Difference between revisions of "ClimChAlp"

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(Created page with "{{DSS, Wiki quality control |Has flag=N/A }} {{DSS, Name, responsible organisation and contact person |Has full name=Webbased decision support system to explore adaptation opt...")
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{{DSS description, Name, responsible organisation and contact person
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{{DSS, Wiki quality control
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|Name=Webbased decision support system to explore adaptation options for silviculture in secondary Norway spruce forests in Austria
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|Has flag=N/A
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|Acronym=ClimChAlp
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|Responsible organisation=Institute of Silviculture, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Vienna
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|Type of the owner organization=research institution
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|Institutional framework=proprietary development (forest administration)
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|Contact person for the Wiki=Harald Vacik
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|Contact e-mail for the Wiki=harald.vacik(a)boku.ac.at
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|Contact person for the DSS=Manfred J. Lexer
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|Contact e-mail for the DSS=mj.lexer(a)boku.ac.at
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|Additional information=The ClimChAlp DSS was developed in the context of the ClimChAlp Interreg III B Alpine Space project, which aimed at supporting the political decisions regarding protection and natural disasters prevention due tue climate change in the Alps. For more details check out http://www.climchalp.org/
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{{DSS description, Scope of the tool
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{{DSS, Name, responsible organisation and contact person
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|Description=ClimChAlp focuses on the question of suitable stand treatment programmes for currently existing Norway spruce stands given a particular set of management objectives (represented by a set of indicators focusing on timber production, ecophysiological tree suitability, timber yield, harvesting and silvicultural costs, carbon sequestration, biodiversity and groundwater recharge). The tool is particularly designed to support the consultation process of the forestry extension services for small-scale private landowners. The staff of the forestry extension services has a key role in knowledge transfer to small scale owners who often do not have any professional background in forestry. Therefore, the DSS was supposed to (a) inform the extension foresters about potential impacts of climate change on Norway spruce forests and provide them with information on alternative stand treatment options; and (b) to assist them by various means of visualization to support the consultation session.
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|Has full name=Webbased decision support system to explore adaptation options for silviculture in secondary Norway spruce forests in Austria
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|Modelling dimension=Economical indicators, Forest indicators, Ecological indicators, Climate change
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|Has acronym=ClimChAlp
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|Temporal scale=long term (strategic)
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|Has wiki contact person=Harald Vacik
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|Spatial context=spatial with no neighbourhood interrelations
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|Has wiki contact e-mail=harald.vacik@boku.ac.at
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|Spatial scale=stand level
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|Objectives dimension=multiple objectives
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|Goods and services dimension=market wood products, non-market services
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|Forest management goal=afforestation management, carbon sequestration, climate change impact, ecological classification, economic evaluation, forest health, groundwater recharge, silvicultural regime, species selection, wind hazard, multi-functional
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|Supported tree species=Norway Spruce
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|Supported silvicultural regime=even-aged, uneven-aged/natural regeneration
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|Decision making dimension=single decision maker
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|Participatory planning tasks supported=exploring options, evaluating options
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|Additional information=In Austria professional expertise on how to manage small scale forests is traditionally provided via the extension services of chambers of agriculture and the district forest authorities. In this context increasing shortage of human resources due to budget constraints and the ever-growing amount of scientific knowledge on the management of forest ecosystems especially on the process of conversion of coniferous forests meet a high demand by small-scale landowners for professional guidance in forest management. In this context a web based decision support tool was developed for the forest authorities in Lower Austria especially for the northern pre-alpine lowlands and foothills in the north-east of Austria, a region with a fairly complex decision environment. A major share of this region is situated at altitudes between 400-800m a.s.l. with mean annual temperatures between 8 and 10°C and relatively low precipitation of about 700-900mm per year. Substantial areas of these secondary coniferous forests are characterized by site properties such as increased