Publications

Criteria and indicators assessment is one of the ways to evaluate management strategies for mountain watersheds. One framework for this, Integrated Watershed Management (IWM), was employed at Chittagong Hill Tracts region of Bangladesh using a multi-criteria analysis approach. The IWM framework, consisting of the design and application of principles, criteria, indicators, and verifiers (PCIV), facilitates active participation by diverse professionals, experts, and interest groups in watershed management, to explicitly address the demands and problems to measure the complexity of problems in a transparent and understandable way. Management alternatives are developed to fulfill every key component of IWM considering the developed PCIV set and current situation of the study area. Different management strategies, each focusing on a different approach (biodiversity conservation, flood control, soil and water quality conservation, indigenous knowledge conservation, income generation, watershed conservation, and landscape conservation) were assessed qualitatively on their potential to improve the current situation according to each verifier of the criteria and indicator set. Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), including sensitivity analysis, was employed to identify an appropriate management strategy according to overall priorities (i.e., different weights of each principle) of key informants. The AHP process indicated that a strategy focused on conservation of biodiversity provided the best option to address watershed-related challenges in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh. © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2011.

Most commonly, sustainability indicator sets presented as lists do not take into account interactions among indicators in a systematic manner. Vice versa, existing environmental indicator systems do not provide a formalized approach for problem structuring and quantitative decision support. In this paper, techniques for considering indicator relationships are highlighted and a coupled approach between a qualitative and a quantitative method is analysed. Cognitive mapping (CM) is used for structuring indicators and three different causal maps are derived based on established sustainability concepts: (a) criteria and indicators (C&I hierarchy), (b) indicator network, and (c) Driving Force-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) system. These maps are transferred to the Analytic Network Process (ANP) to allow their application in multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA). In an application example, Pan-European indicators for sustainable forest management (SFM) are utilized in an ANP-based assessment. The effects of the model structure on the overall evaluation result are demonstrated by means of three reporting periods on Austrian forestry. In a comparative analysis of CM and ANP it is tested whether their measures of indicator significance do correspond. Both centrality in CM and single limited priorities in ANP have been reported to identify key indicators that play an important role in networks. We found out that the correspondence between CM and ANP is the stronger the more rigidly cause-effect relationships are interpreted, which is the case for the DPSIR system of SFM indicators. It is demonstrated that using indicator sets without consideration of the indicator interactions will cause shortcomings for evaluation and assessment procedures in SFM. Given strict and consistent definition of causal indicator relationships, a coupled use of CM and ANP is recommendable for both enhancing the process of problem structuring as well as supporting preference-based evaluation of decision alternatives. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

We assessed the probability of three major natural hazards-windthrow, drought, and forest fire-for Central and South-Eastern European forests which are major threats for the provision of forest goods and ecosystem services. In addition, we analyzed spatial distribution and implications for a future oriented management of forested landscapes. For estimating the probability of windthrow, we used rooting depth and average wind speed. Probabilities of drought and fire were calculated from climatic and total water balance during growing season. As an approximation to climate change scenarios, we used a simplified approach with a general increase of pET by 20%. Monitoring data from the pan-European forests crown condition program and observed burnt areas and hot spots from the European Forest Fire Information System were used to test the plausibility of probability maps. Regions with high probabilities of natural hazard are identified and management strategies to minimize probability of natural hazards are discussed. We suggest future research should focus on (i) estimating probabilities using process based models (including sensitivity analysis), (ii) defining probability in terms of economic loss, (iii) including biotic hazards, (iv) using more detailed data sets on natural hazards, forest inventories and climate change scenarios, and (v) developing a framework of adaptive risk management. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.

This article presents results of several studies in Middle, Eastern and Southeastern Europe on needs and application areas, desirable attributes and marketing potentials of forest management support tools. By comparing present and future application areas, a trend from sectoral planning towards landscape planning and integration of multiple stakeholder needs is emerging. In terms of conflicts, where management support tools might provide benefit, no clear tendencies were found, neither on local nor on regional level. In contrast, on national and European levels, support of the implementation of laws, directives, and regulations was found to be of highest importance. Following the user-requirements analysis, electronic tools supporting communication are preferred against paper-based instruments. The users identified most important attributes of optimized management support tools: (i) a broad accessibility for all users at any time should be guaranteed, (ii) the possibility to integrate iteratively experiences from case studies and from regional experts into the knowledge base (learning system) should be given, and (iii) a self-explanatory user interface is demanded, which is also suitable for users rather inexperienced with electronic tools. However, a market potential analysis revealed that the willingness to pay for management tools is very limited, although the participants specified realistic ranges of maximal amounts of money, which would be invested if the products were suitable and payment inevitable. To bridge the discrepancy between unwillingness to pay and the need to use management support tools, optimized financing or cooperation models between practice and science must be found. © 2009 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.

