Modeling of multiple forest use under different management scenarios

Abstract

Abstract The concept of multiple forest use envisages the implementation of several types of forest use considering ecological and social aspects. The question arises about the compatibility of harvesting timber, non-wood resources, and getting ecosystem services provided by forests. This question can by answered by means of computer modeling of forest dynamics at different patterns of silviculatural activities. The paper presents the ecologo-physiological simulation model FORRUS-S designed for the forecast and analysis of forest stand dynamics, including the logging-induced one, and complemented by special blocks for the computation of non-wood resources and recreational potential. The model was run for three scenarios: natural development, selective cutting, and intensive forest use, and applied to three objects in two natural zones of Russia. The scenario envisaging selective form of logging is the most convenient for multiple forest use. Intensive pattern of forest management is partially compatible with food resources and conflicts with the recreational potential of a territory. The model can be applied for both the research properties (finding correlations between stand characteristics and intensity of forest use) and the selection of optimal pattern of forest management for a concrete economic entity.