Methods and Models
What are Forest Models?
A stimulation for the development of DSS in the forestry domain was the replacement of traditional timber yield prediction tools such as yield tables by individual tree growth models. Such models originating in the USA and Canada allowed assessing effects of different silvicultural stand management programmes on production and vegetation structure ex ante in a flexible manner. The Prognosis Model for Stand Development introduced by Stage (1973) was adopted by the US Forest Service as a common modelling platform to support forest management planning. Since then it has become one of the most prominent examples of this new class of growth prediction tools. In Europe tree growth models became slowly established in research in the 1980s (e.g. Sterba 1983, Pretzsch 1992). It was not before the 1990s, that mature tree growth simulators became available for practical forest management decision support (e.g., Hasenauer et al. 1995, Monserud et al. 1997, Hyninen et al. 2002, Pretzsch et al. 2002). Such models allowed assessing effects of different silvicultural measures on production and vegetation structure in a flexible manner. Over the recent decade forest growth models have been used in combination with optimization and choice algorithms to support forest planning. While tree-growth models have been extended with GUI and visualization (e.g. Pretzsch et al. 2006), they have also been linked with OR and MCDA routines to assist in solving forest planning problems. These components have been integrated technically and functionally in simulator systems (e.g. Pukkala 2003).
Which Methods can be used to support decision making?
Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) techniques in the field of OR have been integrated with SDSSs to help decision makers model trade-offs between multiple and conflicting objectives in multipurpose management implicitly or explicitly. The overall purpose of MCDA methods is to support the evaluation and choice phase of the Mintzberg et al. (1976) decision making model, by establishing a rank order of available decision alternatives based on facts and subjective preference information. Such methods have drawn considerable attention within forestry and numerous applications have been reported.
The list of Methods provides an overview about potential techniques to Support decision making.
Members of the ForestDSS Working Committee are leading this working group through discussions and special project activities. The group takes on leadership role in guiding the community activities and works out the work plans.
Based on the interests of the members a workplan has been formulated to continue with the activities. The details can be found here.
Currently the following members are part of the Methods and Models Working group:
Jordi Garcia, Jose Borges, Mikko Kurttila, Jan Kaspar;
In case that you have interest to join the activities of the group, please contact Jordi Garcia.
