Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests and woodlands for associated resources for human and environmental benefits. [1] Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. [2] The science of forestry has elements that belong to the biological, physical, social, political and managerial sciences. [3] Forest management plays an essential role in the creation and modification of habitats and affects ecosystem services provisioning. [4]
Modern forestry generally embraces a broad range of concerns, in what is known as multiple-use management, including: the provision of timber, fuel wood, wildlife habitat, natural water quality management, recreation, landscape and community protection, employment, aesthetically appealing landscapes, biodiversity management, watershed management, erosion control, and preserving forests as "sinks" for atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Forest ecosystems have come to be seen as the most important component of the biosphere, [5] and forestry has emerged as a vital applied science, craft, and technology. A practitioner of forestry is known as a forester. Another common term is silviculturist. Silviculture is narrower than forestry, being concerned only with forest plants, but is often used synonymously with forestry.
All people depend upon forests and their biodiversity, some more than others. [6] Forestry is an important economic segment in various industrial countries, [7] as forests provide more than 86 million green jobs and support the livelihoods of many more people. [6] For example, in Germany, forests cover nearly a third of the land area, [8] wood is the most important renewable resource, and forestry supports more than a million jobs and about €181 billion of value to the German economy each year. [9]
Worldwide, an estimated 880 million people spend part of their time collecting fuelwood or producing charcoal, many of them women. [6] [ quantify ] Human populations tend to be low in areas of low-income countries with high forest cover and high forest biodiversity, but poverty rates in these areas tend to be high. [6] Some 252 million people living in forests and savannahs have incomes of less than US$1.25 per day. [6]
Over the past centuries, forestry was regarded as a separate science. With the rise of ecology and environmental science, there has been a reordering in the applied sciences. In line with this view, forestry is a primary land-use science comparable with agriculture. [10] Under these headings, the fundamentals behind the management of natural forests comes by way of natural ecology. Forests or tree plantations, those whose primary purpose is the extraction of forest products, are planned and managed to utilize a mix of ecological and agroecological principles. [11] In many regions of the world there is considerable conflict between forest practices and other societal priorities such as water quality, watershed preservation, sustainable fishing, conservation, and species preservation. [12]
Silvology (Latin: silva or sylva, "forests and woods"; Ancient Greek : -λογία, -logia , "science of" or "study of") is the biological science of studying forests and woodlands, incorporating the understanding of natural forest ecosystems, and the effects and development of silvicultural practices. The term complements silviculture, which deals with the art and practice of forest management. [13]
Silvology is seen as a single science for forestry and was first used by Professor Roelof A.A. Oldeman at Wageningen University. [14] It integrates the study of forests and forest ecology, dealing with single tree autecology and natural forest ecology.
Dendrology (Ancient Greek: δένδρον, dendron, "tree"; and Ancient Greek: -λογία, -logia , science of or study of) or xylology (Ancient Greek: ξύλον, ksulon, "wood") is the science and study of woody plants (trees, shrubs, and lianas), specifically, their taxonomic classifications. [15] There is no sharp boundary between plant taxonomy and dendrology; woody plants not only belong to many different plant families, but these families may be made up of both woody and non-woody members. Some families include only a few woody species. Dendrology, as a discipline of industrial forestry, tends to focus on identification of economically useful woody plants and their taxonomic interrelationships. As an academic course of study, dendrology will include all woody plants, native and non-native, that occur in a region. A related discipline is the study of sylvics, which focuses on the autecology of genera and species.
In the past, dendrology included the study of the natural history of woody species in specific regions, but this aspect is now considered part of ecology. The field also plays a role in conserving rare or endangered species. [15]The provenance of forest reproductive material used to plant forests has a great influence on how the trees develop, hence why it is important to use forest reproductive material of good quality and of high genetic diversity. [16] More generally, all forest management practices, including in natural regeneration systems, may impact the genetic diversity of trees.
The term genetic diversity describes the differences in DNA sequence between individuals as distinct from variation caused by environmental influences. The unique genetic composition of an individual (its genotype) will determine its performance (its phenotype) at a particular site. [17]
Genetic diversity is needed to maintain the vitality of forests and to provide resilience to pests and diseases. Genetic diversity also ensures that forest trees can survive, adapt and evolve under changing environmental conditions. Furthermore, genetic diversity is the foundation of biological diversity at species and ecosystem levels. Forest genetic resources are therefore important to consider in forest management. [16]
Genetic diversity in forests is threatened by forest fires, pests and diseases, habitat fragmentation, poor silvicultural practices and inappropriate use of forest reproductive material.
