Project specialists elaborated new forest norms, i.e. requirements to forest planning, forest management and forest use, and implemented those norms on 18,400 hectares of the model forest area to ensure more intensive and sustainable forestry. New forest norms were developed on the basis of landscape ecological approaches and market mechanisms that provide for cost effectiveness of forest management and maintaining of ecological and social values of forests.

In Russia, planning and assigning of forest management operations has traditionally followed standard routines and averaged norms elaborated for vast territories without taking into account specific conditions of each forest stand. These standard forest norms are based on classification by the forest types and do not provide for the economic rationale or assessing practicality of carrying out of a particular forest operation.

Unlike standard regulations, forest norms developed by the Pskov Model Forest Project are based on landscape zoning and take into account specifics of bedrock composition and succession processes.

At the beginning of 2002, based on the new forest norms and forest dynamics forecasting Pskov Project specialists developed a long-term landscape ecological plan for managing 18,400 hectares of the model forest area. The new plan provides for activities that aim to improve the quality of growing forests, sustainable and economically effective forest use, maintaining of ecological and social forest values.

The ecological landscape plan incorporates well-balanced interests of all stakeholders – forest specialists, the community, forest company, and local administrative bodies.

1. New procedure of calculating forest use volume and allowable annual cut was applied with the help of forest dynamics forecasting model that makes forecasts over the whole rotation period (100 years).

2. The forest management plan was developed on the basis of new forest norms with priority given to potential profit (the value of harvested timber minus forest management and logging costs).

3. The best alternative among forest management scenarios was selected on the basis of the optimization procedure taking into account economic profit, environmental, silvicultural, and social requirements.

4. A number of forest management scenarios were developed given various priority objectives. A compromising scenario was selected through the procedure of public hearings, which ensured consideration for interests of different stakeholders.

5. A list of forest norms for determining the forest use volume was compiled.

6. The forest management plan contains a plan of felling operations for the upcoming 5 years.

The landscape ecological plan is based on new forest norms developed on the basis of the landscape approach. These norms prescribe management operations depending on individual features of each planning object. Management operations are correlated with various types of landscape sites, which reflect the forest status and dynamics and help determine target species and sylviculture methods necessary for producing the desired forest stands.

Thus, the landscape approach helped to significantly improve the quality of forest management planning.

The landscape ecological plan was developed using a geographic information system (GIS), i.e. a set of e-maps, images, and forest databases that helps to store and analyze forest data for the purpose of efficient forest resources management.

The current GIS version was updated with landscape maps and other thematic maps as well as compartment-based forest data and planning details. It is important that forest data can be constantly updated.

The geographic information system enables the application of remote sensing data which enhances the quality of forest planning and management. Thus GIS has proven to be an efficient tool in sustainable forestry.

	A fragment of the ecological network in the Pskov Model Forest

Project specialists developed a methodology for nature conservation planning that presents the first in Russia system-based experience of that kind in combination with major ideas of landscape ecological planning. This methodology enables to identify and map objects that are essential for conservation of biodiversity not only on the level of species but also on the level of rare natural landscapes. The decision-making system for selecting priorities in conservation planning is constructed depending on specific features of individual forest areas.

For the purpose of conserving biodiversity and other ecological functions of forests the methodology provides for various planning levels from the level of landscapes to the level of key biotopes within a forest compartment. Project specialists compiled lists of key biotopes and rules for their identification. The methodology for nature conservation planning was adopted as a practical tool by the Northwest Forest Inventory Enterprise.

Brochure Criteria for Assessing Biological Diversity of the Vertebrates (for Conservation Forest Management Planning) >>