Seeing the soil through the trees: the utility of stem shape and taper in the butt swell for predicting soil depth in Australian Pinus plantations

"Precision forestry" is an emerging concept that is currently shaping the management of commercial forests worldwide. An increasing proportion of the world's wood is grown in plantation forests, so more site-specific or precise management of these forests is important for global wood supply, as well as for the profitability and sustainability of individual plantation estates. Managing plantations at such a fine scale requires a much more detailed understanding of spatial variation in soil resources than has been the case in the past. Current approaches to soil mapping are constrained by the logistic limitations and considerable expense of soil sampling. For this reason, finer-scale soil mapping across the large areas that characterise plantation estates is not feasible. Relationships between soil properties and attributes of tree growth are well established for major plantation species. The relationship between soil properties and stem shape and taper in the base or butt swell section of the tree stem has not previously been established or quantified, but physiological models of stem development suggest an association between this section of the stem and the quantity of soil resources. This thesis investigated the nature and utility of stem shape and taper in the butt swell section for predicting forest soil depth. Fieldwork to address this topic was conducted at a series of case study plantation sites in southern and eastern Australia. A regression model for predicting soil depth from tree shape measurements in the basal 2 m of the stem was developed and improved progressively as data was acquired from each case study site. Stem shape and taper in the butt-swell section of the stem was found to be strongly and predictably related to soil depth across all sample sites, which encompassed a broad range of soil types and depths. At its current stage of development, the model requires calibration for the location at which it is applied from a relatively small number of soil depth measurements. The quality of the map generated by the model was found to be equivalent to that produced using the conventional method of soil mapping; and better than the map generated by a model based on the well-established tree height. The results of this thesis are encouraging for fine-scale soil mapping in plantation forests. They suggest, firstly, that variation in the shape and taper of the butt swell section of the tree stem can be used to predict soil properties - certainly soil depth, and possibly, with further development, other soil properties relevant to tree growth; and secondly, that there is considerable promise for a simple tree-based approach to mapping fine-scale spatial variation in at least soil depth, and perhaps other soil properties. This, in turn, offers the prospect of a feasible and low-cost means of generating the information necessary to support finer-scale plantation management, such as that envisaged by precision forestry. -- provided by Candidate

Leading adaptation practices and support strategies for Australia: An international and Australian review of products and tools

The need to address climate change adaptation is growing internationally and not least of all in Australia. There has been a significant investment in adaptation research, risk assessment and planning in Australia, especially since 2007, with substantial support from government funding.  This has led to a strong growth of adaptation knowledge and practical experience, which has confirmed that adaptation planning and decision-making introduce new and complex challenges. These arise from the need to address not only traditional climate variability but also increasing current climate risks, and even greater future risks. Additional complexities arise from the pervasiveness of climate impacts and responses across natural and human systems, sectors and scales, the need to consider a range of time horizons, and the levels of uncertainty often involved.  However the development of products to support adaptation practice and decision-making is currently highly fragmented in Australia, leading to some confusion amongst end-users and insufficient critical mass and continuity of resourcing to provide sustained product support and improvement. For public, private and community sector organisations grappling with adaptation decisions there is a significant support gap, and an urgent need for products that will provide better guidance and more confidence. There is currently no national strategy to achieve this. This Project has carried out both research and strategy development to address this need. The Project concludes that the timing for a more coordinated strategic approach is right. There is potential to distil the learning from the investment of recent years. There is also a number of individual product initiatives under way or planned which, if positioned and enhanced within a more intentional overall strategy, could collectively make a significant difference. The timing is also critical. Australia’s adaptation effort is at a watershed. On the one hand the recent growth in experience and research is supporting progress by early adopters and especially those who have benefited from government seed funding. On the other, this has not yet brought about systemic change. In a future with more constrained government funding and most organisations still at first base, the foundation built to date could easily be lost. There is an urgent need to develop and promulgate good practices and products to better support organisations and decision-makers

Co-designing adaptation decision support: meeting common and differentiated needs

As exposure to climate change increases, there is a growing need for effective adaptation decision support products across public, private and community sectors and at all scales (local, regional, national, international). Numerous guidance products have been developed, but it is not clear to what extent they meet end-user needs, especially as development has been fragmented and many products lack continuing support, learning and improvement. It is timely to address the development of more intentional and coordinated support strategies that draw on the experience to date and what end-users themselves say they need. We have taken such an approach to co-design future support strategies for Australia at national and sub-national (sectoral, locational and/or jurisdictional) levels. Several supporting frameworks are introduced to assist in the clarification of common needs (e.g. incorporation of leading adaptation practices) versus differentiated needs across sectors (e.g. a ‘decision entry points’ framework) and individual organisations (e.g. a ‘decision domains’ framework). The collaborative process also identified key principles that should underpin national and sub-national support strategies and product development. A comparison with international experience indicates that the findings and principles should also be relevant to other nations, and to international and sub-national agencies developing adaptation support strategies and products.The Leading Adaptation Practices and Support program was funded by the NCCARF (first phase) and the federal Department of Environment and CSIRO (second phase)

Leading adaptation practices and support strategies for Australia: An international and Australian review of products and tools

Australia's adaptation effort is at a watershed. On the one hand, recent growth in experience and research is supporting progress by early adopters, especially those who have benefited from government seed funding; and there is a gradual increase in private as well as public sector interest across several sectors. On the other, this has not yet brought about systemic change, there has been limited movement from assessment to action, and many of the initial government support programs have reached or are reaching their end point. This places a premium on learning from experience to date, and developing and promulgating good products and services to support organisations and decision makers in their adaptation practice. Otherwise progress will be limited and the gains to date could easily be lost. This report addresses the need for a more intentional approach to providing practical support.This report was commisioned by Australian Governmen