About 98 million hectares of forest were affected by fire in 2015; this was mainly in the tropical domain, where fire burned about 4 percent of the total forest area in that year. More than two-thirds of the total forest area affected was in Africa and South America. Insects, diseases and severe weather events damaged about 40 million hectares of forests in 2015, mainly in the temperate and boreal domains. [18]
Furthermore, the marginal populations of many tree species are facing new threats due to the effects of climate change. [16]
Most countries in Europe have recommendations or guidelines for selecting species and provenances that can be used in a given site or zone. [17]
Forest management is a branch of forestry concerned with overall administrative, legal, economic, and social aspects, as well as scientific and technical aspects, such as silviculture, forest protection, and forest regulation. This includes management for timber, aesthetics, recreation, urban values, water, wildlife, inland and nearshore fisheries, wood products, plant genetic resources, and other forest resource values. [19] Management objectives can be for conservation, utilisation, or a mixture of the two. Techniques include timber extraction, planting and replanting of different species, building and maintenance of roads and pathways through forests, and preventing fire.
Many tools like remote sensing, GIS and photogrammetry [20] [21] modelling have been developed to improve forest inventory and management planning. [22] Scientific research plays a crucial role in helping forest management. For example, climate modeling, [23] [24] [25] biodiversity research, [26] [27] carbon sequestration research, [24] [28] [29] GIS applications, [30] [31] and long-term monitoring [25] [32] help assess and improve forest management, ensuring its effectiveness and success.The first dedicated forestry school was established by Georg Ludwig Hartig at Hungen in the Wetterau, Hesse, in 1787, though forestry had been taught earlier in central Europe, including at the University of Giessen, in Hesse-Darmstadt.
In Spain, the first forestry school was the Forest Engineering School of Madrid (Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros de Montes), founded in 1844.
The first in North America, the Biltmore Forest School was established near Asheville, North Carolina, by Carl A. Schenck on September 1, 1898, on the grounds of George W. Vanderbilt's Biltmore Estate. Another early school was the New York State College of Forestry, established at Cornell University just a few weeks later, in September 1898.
Early 19th century North American foresters went to Germany to study forestry. Some early German foresters also emigrated to North America.
In South America the first forestry school was established in Brazil, in Viçosa, Minas Gerais, in 1962, and moved the next year to become a faculty at the Federal University of Paraná, in Curitiba. [34]
Today, forestry education typically includes training in general biology, ecology, botany, genetics, soil science, climatology, hydrology, economics and forest management. Education in the basics of sociology and political science is often considered an advantage. Professional skills in conflict resolution and communication are also important in training programs. [35]
In India, forestry education is imparted in the agricultural universities and in Forest Research Institutes (deemed universities). Four year degree programmes are conducted in these universities at the undergraduate level. Masters and Doctorate degrees are also available in these universities.
In the United States, postsecondary forestry education leading to a Bachelor's degree or Master's degree is accredited by the Society of American Foresters. [36]
In Canada the Canadian Institute of Forestry awards silver rings to graduates from accredited university BSc programs, as well as college and technical programs. [37]
In many European countries, training in forestry is made in accordance with requirements of the Bologna Process and the European Higher Education Area.
The International Union of Forest Research Organizations is the only international organization that coordinates forest science efforts worldwide. [38]
In order to keep up with changing demands and environmental factors, forestry education does not stop at graduation. Increasingly, forestry professionals engage in regular training to maintain and improve on their management practices. An increasingly popular tool are marteloscopes; one hectare large, rectangular forest sites where all trees are numbered, mapped and recorded.
These sites can be used to do virtual thinnings and test one's wood quality and volume estimations as well as tree microhabitats. This system is mainly suitable to regions with small-scale multi-functional forest management systems
Forestry literature is the books, journals and other publications about forestry.