Nowadays forestry faces a complex management situation; the understanding of sustainable forest management (SFM) has gone far beyond the original meaning of sustainable yield of timber. SFM strategies should fulfil ecological, economic and social functions without causing damage to other ecosystems. In this understanding, forest management actions cannot be seen as isolated or mono-causal. In this case study, indicators for SFM are arranged in a Pressure-State-Response (PSR) framework at forest management unit level. This framework links pressures on the environment caused by human activities with changes of environmental state (condition) parameters. Forest management also responds to these changes by instituting environmental and economic measures to reduce pressures and restore natural resources. The Analytic Network Process (ANP) is utilized to evaluate the performance of four management strategies with regard to the PSR framework on SFM. Priorities of indicators and alternatives are modelled with the ANP resulting from the interconnections to other indicators and their respective cumulative importance. The approach allows for more detailed information on the network of human influences and their impacts on forest ecosystems and goes beyond the limitations of flat-dimensioned indicator sets. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Population viability risk management (PVRM) provides a framework for explicitly including qualitative information about the possible outcomes of a management decision with regard to the viability of an endangered population in conservation management. Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques enables managers to select the most preferred choice of action in a context where several criteria apply simultaneously. In that context a combined approach of the PVRM concept and a MCDM technique is presented for the development, evaluation and finally ranking of the in situ conservation strategies. We discuss the concept based on a case study for the maintenance of a gene conservation forest of an English yew population (Taxus baccata L.) in Styria, Austria. As part of the PVRM the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is used to evaluate six conservation strategies with regard to the viability of the yew population. The viability of the population is evaluated based on the results of an analysis of the current environmental, social and economical state and a characterization of the ecological parameters of its population. The most significant risk factors (illegal cutting, browsing by game, tree competition, light availability and genetic sustainability) are structured and prioritised according to their impact on the viability of the yew population applying the AHP. Effects of the six conservation strategies on the viability of the yew population are determined through a qualitative assessment of the probability of a decrease of the population along with four different environmental scenarios. In this context strategy IV combining selective thinning, protection measures, game control with public relation activities seems to be the most effective alternative. The benefits of the combined approach of the PVRM concept with the AHP for the rational analysis of conservation strategies for this endangered tree species are discussed. © 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Over the previous decade, sustainable forest management (SFM) has become a highly relevant topic both in forest and environmental policy. Criteria and indicators (C&I) are primarily used in implementing the principles of SFM at national, regional, and at forest management unit levels. In turning SFM from a conceptual framework into applicable guidelines at the operational scale, several limitations have to be acknowledged: (i) partial lack of knowledge, (ii) deficits about dependencies and feedbacks among system components represented by C&I, and (iii) knowledge gaps regarding impacts and related uncertainties. Several methodologies have been proposed to implement C&I-based SFM. Multi-criteria analysis is often used to analyze and evaluate multiple C&I approaches. This study compares two different multi-criteria analysis approaches: the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) with a hierarchical structure and the analytic network process (ANP) with a network structure. Comparisons are made for evaluating sustainable management strategies at forest management-unit level by using a C&I approach based on the Pan-European guidelines for SFM. AHP and ANP are used to compare four different strategic management options with a set of six criteria and 43 indicators. Differences in evaluation results between AHP and ANP are discussed, as well as strengths and weaknesses of both approaches for SFM. Needs and demands are derived for successful future applications in forestry decision-making. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Forestry extension services in southern Austria currently provide forest resource management consultation for landowners. Given the complexity of analysis and selection of silvicultural treatment alternatives for Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) karst.) stands in this region, consultants have a need for computer-based analytical support. DSD v1.1 (Decision Support Dobrova) was specifically designed to meet this need. In close cooperation with local forest authorities, a generic model of the consultation process was developed. DSD v1.1 supports a planning process which covers the phases of decision-making: (i) identification of current states regarding site and stand conditions, (ii) identification of owners expectations and preferences regarding a set of objectives, (iii) selection and evaluation of management alternatives. The core concept is that relevant information regarding the characterization of alternatives is prefabricated and stored in a database. Various stand treatment programs for representative stands were simulated with a distance-dependent individual tree growth model. The user can link sites, species and stand treatment programs, costs and timber prices, and evaluate these decision alternatives with regard to his own goal preferences by means of an additive utility model which is based on the analytic hierarchy process. Reporting facilities of the software tool include on-screen graphs and tables as well as printed reports. The software is implemented in C++ as a client/server architecture with Oracle® as relational database management system. The process itself is fully encapsulated in the server utilizing the PL/SQL capabilities from Oracle®. Initial feedback from end-users has been encouraging. The software tool is robust and functional. Limitations are the current format of reports and missing on-line help and documentation services. Through its modular concept the DSD-framework can easily be adapted to other geographic regions. © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

This, the second special issue on DSSs is entitled “Decision-Support Systems for Forest Management” presents contributions from a trans-disciplinary Conference on decision support in multiple-purpose forestry, held at the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences in Vienna, April 23–25, 2003. A major objective of the Conference was to review the “state of the art” in the field of decision support in forest management, bringing together experiences gained in the United States and Canada with the longer tradition of forestry and current approaches to DSSs for forest management in Europe. Participants from 28 countries presented the current state of knowledge in 70 oral presentations, including 6 keynotes, and 51 posters. Selected contributions from the Conference have been compiled in this special issue of Computers and Electronics in Agriculture and a companion issue of Forest Ecology and Management.

The development and application of a spatial decision support system (SDSS) for silvicultural planning in forests managed for sustained yield of water resources is presented. The implementation of core components of the SDSS is described. As an example, the development of a decision model for selecting the best silvicultural treatment option for stands Scheduled for natural regeneration is discussed. The decision problem is factorized into decisions on the future species mixture (GSO) and on an appropriate regeneration method (RM). A priori defined sets of alternatives (nine species mixtures, Seven regeneration methods) are evaluated with respect to a set of stand-specific partial management objectives (water production, timber production, conservation of biodiversity, recreation, protection against rockfall and avalanches) by further decomposing the partial objectives into decision Criteria. To circumvent the lack of quantitative knowledge on the Value of different species mixtures and regeneration methods with respect to the managemera objectives, pair-wise comparisons of decision alternatives based on qualitative expert knowledge are utilized to compute preference values. An additive multiple-attribute preference model is used to aggregate the preferences at different levels of the decision hierarchy. The combination of GSO and RM which simultaneously maximizes the expected utility and satisfies all Constraints of the forest decision maker is selected as the overall best solution. © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V.