Forest Management and Productive Function

Abstract

AbstractForestry originated as a science under the need to manage forests for timber production in a sustainable way. Since then, sustainability has been broadened to include a variety of values and services recognised as important for human well-being, while at maintaining a relevant productive function. Hence, silviculture exists as a need of humankind and not as a need of forests for their continued existence. Sustainability is obtained by adopting correct silvicultural practices and adjusting the planning in view of the most suitable management able to ensure the goals, for example, carbon balance under climate warming scenarios. National forest inventories provide reliable information that is needed for effective forest policies. This chapter shows area estimates on some variables important for production, such as forest accessibility, presence of roads or tracks, terrain roughness and availability for wood supply (Sect. 8.2). Silviculture practices are actualised by forest utilisation modes, which are also related to timber logging modes. Section 8.3 shows the statistics on these variables as well as those on the growing stock and the biomass annually removed from the forest. Section 8.4 shows the estimates on presence of forest planning or regulations that influence productive aspects of forests. The type of planning may vary consistently due to overlapping authorities protecting forests in Italy, so the presence of planning at different levels was emphasised.