Natural disturbances and protective effect: the role of biological legacies in protection forests

<p>Natural disturbance regimes are expected to be greatly altered in the next future byclimatechanges (e.g.increase in frequency and intensity, changing in seasonality). Among natural disturbances, windstorms represent one of the main large-scale factor that shape European landscape and that influence European forest structure. Moreover, windstorms may affect ecosystem services that are normally provided by mountain forests such as protection against natural hazards, conservation of biodiversity or erosion mitigation. However, after a disturbance event, structural biological legacies, like deadwood, may enhance or maintain some of these ecosystem services. After a stand-replacing event, the conservation or fast restoration of all these services should be the target of post disturbance management, but currently traditional practices (mainly salvage logging) are often leading to their depletion. The study of the impact of salvage logging (i.e. the removal of almost all the biological legacies) on the protective function of mountain stands has been poorly addressed. Structural biological legacies (i.e. snags, logs, stumps) may provide protection for the natural regeneration as well as they may increase the terrain roughness, providing a shielding effect against gravitative hazards like rockfall. The aim of the present study was to investigate how biological legacies affect the multifunctionality of mountain forests, focusing on the protective function. To observe the role of biological legacies we performed software simulations of rockfall activity on windthrown&#160;areas located in the Dolomites, region highly affected by the Vaia windstorm in October 2018. &#160;Results showed the short-term important role of biological legacies in mitigating rockfall propagation, mainly as barrier effect rather than an energy reduction effect. After a natural disturbance, forest management should take into consideration the residual protective function of structural legacies. Salvage logging operations should be limited in areas where rockfall hazard is high, in order to take advantage on the multifunctionality of biological legacies during the recovery process.</p>

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Biological Legacies and Rockfall: The Protective Effect of a Windthrown Forest

Forests ◽

10.3390/f12091141 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (9) ◽

pp. 1141

Author(s):

Maximiliano Costa ◽

Niccolò Marchi ◽

Francesco Bettella ◽

Paola Bolzon ◽

Frédéric Berger ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Forest Management ◽

Management Practices ◽

Shielding Effect ◽

Mountain Forests ◽

Protective Function ◽

Salvage Logging ◽

Biological Legacies ◽

The Impact

Windstorms represent one of the main large-scale disturbances that shape the European landscape and influence its forest structure, so post-event restoration activities start to gain a major role in mountainous forest management. After a disturbance event, biological legacies may enhance or maintain multiple ecosystem services of mountain forests such as protection against natural hazards, biodiversity conservation, or erosion mitigation. However, the conservation of all these ecosystem services after stand-replacing events could go against traditional management practices, such as salvage logging. Thus far, the impact of salvage logging and removal of biological legacies on the protective function of mountain stands has been poorly studied. Structural biological legacies may provide protection for natural regeneration and may also increase the terrain roughness providing a shielding effect against gravitational hazards like rockfall. The aim of this project is to understand the dynamics of post-windthrow recovery processes and to investigate how biological legacies affect the multifunctionality of mountain forests, in particular the protective function. To observe the role of biological legacies we performed 3000 simulations of rockfall activity on windthrown areas. Results show the active role of biological legacies in preventing gravitational hazards, providing a barrier effect and an energy reduction effect on rockfall activity. To conclude, we underline how forest management should take into consideration the protective function of structural legacies. A suggestion is to avoid salvage logging in order to maintain the multifunctionality of damaged stands during the recovery process.

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The Role of Selected Ecosystem Services in Different Farming Systems in Poland Regarding the Differentiation of Agricultural Land Structure

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13126673 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (12) ◽

pp. 6673

Author(s):

Lidia Luty ◽

Kamila Musiał ◽

Monika Zioło

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Agricultural Land ◽

Soil Formation ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Agricultural System ◽

