country level (44 countries!) but at the pan-European one! THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION