Publications

The use of forest fuel is increasing at heating plants in Sweden. Heating plants provide energy in the form of hot water for heating houses and apartments in local municipalities. Forest fuel are products obtained from harvesting in forests that cannot be used for further processing at sawmills and pulp and paper mills. Examples of such products are tree branches, tree tops and low quality logs. The optimization of the supply chain for round-wood (logs to sawmills, pulp and paper mills) and for forest fuel is similar but involves two main differences. First, forest fuel has to be converted into chips before delivery to the customer, and second, the demand for forest fuel varies over the year due to the temperature. To balance the chipping and transportation capacities over time, it is important to manage inventory levels at terminals. The optimization model developed provides decision support for questions regarding the choice of technology for chipping, where to perform the chipping operations, and the allocation of different assortments to heating plants. The system has been tested on a large case study from a Swedish forest energy company. The results show large savings and that the system is very useful for both planning and business development. © 2012 Operational Research Society Ltd. All rights reserved.

Forest fires in our society cause a lot of damage, in particular regarding the economic and environmental landscape. In order to monitor a large portion of territory automatically, with a good cost/performances trade-off, it is necessary to develop new early warning systems. We propose a ground-based system with modular architecture, equipped with low cost commercial sensor. The idea is to develop the software able to manage forest fire monitoring. The technique is based on static and dynamic analysis of chromatic changes between images, tailored for our case of study in a large scale monitoring of vegetation and using different sensors to reduce or eliminate the false alarm rate. Concerning the image geo-referencing tool, the present work describes an innovative projective geo-referencing algorithm able to geo-reference complex orography regions using fixed ground station images. Besides, it does not need the collection of Ground Control Points, which is a very hard task in complex orography environments. In order to make a user oriented product and to help the operator during extinguishing activities, a decision support tool has been developed as well. This work presents the results of one year monitoring campaign conducted in cooperation with the Civil Protection Offices in Sanremo (IM), Italy. © 2012 WIT Press.

The objective of this study was to develop an enhanced modular-based structural stand density management model (SSDMM) and associated algorithmic analogue for upland black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill) BSP.) stand-types situated within the central portion of the Canadian Boreal Forest Region. For a given density management regime, site quality, rotation age, stock-type, cost structure and set of merchantability standards, the hierarchical-based SSDMM enabled estimation of the following metrics: overall productivity (e.g., mean annual volume, biomass and carbon increments), volumetric yields (e.g., total and merchantable volumes per unit area), log-product distributions (e.g., number of pulp and saw logs by diameter class), biomass production and carbon sequestration outcomes (e.g., oven-dried masses of above-ground components and associated carbon equivalents by diameter class), recoverable end-products and associated monetary values (e.g., volume and economic value of recovered chip and dimensional lumber products by diameter class and sawmill-type (stud and randomized length processing protocols)), and fibre quality attributes (e.g., maximum branch diameter and wood density). The core modules which were responsible for describing stand dynamics and structural change were developed using 407 (122 from natural stands and 285 from managed stands) temporal tree-list measurements obtained from 269 (142 in natural stands and managed 127 in managed stands) sample plots (note, natural stands are those that naturally regenerated following a stand-replacing disturbance and have no history of density regulation whereas managed stands are those that naturally or artificially regenerated following a stand-replacing disturbance and have a history of density regulation). The modules responsible for predicting log product distributions, and end-product volumes and values, were developed employing relationships derived from taper and sawmill simulation studies. The modules responsible for predicting biomass and carbon outcomes, and log and fibre quality attributes, were developed using data obtained from initial espacement and thinning experiments. The resultant model introduces a number of advancements over its predecessors including those that (1) ensured mathematical compatibility among yield estimates, (2) accounted for intrinsic density-independent mortality factors, response delay following thinning, and genetic worth effects, and (3) provided increased flexibility in terms of enabling end-users to change merchantability standards, specify product degrade factors, and adjust cost profiles, according to their unique requirements. As demonstrated, the decision-support model can assist in facilitating the transformative shift towards the production of high value end-products, bio-energy feed stocks, carbon credits, and ecosystem services, currently underway within the Canadian forest sector. © 2012.