Organic System ◽

Supporting Soil ◽

Management Method ◽

The Impact

The functioning of various agroecosystems is nowadays shaped by different farming systems, which may impair their functions, as well as being beneficial to them. The benefits include ecosystem services, defined as economic and noneconomic values gained by humans from ecosystems, through supporting soil formation and nutrient circulation, and the impact of agriculture on climate and biodiversity. Their mutual flow and various disturbances depend on the agroecosystem’s management method, which is associated with the type of management of agricultural land (AL) in individual farms. This paper raises a problem of transformation in the structure of three main farming systems in Poland, in 2004–2018, in relation to the implementation of 16 selected ecosystem services and their scale. Special attention was given to organic farming, as the most environmentally friendly and sustainable. The analysis demonstrates the increase in ALs in that type of production during the analyzed period of time. Disparities of transformation associated with the type of agricultural system were noticeable at the regional level, which were presented in 16 Polish voivodeships. The results of the analysis confirm that the organic system, which is an important carrier of various ecosystem services, gained a stable position. Moreover, areas with integrated farming still do not exceed 0.5% of total agricultural lands in such voivodeships. The analysis of factors influencing the deterioration or disappearance of selected environmental services characterizing agricultural systems indicates the need to depart from an intensive conventional management system.

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Role of photo- and biodegradation of two PAHs on leaves: Modelling the impact on air quality ecosystem services provided by urban trees

The Science of The Total Environment ◽

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139893 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 739 ◽

pp. 139893

Author(s):

Elisa Terzaghi ◽

Flavia De Nicola ◽

Bruno E.L. Cerabolini ◽

Rosa Posada-Baquero ◽

Josè-J. Ortega-Calvo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Air Quality ◽

Urban Trees ◽

The Impact

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Influential Actors’ Perceptions of Facilitators and Instruments for Solving Future Forest Land-Use Disputes in Europe

Forests ◽

10.3390/f9100590 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (10) ◽

pp. 590 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Peter Aurenhammer ◽

Špela Ščap ◽

Nike Krajnc ◽

Jorge Olivar ◽

Pablo Sabin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Dominant Role ◽

The State ◽

Mountain Forest ◽

Forest Owner ◽

Forest Land ◽

Protective Function ◽

Market Society

Despite strong expectations regarding the role that forestry, with its multitude of potential benefits, could and should play in the ‘bio-economy’, little research has been done on the actual perceptions of influential actors on how to best address future forest land-use disputes. We want to shed light on whether and in which contexts expectations regarding the bio-economy, e.g., the strong role of markets, are likely. The paper analyses influential actors’ core values and beliefs about the primary facilitators and the most appropriate instruments for resolving disputes over future forest land use. We used Social Network Analysis-based sampling and a quantitative semi-structured questionnaire, which included a preference analysis with twelve items covering broad issues and disputes related to future forest land use, to identify actors’ beliefs about and preferences for facilitators and policy instruments within key issues for future land use. The respondents were asked to identify one of five ‘primary facilitators’ (state, market, society, individual citizens/owners, leave it to nature) and distribute six points to a maximum of three preferred instruments (eight items, covering a broad set of instruments, from dictates or bans to awareness raising). The results are based on the perceptions of the influential or most important actors from various innovative government and private forest initiatives in Bavaria (Germany), Slovenia, Castilla y León (Spain), Nordeste (Portugal), and Latvia (481 actor responses, 109 initiatives). The initiatives included participatory mountain forest initiatives, forest intervention zones, afforestation projects, forest owner associations, and model forest and labelling initiatives. The results provide insight into the similarities and differences between European countries and actor groups regarding the preferred facilitators and instruments for solving future forest problems. In light of disagreement in the literature on the role of the state or markets in future forest land use and the bio-economy, our results show that the market and its instruments are considered to play a dominant role in wood mobilisation. With respect to all other issues (socio-ecological, societal, other), the state or other institutions and their instruments gain priority. The state is considered to play a stronger role in developing new markets, e.g., for energy transition or new uses of wood, contrary to liberal market expectations. Ecological and social problems are considered to be outside of the market domain. Here, the state is called in, e.g., to steer recreational issues, the provision of ecosystem services, or the improvement of the protective function. The clearest preference across all regions is for the state to secure the provision of ecosystem services, in contrast to calls for future markets to regulate this field.