frequency of drought periods and gleyic soils where already under current climatic conditions Norway spruce is periodically close to its ecophysiological limits and particularly vulnerable to windthrow and an array of insect and disease organisms. In a warmer and eventually drier climate with increased frequency of drought periods and generally increasing inter-annual variability in climate biotic and abiotic risks for these forests is expected to increase substantially. Furthermore, multiple rotations of Norway spruce may lead to soil compaction and increased soil acidification, depending on site conditions. These effects are mainly due to the shallow rooting system which may cause nutrient exploitation of the most upper soil horizons, and the capacity to accumulate substantial quantities of nutrients in leave biomass, which in turn may affect nutrient cycling. To improve crop reliability and to reduce economical and ecological risks, the conversion of pure Norway spruce stands into mixed-species stands, which are better adapted to the particular site conditions, is often recommended.
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{{DSS description, Concrete application
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{{DSS, Software identification
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|User profile=Non-industrial private owners, forest owners associations, national forest administration
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|Has software=ClimChAlp.Software
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|Country=Austria
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|Number of users=<=10
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|Number of real-life applications=<=30
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|Utilisation in education: kind of utilisation (demo, use)=presentation/demo
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|Utilisation in research projects: references=Vacik H., Lexer M.J., Rammer W., Seidl R., Hochbichler E., Strauss M., Schachinger C. (2010): ClimChAlp - a webbased decision support system to explore adaptation options for silviculture in secondary Norway spruce forests in Austria. In: Falcao, A., Rosset. C (Eds.) , Proceedings of the Workshop on Decision Support Systems in Sustainable Forest Management. Lisbon, April 2010. , OP3 http://www.fc.ul.pt/dsfm2010/docs/presentations/paper_15.pdf
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|Additional information=The application was developed in the context of the Interreg III B Alpine Space project ClimChAlp. Access to the webbased tool is currently restricted to the regional forest administration: http://climchalp.boku.ac.at
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{{DSS description, Installation and support
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{{DSS, Description
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|Status=used (stable and not upgraded/not upgraded recently)
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|Has description=ClimChAlp focuses on the question of suitable stand treatment programmes for currently existing Norway spruce stands given a particular set of management objectives (represented by a set of indicators focusing on timber production, ecophysiological tree suitability, timber yield, harvesting and silvicultural costs, carbon sequestration, biodiversity and groundwater recharge). The tool is particularly designed to support the consultation process of the forestry extension services for small-scale private landowners. The staff of the forestry extension services has a key role in knowledge transfer to small scale owners who often do not have any professional background in forestry. Therefore, the DSS was supposed to (a) inform the extension foresters about potential impacts of climate change on Norway spruce forests and provide them with information on alternative stand treatment options; and (b) to assist them by various means of visualization to support the consultation session.
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|Accessibility=restricted access
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|Has modelling scope=Economical indicators, Forest indicators, Ecological indicators, Climate change
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|Commercial product=No
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|Has temporal scale=Long term (strategic)
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|Deployment cost=<= 1‘000€
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|Has spatial context=Spatial with no neighbourhood interrelations
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|Installation requirements=none.
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|Has spatial scale=Stand level
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|Computational limitations=none.
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|Has objectives dimension=Multiple objectives
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|User support organization=Institute of Silviculture, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Vienna
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|Has goods and services dimension=Market non-wood products, Non-market services
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|Support team size=2
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|Has decision making dimension=Single decision maker
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|Maintenance organization=Institute of Silviculture, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Vienna
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|Has forest management goal=afforestation management, carbon sequestration, climate change impact, ecological classification, economic evaluation, forest health, groundwater recharge, silvicultural regime, species selection, wind hazard, multi-functional
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|Price=
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|Supports tree species=Norway Spruce
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|Supports silvicultural regime=even-aged, uneven-aged/natural regeneration
 