This paper describes the development of a decision support system (DSS) for prevention planning and emergency management of forest fire events that incorporates weather data management, a geographical data viewer, a priori danger forecasting and fire propagation modeling, automatic fire detection, and optimal resource dispatching. Collection, input, storage, management, and analysis of the information rely on advanced and automated methodologies using remote sensing, GPS, digital mapping, and geographic information systems. The results included short-term dynamic fire danger indices developed for improved and realistic prevention and pre-suppression planning. An automatic fire detection technology based on infrared video was developed and successfully tested on site. Several models for understanding fire propagation on forest fires have been proposed for practical application. Additionally, a DSS was developed with the innovation of covering wildland fire hazard management entirely, providing a complete coverage of technical and administrative activities that support decision makers in real time. The DSS was tested for high fire seasons in two different sites in South Europe. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.

This paper reports on participatory processes using agent-based simulation models which were employed in the New Forest National Park, UK, to facilitate greater appreciation of recreational impact on wildlife and in turn support proposed revisions in management. The models helped to foster a greater understanding of the need for visitor management, but some stakeholders seemed intent on discrediting them and opposing any changes to recreational management. The inherent complexity and lack of user-friendly application of the models meant that use of them was compromised. Opportunities should be sought to increase stakeholder involvement in the long-term collection of data and validation of models, and to embed participatory processes in existing decision-making institutions. Overall, the decision support tools detracted attention from opportunities for researching social learning: tools need to be part of a well-run deliberative learning process that addresses stakeholder representation and power relationships, knowledge validation, social learning and improved transparency. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

This short discussion of two publications on Decision Support Tools for Sustainable Forest Management concludes the series of this journal's Special Sections on this theme resulting from the 2010 Workshop on Decision Support Systems in Sustainable Forest Management held in Lisbon, Portugal, on April 19-21, 2010. While the current section doesn't exhaust all the collection of the papers that were selected through collaboration between the conference organizers, its participants, and the MCFNS editorial team, it contains the two last papers from that series that passed the peer review process within a one year period (one journal volume timeframe) and were published as a collection of papers under a common banner. Thus, the papers contained here conclude this series of Special Sections on the subject, and any other submission from that same conference that may pass the peer-review process in the future will be published as general submissions. © 2011 Publisher of the Mathematical and Computational Forestry & Natural-Resource Sciences.

Medium term management of territorial risk increase requires decision support tools able to represent and simulate spatial dynamics. Forforest fre risk, simulators of spatial dynamics of bothfuel zones and vulnerable zones are produced by specialised disciplines, like ecology and geography. In order to integrate simulators of spatial dynamics of different themes at different scale levels, this paper proposes a spatial agent and GIS based software infrastructure called Pyroxene. This infrastructure is designed to implement "models for models integration ", specif ed by domain expert users. To do so, end users have to use a specifcation framework, specifcally designed for spatio-dynamic models integration. The purpose of the implemented platform is to execute and synchronise integrated simulations. To operate the semantic and syntax requirements of such integration, the platform is structured in an HLA-like architecture, and implemented as a multi-agents system for models integration, compliant with the FIPA specifcation. It is also organised around a GIS. First steps ofvalidation confrm the validity of the system at the functional level and precise the limits of using the approach on the operational level. Copyright © 2010, IGI Global.

Forest fire managers in the province of Ontario, Canada have used computer-based decision support systems (DSSs) and actively supported their development since the late 1970's. I describe four DSS projects in which I was involved and discuss factors that I believe contributed to the success and failure of those initiatives. I then outline some emerging fire management challenges and present some recommendations concerning the development and implementation of forest and wildland fire management DSSs. © 2011 Publisher of the Mathematical and Computational Forestry & Natural-Resource Sciences.

As a consequence of the spread of technology, also the forest sector needs to develop methods and tools capable to integrate the new available technology (Geographical Information Systems, databases, Decision Support Systems, GPS, satellite imaging, laser etc.) with the traditional tools. In specific the present paper refers to the context of forest planning and management and to the implementation of a nationally standardized method and tool for monitoring and supporting forest planning and forest policy choices from a local to a national scale. Within this framework and according to the definition of a Data-Driven Decision Support Systems, a method aimed at optimising the data collection on forest and forest management of Italy was developed. With ProgettoBosco a unique, participated and shared information system effective for all forest typologies existing in Italy was accomplished. The paper focuses on the working methodology which is innovative and original for the sector of forest planning. The methodology, characterized by a bottom-up approach, is structured in three main steps: cooperation, successive approximation and experimentation. © 2011 Publisher of the Mathematical and Computational Forestry & Natural-Resource Sciences.