ALBERT

Description: Botryosphaeria canker is likely the most injurious disease for cork production in the Mediterranean Basin. The exclusion of Benomyl, the standard commercial product used to prevent Botryosphaeria canker, from the EU Pesticide Database in 2003 necessitates the search for new alternatives to prevent cork oak cankering. In vitro experiments showed that every fungicide tested at 10 3 mg l –1 active ingredient was effective in reducing mycelial growth of Diplodia corticola . An initial field experiment showed that cork oak trunks sprayed with Thiophanate-methyl, Carbendazim, Difenoconazole, Pyraclostrobin or Copper-Calcium Sulphate under low-humidity environmental conditions exhibited significant decreases in the number and length of trunk lesions, 3 years post-treatment, compared with untreated trees. A second field experiment conducted under extremely wet conditions showed that only Thiophanate-methyl was effective, 2.5 years after treatments, when sprayed just after peeling. Finally, in a third field experiment, under wet conditions, the preventive effectiveness of Thiophanate-methyl, Copper-Calcium Sulphate and a mix of both fungicides was confirmed, although no synergistic effect of the mixture was measured. Copper-Calcium Sulphate or Thiophanate-methyl, when applied immediately after trunk peeling, is effective for preventive control of Botryosphaeria canker on cork oak and may be considered as an effective replacement for Benomyl.

Description: Little research has focussed on the use of low point density airborne laser scanning (ALS) technology in Mediterranean Aleppo pine ( Pinus halepensis Mill.) forest to derive key stand characteristics for forestry. The objective of this research was to develop models of Aleppo pine structural variables from ALS point clouds with a point density of 1 point m –2 and field information, in an area located in north-eastern Spain. Field stand metrics were obtained within 45 plots, 30 m in diameter. A multiple regression analysis was performed in order to develop the models for mean height, squared mean diameter, basal area, timber volume, stand density and crown ratio, which led to the following R 2 values: 0.87, 0.84, 0.89, 0.89, 0.48 and 0.69, respectively. ALS-derived metrics included in the models were maximum height, the 99th, 95th and 50th canopy height percentiles, the skewness, the kurtosis, the standard deviation, the coefficient of variation and the percentages of all and first returns from above 1 m of the ground surface. With the exception of stand density, the final models are appropriate to be used in forest management operations in Mediterranean Aleppo pine forest. This study demonstrates the usefulness of low point density ALS data to accurately estimate key structural parameters of Aleppo pine forest using an area-based approach.

Description: National forest inventories (NFIs) have to be properly designed in order to yield statistically representative data and make best use of limited resources. A key element to accomplish this is the knowledge of the local variability in the sampled forest stand features. In this study, we estimated the variability of tree taxonomic richness and carbon (C) stock in logged-over and unlogged lowland tropical forests of Papua New Guinea, to define the optimal plot and sample size needed to estimate these characteristics in the context of the forthcoming implementation of the new NFI. We used data from 133 one-hectare permanent sample plots to calculate the coefficient of variation (CV) of C stock and taxonomic richness at different simulated plot sizes. CV was seen to rapidly decrease with increasing plot size up to 0.2–0.3 ha for both features following an inverse-exponential trend. Optimum plot size ranged between 0.08 and 0.32 ha, with 75–164 plots needed to achieve an estimation within 5 per cent of the true mean (95 per cent confidence), depending on the stand feature and the previous silvicultural treatment. We concluded that the establishment of a network of 319 permanent sample plots between 0.2 and 0.3 ha in size would represent an efficient sampling scheme in lowland forests for the new NFI.

Description: The concept of a social licence to operate (SLO) was originally developed for mining and has since been extended to other resource extraction operations, such as forestry. We develop and apply SLO theory as the conceptual framework to analyse neoliberal economic development in the Peruvian Amazon. The Peruvian administration of Alan García secured a legal licence to pursue this programme through legislative decrees, but the policies were not considered legitimate by Amazonian communities. As such the administration lacked a SLO from the communities affected by the policies. The failure to obtain a SLO led to civil protests culminating in violent confrontations between police and citizens causing 33 deaths. Theoretically, the study extends SLO analysis from projects proposed by companies and contested by communities to government policy decisions that may support actions by companies but which are contested by a range of social actors. The state, we argue, is not a neutral arbitrator in economic development and resource extraction but an active political agent. As such, it needs to legitimize its policies. In addition to the SLO literature, therefore, we also draw from legitimacy theory and argue that legitimacy requires both legal compliance and coherence with wider societal norms and standards.

