System Identification Principles In Studies Of Forest Dynamics

The aim of this book is to improve the understanding of forest dynamics and the sustainable management of forest ecosystems. How do tree crowns, trees or entire forest stands respond to thinning in the long term? What effect do tree species mixtures and multi-layering have on the productivity and stability of trees, stands or forest enterprises? How do tree and stand growth respond to stress factors such as climate change or air pollution? Furthermore, in the event that one has acquired knowledge about the effects of thinning, mixture and stress, how can one make that knowledge applicable to decision-making in forestry practice? The experimental designs, analytical methods, general relationships and models for answering questions of this kind are the focus of this book. Given the structures dealt with, which range from plant organs to the tree, stand and enterprise levels, and the processes analysed in a time frame of days or months to decades or even centuries, this book is directed at all readers interested in trees, forest stands and forest ecosystems. This work has been compiled for students, scientists, lecturers, forest planners, forest managers, and consultants.

As J understand it, a book Preface is where the author explains to the reader how the book in hand came about, something of the personal reasons for having inflicted such extended duress on one's self to complete the manllscript. and other items that are fit to say but do not fit in the text. This book had its conceptual beginnings in the 1970's wit h my 'studies in scientific synthesis at the North Central Forest Experiment Station, St. Paul, Minnesota. Ours is, clearly, the age of analysis. But, I felt, we must soon begin frameworks for synthesis, or a synthesis would never be possible. In short, I hoped to develop 'interaction' as an integrative principle in forestry. As work progressed on the manuscript, other subthemes developed. First, there was the vague feeling on my part that the forestry profession was losing ground in the contest to see who should manage the forests of the world. This was happening not because foresters do not know how to manage forests in a reasonable manner, but because the public seemed to be loosing faith in the judgement of foresters as professional, responsible, wise land managers. Several well-known incidents of poor judgement in timber harvesting methods on national forests in the United States did little to help the forester's image.