The first major works about forestry in the English language included Roger Taverner's Booke of Survey (1565), John Manwood's A Brefe Collection of the Lawes of the Forrest (1592) and John Evelyn's Sylva (1662). [39]
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. About 31% of Earth's land surface is covered by forests at present. This is one-third less than the forest cover before the expansion of agriculture, with half of that loss occurring in the last century. Between 15 million to 18 million hectares of forest, an area the size of Bangladesh, are destroyed every year. On average 2,400 trees are cut down each minute. Estimates vary widely as to the extent of deforestation in the tropics. In 2019, nearly a third of the overall tree cover loss, or 3.8 million hectares, occurred within humid tropical primary forests. These are areas of mature rainforest that are especially important for biodiversity and carbon storage.
A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) defines a forest as, "Land spanning more than 0.5 hectares with trees higher than 5 meters and a canopy cover of more than 10 percent, or trees able to reach these thresholds in situ. It does not include land that is predominantly under agricultural or urban use." Using this definition, Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020 found that forests covered 4.06 billion hectares, or approximately 31 percent of the world's land area in 2020.
Reforestation is the practice of restoring previously existing forests and woodlands that have been destroyed or damaged. The prior forest destruction might have happened through deforestation, clearcutting or wildfires. Three important purposes of reforestation programs are for harvesting of wood, for climate change mitigation, and for ecosystem and habitat restoration purposes. One method of reforestation is to establish tree plantations, also called plantation forests. They cover about 131 million ha worldwide, which is 3% of the global forest area and 45% of the total area of planted forests.
Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars. In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used narrowly to describe the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard. In common usage, however, the term may cover a range of forestry or silviculture activities.
Urban forestry is the care and management of single trees and tree populations in urban settings for the purpose of improving the urban environment. Urban forestry involves both planning and management, including the programming of care and maintenance operations of the urban forest. Urban forestry advocates the role of trees as a critical part of the urban infrastructure. Urban foresters plant and maintain trees, support appropriate tree and forest preservation, conduct research and promote the many benefits trees provide. Urban forestry is practiced by municipal and commercial arborists, municipal and utility foresters, environmental policymakers, city planners, consultants, educators, researchers and community activists.
Clearcutting, clearfelling or clearcut logging is a forestry/logging practice in which most or all trees in an area are uniformly cut down. Along with shelterwood and seed tree harvests, it is used by foresters to create certain types of forest ecosystems and to promote select species that require an abundance of sunlight or grow in large, even-age stands. Logging companies and forest-worker unions in some countries support the practice for scientific, safety and economic reasons, while detractors consider it a form of deforestation that destroys natural habitats and contributes to climate change. Environmentalists, traditional owners, local residents and others have regularly campaigned against clearcutting, including through the use of blockades and nonviolent direct action.
Agricultural biodiversity or agrobiodiversity is a subset of general biodiversity pertaining to agriculture. It can be defined as "the variety and variability of animals, plants and micro-organisms at the genetic, species and ecosystem levels that sustain the ecosystem structures, functions and processes in and around production systems, and that provide food and non-food agricultural products.” It is managed by farmers, pastoralists, fishers and forest dwellers, agrobiodiversity provides stability, adaptability and resilience and constitutes a key element of the livelihood strategies of rural communities throughout the world. Agrobiodiversity is central to sustainable food systems and sustainable diets. The use of agricultural biodiversity can contribute to food security, nutrition security, and livelihood security, and it is critical for climate adaptation and climate mitigation.
Habitat destruction occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved to elsewhere or are dead, leading to a decrease in biodiversity and species numbers. Habitat destruction is in fact the leading cause of biodiversity loss and species extinction worldwide.
Afforestation is the establishment of a forest or stand of trees in an area where there was no recent tree cover. There are three types of afforestation: Natural regeneration, agroforestry and tree plantations. Afforestation has many benefits. In the context of climate change, afforestation can be helpful for climate change mitigation through the route of carbon sequestration. Afforestation can also improve the local climate through increased rainfall and by being a barrier against high winds. The additional trees can also prevent or reduce topsoil erosion, floods and landslides. Finally, additional trees can be a habitat for wildlife, and provide employment and wood products.
Forest ecology is the scientific study of the interrelated patterns, processes, flora, fauna, funga, and ecosystems in forests. The management of forests is known as forestry, silviculture, and forest management. A forest ecosystem is a natural woodland unit consisting of all plants, animals, and micro-organisms in that area functioning together with all of the non-living physical (abiotic) factors of the environment.
The Lower Guinean forests also known as the Lower Guinean-Congolian forests, are a region of coastal tropical moist broadleaf forest in West Africa, extending along the eastern coast of the Gulf of Guinea from eastern Benin through Nigeria and Cameroon.