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{{DSS description, Data, data model and data management
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{{DSS, Concrete application
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|Input data requirements=Forest inventory data, user defined
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|Has user profile=Non-industrial private owners, forest owners associations, national forest administration
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|Format of the input data=net services, other
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|Has country=Austria
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|Data validation=error handling
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|Has number of users=<=10
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|Format of the output data=table, graph, pre-programmed summaries
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|Has number of real-life applications=<=30
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|Internal data management=database
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|Has utilisation in education=presentation/demo
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|Database=MySQL
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|Has research project reference=Vacik H., Lexer M.J., Rammer W., Seidl R., Hochbichler E., Strauss M., Schachinger C. (2010): ClimChAlp - a webbased decision support system to explore adaptation options for silviculture in secondary Norway spruce forests in Austria. In: Falcao, A., Rosset. C (Eds.) , Proceedings of the Workshop on Decision Support Systems in Sustainable Forest Management. Lisbon, April 2010. , OP3 http://www.fc.ul.pt/dsfm2010/docs/presentations/paper_15.pdf
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|GIS integration=N/A
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|Data mining=N/A
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|Additional information=Technically, ClimChAlp is implemented as a modern web application that incorporates interactive elements (Web 2.0). The system is realized using the widely used “LAMP”-stack, which is the combination of a Linux operating system running an Apache web server, which delivers content rendered by PHP scripts that access a MySql database. To allow simple integration, the specific DSS rule set is also implemented as a set of PHP functions. The site type is identified via geographical location in Google map ® and qualitative site attributes provided by user input.
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{{DSS description, Models and methods, MBMS, decision support techniques
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{{DSS, Decision support techniques used in the DSS
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|Forest models=growth models
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|Has decision support techniques=ClimChAlp.Decision support techniques
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|Social models=N/A
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|Risk evaluation=pest management
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|Additional information=The core structure of the web based decision support system ChlimChAlp has three main components: the information base, the DSS generator and a graphical user interface (GUI).
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The information base consists of a database management system and a database which contains data either directly obtained from measurement of representative stands in the study region or generated by model simulations. All information regarding the characterization of alternatives is prefabricated and stored in the data base. A comprehensive set of Norway spruce dominated stand types represents the initial (current) forest conditions. Stand treatment programmes over 100 years for each of the initial stand types had been designed based on recent silvicultural experimental research as well as on current management guidelines in the project area and were simulated with the forest ecosystem model PICUS under current climate and four transient regionalized climate change scenarios. Simulation output was then linked to the various stand types and stored in the data base. The DSS generator consists of a set of rules that links the collected information with the simulated cases in the data base. To accomplish this, the DSS rule set evaluates data on site, initial stand conditions and stand treatment programmes. If the DSS generator succeeds in mapping the provided data to an available case in the data base, the user is able to choose among the options provided for the defined decision space. . The user is supported in comparing decision alternatives by means of a planning balance sheet in two ways: (i) stand treatment programs are compared in a temporal sequence and (ii) decision alternatives are evaluated pair wise. The performance of the indicators is communicated by combined visualized and verbal qualitative ratings. Additive aggregation with the assumption of equal weights for all selected indicators is offered to arrive at an overall index of climate fitness and a ranking of alternatives.
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{{DSS description, Support of knowledge management process
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{{DSS, Support of Knowledge Management
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|Supported KM processes=Knowledge Identification, Knowledge Transfer
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|Has knowledge management processes=ClimChAlp.Knowledge management process
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|Integrated KM techniques to identify and structure knowledge=Database
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|Integrated KM techniques to transfer and share knowledge=Web portal (e.g. Online Encyclopedia / Online Scientific Journal / Web sites), Best Practices (e.g. Lessons Learned / FAQ)
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|Integrated KM techniques to analyse and apply knowledge=Expert system (e.g Knowledge Based Systems)
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{{DSS description, Support of social participation
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{{DSS, Support of social participation
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|Participatory planning tasks supported=exploring options, evaluating options
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|Has support for social participation=ClimChAlp.Support of social participation
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|Stakeholder identification support=
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|Planning criteria formation support=
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|Planning process monitoring and evaluation=
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|Planning outcome monitoring and evaluation=
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{{DSS description, User interface and outputs
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{{DSS, DSS development
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|User access control=Yes
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|Has DSS development=ClimChAlp.Description of DSS development
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|Parameterised GUI=No
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|User-friendliness of GUI=user control, error handling and recovery
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|Map interface=2D
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|GUI technology=Html + Javascript
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|Additional information=The graphical user interface (GUI) provides the possibility to visualize information from the data base and results of decision analysis procedures. To allow simple access and to enhance the interaction between the user and the DSS, we decided to use a web based system. The chosen approach allows  to communicate figures, tables and explanatory text about decision alternatives (e.g. costs, silvicultural treatment options, tree species suitability, growing stock objectives) to the user in a dynamic manner. A display and report generator enhances possibilities of the user to visualize the consequences of a decision and compare alternatives. Reporting facilities of the software tool include on-screen graphs and tables using dynamic visualization components. Printouts of the material are possible.
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{{DSS description, System design and development
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{{DSS, Documentation
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|Development start year=2008
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|Has website=http://climchalp.boku.ac.at
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|Number of development years (100% equivalent)=2
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|Has manual=No
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|Development team size=3
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|Has technical documentation=Yes
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|Number of forest specialists in the development team=2
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|KM tools used during the development of the DSS=Knowledge mapping
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|Stakeholder identification support=
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|Planning criteria formation support=
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{{DSS description, Technological architecture, integration with other systems
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|System type=client-server (web)
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|Operating system=Linux/Unix
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|Programming language=PHP
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|Scalability=No
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{{DSS description, Ongoing development
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|Adaptation effort (man years)=N/A
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{{DSS description, Documentation
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|Website=http://climchalp.boku.ac.at
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|Manual=No
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|Technical documentation=Yes
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Revision as of 15:54, 15 March 2013