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The impact of hedges maturation on soil organic carbon stocks in agricultural landscapes

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-15091 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Sofia Biffi ◽

Pippa j Chapman ◽

Richard P Grayson ◽

Guy Ziv

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Organic Carbon ◽

Soil Organic Carbon ◽

Agricultural Landscapes ◽

Net Zero ◽

Wide Range ◽

Soc Stock ◽

The Impact

<p>Hedgerows can provide a wide range of regulatory ecosystem services within improved grassland landscapes, such as soil function improvement, soil erosion reduction, biodiversity, water quality, and flood prevention and mitigation. Because of their beneficial effects, farmers are incentivised to retain their hedgerows and the planting of hedges has been encouraged in agri-environment schemes in Europe. Today, hedgerow planting it is one of the most popular practices adopted in the Countryside and Environmental Stewardships in England. The role of hedgerows in climate change mitigation has been increasingly recognized over the past decade, however, while other services have been more widely studies, less is known about hedges soil organic carbon (SOC) storage capacity. The Resilient Dairy Landscapes project aims at identifying strategies to reconcile dairy systems productivity and environment in the face of climate change, and with the Committee on Climate Change calling for a 30% - 40% increase in hedgerow length by 2050 in the UK, it is important to determine the role of hedgerows in meeting Net Zero targets. In this study, we estimate the extent of SOC stock beneath hedges and how it may vary with depth, hedge management and age, as well as how it&#160;may compare&#160;to SOC stock in adjacent agricultural fields. Thus, we measured SOC under 2-4 years old, 10 years old, 37 years old, and 40+ years old hedgerows at 10 cm intervals up to 50 cm of depth under 32 hedges located on dairy farms in Cumbria, UK. We found that the time since planting and the depth of samples play a crucial role in the amount of SOC stock stored underneath hedgerows when accounting for differences in soil type. Our results contribute measurable outcomes towards the estimate of targets for Net Zero 2050 and the extent of ecosystem services provision by hedgerow planting in agricultural landscapes. &#160;</p>

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Applied ecology in Canada’s boreal: a holistic view of the mitigation hierarchy and resilience theory

Botany ◽

10.1139/cjb-2016-0123 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 94 (11) ◽

pp. 1009-1014 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Nicole J. Fenton

Keyword(s):

Anthropogenic Disturbance ◽

Resilience Theory ◽

Stable States ◽

Holistic View ◽

Applied Ecology ◽

Mitigation Hierarchy ◽

Biological Legacies ◽

Indicators Of Success ◽

The Impact

Canada’s boreal biome is a mosaic of forests and peatlands. These ecosystems have developed dynamically, periodically affected by disturbance events of significant spatial extent and variable severity, reducing ecosystem biomass. The same ecosystem types typically regenerate from biological legacies. However, concern is growing about the impact of these different anthropogenic disturbances, particularly compound disturbances including climate change, which open the door to shifts to alternate stable states. One strategy promoted to regulate anthropogenic disturbance is the “mitigation hierarchy” for development projects, where impacts on ecosystems are avoided, mitigated, restored, or compensated. This practical approach is not yet integrated into disturbance and resilience theory. Here, I develop an integrated view of the mitigation hierarchy, as well as resilience and disturbance theory, in a boreal context using ecosystem services to measure ecosystem state in a two-step process that first models loss of ecosystem function and then integrates the mitigation hierarchy and resilience theory. The application of this model is discussed in the context of restoration studies after different types of catastrophic anthropogenic disturbance. These studies, some of which are published in this special issue, highlight the important role of bryophytes and understory plants in setting restoration targets and developing criteria and indicators of success.

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Impact of Disturbances on the Carbon Cycle of Forest Ecosystems in Ukrainian Polissya

Forests ◽

10.3390/f10040337 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (4) ◽

pp. 337 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Petro Lakyda ◽

Anatoly Shvidenko ◽

Andrii Bilous ◽

Viktor Myroniuk ◽

Maksym Matsala ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Remote Sensing ◽