Description: Accurate estimation of forest biomass and carbon stocks at regional to national scales is a key requirement in determining terrestrial carbon sources and sinks on United States (US) forest lands. To that end, comprehensive assessment and testing of alternative volume and biomass models were conducted for individual tree models employed in the component ratio method (CRM) currently used in the US’ National Greenhouse Gas Inventory. The CRM applies species-specific stem volume equations along with specific gravity conversions and component expansion factors to ensure consistency between predicted stem volumes and weights, and additivity of predicted live tree component weights to match aboveground biomass (AGB). Data from over 76 600 stem volumes and 6600 AGB observations were compiled from individual studies conducted in the past 115 years – what we refer to as legacy data – to perform the assessment. Scenarios formulated to incrementally replace constituent equations in the CRM with models fitted to legacy data were tested using cross-validation methods, and estimates of AGB were scaled using forest inventory data to compare across 33 states in the eastern US. Modifications all indicated that the CRM in its present formulation underestimates AGB in eastern forests, with the range of underestimation ranging from 6.2 to 17 per cent. Cross-validation results indicated the greatest reductions in estimation bias and root-mean squared error could be achieved by scenarios that replaced stem volume, sapling AGB, and component ratio equations in the CRM. A change in the definitions used in apportioning biomass to aboveground components was also shown to increase prediction accuracy. Adopting modifications tested here would increase AGB estimates for the eastern US by 15 per cent, accounting for 1.5 Pg of C currently unaccounted for in live tree aboveground forest C stock assessments. Expansion of the legacy data set currently underway should be useful for further testing, such as whether similar gains in accuracy can be achieved in estimates of regional or national-scale C sequestration rates.

Description: Seedling dynamics of the Macaronesian laurel forest have been monitored for the first time in a long-term study to determine whether the survival of the seedling community is affected by slope aspect and forest structure. More than 4000 seedlings were monitored monthly from 2000 to 2003 in well-preserved laurel forest stands on Tenerife, Canary Islands. Trees and seedling bank species composition differed between windward and leeward slopes. On both slopes, differences in species composition between the canopy and the seedling bank suggest future shifts in canopy species composition towards a more advanced successional stage. Surprisingly, seedling survival was higher on the drier leeward than on the wetter windward slope. This seems to be related to environmental and structural differences of the forest stand between slope aspects (e.g. larger trees, higher canopy cover and tree density and lower light penetration in windward plots). Analysed species have long-lived seedling banks with survival rates of 12 per cent and 5 per cent in the long term (12 years) for leeward and windward slopes, respectively, with significant differences among species. This result reflects the high regeneration potential of the forest in well-preserved stands, indicating that no management interventions are required to ensure the regeneration of this endemic forest.

Description: The pine sawyer Monochamus galloprovincialis is considered the most efficient vector in Europe of the pine wood nematode (PWN), the causal agent of the pine wilt disease. The detection of PWN in Europe generated great concern by the EU which, in response, implemented strong quarantine and phytosanitary measures. Among them, the improvement of monitoring and control of pine sawyer is imperative, for which better understanding of behavioural, ecological and operational factors affecting catchability is needed. In 2012–2013, we investigated with mark-recapture methods the population density, trap attraction distance, flight behaviour and mass trapping efficiency in M. galloprovincialis . Population density ranged from 96 to 474 adults ha –1 . Trap attraction distance averaged 50 m. Lifetime adult dispersal was 107–122 m on average. A logarithmic diffusion model fitted to recapture data yielded a maximum dispersal of 464 m (95 per cent confidence limits: 121–2365 m). Sawyer flights were significantly more frequent downslope in the plot. Catch concentration (i.e. the ratio between the radius r of the effective trapping area S and the maximum dispersal distance r m ) ranged from 0.32 to 0.41 depending on sex. Mass trapping efficiency (i.e. the ratio of the total number of adults caught in the plot (excluding recaptures) over the estimated population size) was consistently low (0.08–0.36). We conclude from an applied perspective that available lures and traps are highly effective for monitoring, but their implementation in mass trapping requires substantial improving.