Rist, Lucy
- Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Research article2016Peer reviewedOpen access
Rist, Lucy; Felton, Adam; Mårald, Erland; Samuelsson, Lars; Lundmark, Tomas; Rosvall, Ola
There is a growing demand for alternatives to Sweden's current dominant silvicultural system, driven by a desire to raise biomass production, meet environmental goals and mitigate climate change. However, moving towards diversified forest management that deviates from well established silvicultural practices carries many uncertainties and risks. Adaptive management is often suggested as an effective means of managing in the context of such complexities. Yet there has been scepticism over its appropriateness in cases characterised by large spatial extents, extended temporal scales and complex land ownership-characteristics typical of Swedish forestry. Drawing on published research, including a new paradigm for adaptive management, we indicate how common pitfalls can be avoided during implementation. We indicate the investment, infrastructure, and considerations necessary to benefit from adaptive management. In doing so, we show how this approach could offer a pragmatic operational model for managing the uncertainties, risks and obstacles associated with new silvicultural systems and the challenges facing Swedish forestry.
Climate change; Forest management; Risk; Silviculture; Uncertainty
AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment
2016, Volume: 45, number: SI, pages: S140-S151
SLU Future Forests
SDG13 Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
SDG12 Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
Forest Science
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-015-0750-9
https://res.slu.se/id/publ/75372