Ecological assessment of forest management approaches to develop resilient forests in the face of global change in Central Europe

Abstract

The effects of global change pose major challenges for both practical forest management and forest ecological research if European forests are to be managed in such a way that they can continue to provide their many services to people in the future. The number of studies on impacts of global change on forest ecosystems has increased enormously over the last decade, but the evidence on how to improve the resilience and resistance of forests is of varying quality and in some cases contradictory. For that reason a group of experts from the Ecological Society of Germany, Austria and Switzerland (GfOe), Section Forest Ecology decided to review the relevant scientific information and to assess its degree of confidence to provide guidance for future forest adaption options. Our review of research on the impact of global change on European forests and associated forest management strategies to adapt forests identified 35 scientific statements that were grouped into the following thematic priorities: (1) selection of tree species and promoting diversity, (2) genetics, (3) forest structures, (4) forest functions, ecosystem services and nature’s contribution to the lives of people, (5) silvicultural systems, (6) natural regeneration, successional processes and wildlife management, and (7) future research and monitoring methods. Our analyses showed that most of the statements reflect validated research findings. However, many of them were incomplete and would not yet allow transfer to broad application in the form of silvicultural adaptation strategies. Future studies should focus on the identification of climate-resilient tree species and provenances, their regeneration processes and their resistance to pathogens and pests under drought conditions. Species- and site-specific scientific findings must be translated into silvicultural techniques/measures such as the determination of tree species mixtures, thinning and harvesting intensities and tree regeneration methods. We identified significant gaps in the application of forest monitoring practices needed to obtain reliable information on the provision of ecosystem goods and services. This review provides a comprehensive basis to develop a roadmap for future forest adaptation research to improve our level of confidence for science-based management recommendations.