Publisher : Springer Science+Business Media
Place of publication :
Publication year : 2009
Thematic : Forestry
Language : English
Note
Forests form the natural vegetation over much of the Earth’s land, and they are
critical for the survival of innumerable organisms. The ongoing loss of natural
forests, which in some regions may have taken many millennia to develop, is one
of the main reasons for the decline of biodiversity. Preventing the further
destruction of forests and protecting species and ecosystems within forests have
become central issues for environmental agencies, forest managers, and governments.
In this difficult task science has an important role in informing policy and
management as to how to go about this. So how do industrial and other plantation
forests fit into this?
Plantation forests, comprised of rows of planted trees that may be destined for
pulp or sawmills after only a few years of growth, appear to have little to contribute
to the conservation of biodiversity. Yet there is more to this than meets the
eye (of the casual observer), and there are indeed numerous opportunities, and
often untapped potential, for biodiversity conservation in plantation forestry.
With plantation forests expanding at a rate of approximately three million
hectares per year, it is crucial to understand how plantations can make a positive
contribution to biodiversity conservation and how the potentially negative
impacts of this land use can be minimised. That is the topic of this book.
In some countries, expansion of plantation forests represent a threat to natural
forests, along with many other pressures on natural land cover from our rapidly
growing population and our thirst for natural resources. Clearly, new plantation
forests should be established on land that does not have important conservation
value. However, plantation forests replacing agricultural and other ‘un-natural’
land uses often benefit conservation by providing new or expanded habitat for
forest species of all kinds, from microorganisms, fungi, and insects to birds and
mammals. This is particularly so when the use of native trees leads to a forest that
shares key attributes with the former natural land cover, but even exotic trees
offer opportunities for restoration of forest habitat. Regardless of the origin or history of a plantation forest, much can be done in terms of forest design and
management to improve their value for biodiversity. This applies to both the
planted area as well as natural forest remnants and other reserve areas maintained
within the plantation forest landscape.
This book is the result of ongoing collaboration among forest scientists from numerous countries who have joined efforts under the umbrella of the International Union of Forest Research Organisations (IUFRO), with contributions
from the World Conservation Union (IUCN), the WWF-World Wide Fund For
Nature, and many others. The contents of this volume are derived from papers
presented at three conferences that took place in Europe and Australia between 2005 and 2006, with the aim of increasing our understanding of conservation issues and opportunities around plantation forestry. The research presented here covers a wide range of taxa living in forests, from lichens to primates, from various temperate and tropical regions around the world. The findings are equally of interest to the scientific community, policy makers and forest managers. This work can assist with the improvement of best-practice guidelines for the establishment and management of plantation forests. The topical examples of applied
conservation issues will make the volume also highly valuable for use in
conservation biology courses.
The 14 contributions presented here were first published in Biodiversity and Conservation 17(5):925–1211 (2008). They are being released again now in book form in view of the great interest shown by the scientific community in the compilation. Since the conception of this project there has been an increasing
momentum towards planting more forests as carbon sinks to combat climate
change. Much of the contents of this volume are relevant to such ‘‘carbon
forests’’, and its appearance is timely. As with all types of planted forests, there
are significant win-win opportunities for multiple benefits, including biodiversity conservation.
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Keywords : fruit fly
Encoded by : Pauline Carmel Joy Eje