Forest management is a branch of forestry concerned with overall administrative, legal, economic, and social aspects, as well as scientific and technical aspects, such as silviculture, forest protection, and forest regulation. This includes management for timber, aesthetics, recreation, urban values, water, wildlife, inland and nearshore fisheries, wood products, plant genetic resources, and other forest resource values. Management objectives can be for conservation, utilisation, or a mixture of the two. Techniques include timber extraction, planting and replanting of different species, building and maintenance of roads and pathways through forests, and preventing fire.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and guide to forestry:
Variable retention is a relatively new silvicultural system that retains forest structural elements for at least one rotation in order to preserve environmental values associated with structurally complex forests.
The extensive and rapid clearing of forests (deforestation) within the borders of Nigeria has significant impacts on both local and global scales.
Forest genetic resources or foresttree genetic resources are genetic resources of forest shrub and tree species. Forest genetic resources are essential for forest-depending communities who rely for a substantial part of their livelihoods on timber and non-timber forest products for food security, domestic use and income generation. These resources are also the basis for large-scale wood production in planted forests to satisfy the worldwide need for timber and paper. Genetic resources of several important timber, fruit and other non-timber tree species are conserved ex situ in genebanks or maintained in field collections. Nevertheless, in situ conservation in forests and on farms is in the case of most tree species the most important measure to protect their genetic resources.
Akure Forest Reserve is a protected area in southwest Nigeria, covering 66 km2 (25 sq mi). The Akure Forest Reserve, established in 1948 and spanning approximately 32 hectares. It was created with the primary aim of safeguarding the genetic diversity of the forest ecosystem. About 11.73% (8.2 km2) is estimated to be cleared for cocoa farming and other food crops. Aponmu and Owena Yoruba speaking communities owned the forest, though, there are also minor settlements surrounding the forest. They include Ipogun, Kajola/ Aponmu, Kajola, Ago Petesi, Akika Camp, Owena Town, Ibutitan/Ilaro Camp, Elemo Igbara Oke Camp and Owena Water new Dam.
Forest restoration is defined as "actions to re-instate ecological processes, which accelerate recovery of forest structure, ecological functioning and biodiversity levels towards those typical of climax forest", i.e. the end-stage of natural forest succession. Climax forests are relatively stable ecosystems that have developed the maximum biomass, structural complexity and species diversity that are possible within the limits imposed by climate and soil and without continued disturbance from humans. Climax forest is therefore the target ecosystem, which defines the ultimate aim of forest restoration. Since climate is a major factor that determines climax forest composition, global climate change may result in changing restoration aims. Additionally, the potential impacts of climate change on restoration goals must be taken into account, as changes in temperature and precipitation patterns may alter the composition and distribution of climax forests.
Deforestation in British Columbia has resulted in a net loss of 1.06 million hectares of tree cover between the years 2000 and 2020. More traditional losses have been exacerbated by increased threats from climate change driven fires, increased human activity, and invasive species. The introduction of sustainable forestry efforts such as the Zero Net Deforestation Act seeks to reduce the rate of forest cover loss. In British Columbia, forests cover over 55 million hectares, which is 57.9% of British Columbia's 95 million hectares of land. The forests are mainly composed of coniferous trees, such as pines, spruces and firs.
The biogeographic regionalization of Earth's terrestrial biodiversity, known as Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World (TEOW), is made up of 867 ecoregions that are divided into 14 biomes. In addition to offering a comprehensive map of terrestrial biodiversity, TEOW also provides a global species database for ecological analyses and priority setting, a logical biogeographic framework for large-scale conservation strategies, a map for enhancing biogeographic literacy, and a foundation for the Global 200.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)The Society of American Foresters grants accreditation only to specific educational curricula that lead to a first professional degree in forestry at the bachelor's or master's level.
This article incorporates text from a free content work.Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0( license statement/permission ).Text taken from Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020 Key findings ,FAO,FAO.
This article incorporates text from a free content work.Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO( license statement/permission ).Text taken from The State of the World's Forests 2020. Forests, biodiversity and people – In brief ,FAO & UNEP,FAO & UNEP.
This article incorporates text from a free content work.Licensed under CC BY-SA IGO 3.0( license statement/permission ).Text taken from World Food and Agriculture – Statistical Yearbook 2023 ,FAO,FAO.