Ecosystem Services ◽

Land Cover ◽

Forest Ecosystems ◽

Remote Sensing Data ◽

Forest Carbon ◽

Land Cover Changes ◽

Salvage Logging ◽

Sensing Data ◽

The Impact

Climate change continues to threaten forests and their ecosystem services while substantially altering natural disturbance regimes. Land cover changes and consequent management entail discrepancies in carbon sequestration provided by forest ecosystems and its accounting. Currently there is a lack of sufficient and harmonized data for Ukraine that can be used for the robust and spatially explicit assessment of forest provisioning and regulation of ecosystem services. In the frame of this research, we established an experimental polygon (area 45 km2) in Northern Ukraine aiming at estimating main forest carbon stocks and fluxes and determining the impact caused by natural disturbances and harvest for the study period of 2010–2015. Coupled field inventory and remote sensing data (RapidEye image for 2010 and SPOT 6 image for 2015) were used. Land cover classification and estimation of biomass and carbon pools were carried out using Random Forest and k-Nearest Neighbors (k-NN) method, respectively. Remote sensing data indicates a ca. 16% increase of carbon stock, while ground-based computations have shown only a ca. 1% increase. Net carbon fluxes for the study period are relatively even: 5.4 Gg C·year−1 and 5.6 Gg C C·year−1 for field and remote sensing data, respectively. Stand-replacing wildfires, as well as insect outbreaks and wind damage followed by salvage logging, and timber harvest have caused 21% of carbon emissions among all C sources within the experimental polygon during the study period. Hence, remote sensing data and non-parametric methods coupled with field data can serve as reliable tools for the precise estimation of forest carbon cycles on a regional spatial scale. However, featured land cover changes lead to unexpected biases in consistent assessment of forest biophysical parameters, while current management practices neglect natural forest dynamics and amplify negative impact of disturbances on ecosystem services.

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Toxicity of Methylated Bismuth Compounds Produced by Intestinal Microorganisms toBacteroides thetaiotaomicron, a Member of the Physiological Intestinal Microbiota

Journal of Toxicology ◽

10.1155/2011/608349 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 2011 ◽

pp. 1-6 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Beatrix Bialek ◽

Roland A. Diaz-Bone ◽

Dominik Pieper ◽

Markus Hollmann ◽

Reinhard Hensel

Keyword(s):

Intestinal Microbiota ◽

Human Intestine ◽

Maximum Cell Density ◽

Protective Function ◽

Bismuth Compounds ◽

Low Concentrations ◽

Highly Sensitive ◽

Maximum Cell ◽

The Impact

Methanoarchaea have an outstanding capability to methylate numerous metal(loid)s therefore producing toxic and highly mobile derivatives. Here, we report that the production of methylated bismuth species by the methanoarchaeumMethanobrevibacter smithii, a common member of the human intestine, impairs the growth of members of the beneficial intestinal microbiota at low concentrations. The bacteriumBacteroides thetaiotaomicron, which is of great importance for the welfare of the host due to its versatile digestive abilities and its protective function for the intestine, is highly sensitive against methylated, but not against inorganic, bismuth species. The level of methylated bismuth species produced by the methanoarchaeumM. smithiiin a coculture experiment causes a reduction of the maximum cell density ofB. thetaiotaomicron. This observation suggests that the production of methylated organometal(loid) species in the human intestine, caused by the activity of methanoarchaea, may affect the health of the host. The impact of the species to reduce the number of the physiological intestinal microbiota brings an additional focus on the potentially harmful role of methanoarchaea in the intestine of a higher organism.

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Incorporating Insect and Wind Disturbances in a Natural Disturbance-Based Management Framework for the Boreal Forest

Forests ◽

10.3390/f9080471 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (8) ◽

pp. 471 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Louis De Grandpré ◽

Kaysandra Waldron ◽

Mathieu Bouchard ◽

Sylvie Gauthier ◽

Marilou Beaudet ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Forest Management ◽

Boreal Forest ◽

Natural Disturbance ◽

Ecosystem Dynamics ◽

Growth Stages ◽

Old Growth ◽

Management Framework ◽

Salvage Logging ◽

Old Growth Forest ◽

Biological Legacies

Natural disturbances are fundamental to forest ecosystem dynamics and have been used for two decades to improve forest management, notably in the boreal forest. Initially based on fire regimes, there is now a need to extend the concept to include other types of disturbances as they can greatly contribute to forest dynamics in some regions of the boreal zone. Here we review the main descriptors—that is, the severity, specificity, spatial and temporal descriptors and legacies, of windthrow and spruce bud worm outbreak disturbance regimes in boreal forests—in order to facilitate incorporating them into a natural disturbance-based forest management framework. We also describe the biological legacies that are generated by these disturbances. Temporal and spatial descriptors characterising both disturbance types are generally variable in time and space. This makes them difficult to reproduce in an ecosystem management framework. However, severity and specificity descriptors may provide a template upon which policies for maintaining post harvesting and salvage logging biological legacies can be based. In a context in which management mainly targets mature and old-growth stages, integrating insect and wind disturbances in a management framework is an important goal, as these disturbances contribute to creating heterogeneity in mature and old-growth forest characteristics.

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