high nature value (HNV) Concept and methodology for a high nature value (HNV) forest indicator Foreword European forests are a complex mosaic of conditions, constantly influenced by internal dynamics and external pressures determined by natural and anthropogenic factors. The latest statistics reveal an overall trend of growing forest area in the pan-European region, 0.41 % yearly (excluding Russia (UNECE/FAO, Forest Europe, 2011)). The question is whether the quality of our forests is increasing accordingly.The quality of an ecosystem can be expressed in various ways. One way is to show the degree of forest naturalness as reflecting the intensity of human interventions on forest ecosystems, i.e. specifying the extent of human influence (Cluzeau and Hamza, 2007). This means that the closer to the potential naturalness it is, the higher the quality of the forests. What is the naturalness level of European forests? And what is the trend over time?The concept of forest naturalness has been defined several times and in very different ways, without consensus from the scientific community. Much confusion still exists concerning terminology and definitions, making it extremely challenging to objectively assess areas with a high value of nature. Whichever definition and monitoring method are adopted, assessing forest naturalness is essential to supporting European environmental protection policy implementation. This is mirrored in the policy agenda of the European Union (EU) (Europe 2020, Biodiversity Strategy 2020, 7EAP).Over the past 15 years, much effort has been dedicated to developing a system for monitoring the level of naturalness in agricultural areas in Europe. The concept of high nature value (HNV) farmland was adopted as specific indicator in the Streamlining European Biodiversity Indicators ( SEBI) process (Area under management practices potentially supporting biodiversity, SEBI 019).To date, no similar concept has been developed for assessing the area of HNV forests in Europe. A study by the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP) (2007) proposed a first definition for HNV forest areas that was strongly influenced by the work carried out for HNV farmland. It was suggested that more scientifically oriented forest naturalness approaches be integrated in the HNV forest definition and assessment methods.This European Environment Agency (EEA) technical report documents the first steps for the development of a forest naturalness indicator for Europe. Can we apply the concepts used when evaluating farmland to forest habitats? Do we have enough information in Europe to determine the level of naturalness of our forests, or do we need to acquire new information? And if so, should this be done using a sampling approach in the field, or a wall-to-wall methodology mainly based on maps and remote sensing tools?An enhanced European HNV forest indicator and its corresponding map will enable us to gain better insight into the current status and extent of forest naturalness, and will allow for further analyses on spatial and time trends
Posted on: Wed, 26 Nov 2014 02:52:36 +0000
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