Wiki quality control

Has flag N/A

Name, responsible organisation and contact person

Has full name Webbased decision support system to explore adaptation options for silviculture in secondary Norway spruce forests in Austria
Has acronym ClimChAlp
Has wiki contact person Harald Vacik
Has wiki contact e-mail harald.vacik@boku.ac.at

Software identification

Has software ClimChAlp.Software

Description

Has description ClimChAlp focuses on the question of suitable stand treatment programmes for currently existing Norway spruce stands given a particular set of management objectives (represented by a set of indicators focusing on timber production, ecophysiological tree suitability, timber yield, harvesting and silvicultural costs, carbon sequestration, biodiversity and groundwater recharge). The tool is particularly designed to support the consultation process of the forestry extension services for small-scale private landowners. The staff of the forestry extension services has a key role in knowledge transfer to small scale owners who often do not have any professional background in forestry. Therefore, the DSS was supposed to (a) inform the extension foresters about potential impacts of climate change on Norway spruce forests and provide them with information on alternative stand treatment options; and (b) to assist them by various means of visualization to support the consultation session.
Has modelling scope Economical indicators, Forest indicators, Ecological indicators, Climate change
Has temporal scale Long term (strategic)
Has spatial context Spatial with no neighbourhood interrelations
Has spatial scale Stand level
Has objectives dimension Multiple objectives
Has related DSS
Has goods and services dimension Market non-wood products, Non-market services
Has decision making dimension Single decision maker
Has forest management goal afforestation management, carbon sequestration, climate change impact, ecological classification, economic evaluation, forest health, groundwater recharge, silvicultural regime, species selection, wind hazard, multi-functional
Supports tree species Norway Spruce
Supports silvicultural regime even-aged, uneven-aged/natural regeneration

Concrete application

Has typical use case
Has user profile Non-industrial private owners, forest owners associations, national forest administration
Has country Austria
Has references about examples of application
Has number of users <=10
Has number of real-life applications <=30
Has utilisation in education presentation/demo
Has research project reference Vacik H., Lexer M.J., Rammer W., Seidl R., Hochbichler E., Strauss M., Schachinger C. (2010): ClimChAlp - a webbased decision support system to explore adaptation options for silviculture in secondary Norway spruce forests in Austria. In: Falcao, A., Rosset. C (Eds.) , Proceedings of the Workshop on Decision Support Systems in Sustainable Forest Management. Lisbon, April 2010. , OP3 http://www.fc.ul.pt/dsfm2010/docs/presentations/paper_15.pdf
Has tool dissemination

Decision support techniques used in the DSS

Has decision support techniques ClimChAlp.Decision support techniques

Support of Knowledge Management

Has knowledge management processes ClimChAlp.Knowledge management process

Support of social participation

Has support for social participation ClimChAlp.Support of social participation

DSS development

Has DSS development ClimChAlp.Description of DSS development

Documentation

Has website http://climchalp.boku.ac.at
Has online demo
Has manual No
Has technical documentation Yes
Has reference
Retrieved from "http://www.forestdss.org/wiki/index.php?title=ClimChAlp&oldid=6400"