Evaluation of BioSoil Demonstration Project - Preliminary Data Analysis

The BioSoil demonstration Project was initiated under the Forest Focus-Scheme (Regulation (EC) Nr. 2152/2003) concerning the monitoring of forests and environmental interactions in the Community, and aimed to broaden the scope of previous forest monitoring activities (on atmospheric pollution and forest fires) to the fields of soil characteristics and biodiversity indicators. The preliminary data analysis concentrated on the evaluation of a selected number of parameters of the data submitted by NFCs and sampling procedures. For soil the parameters needed to establish soil organic carbon densities were analysed. The spatial consistency of data reported between NFCs was found to vary significantly between sources also for assumed constant parameters (volume of coarse fragments). The temporal stability and changes in variable parameters were assessed using data from the previous soil condition survey on Level I sites. A particular problem in sampling and reporting data was the separation of the organic layer from the soil material, which was approached differently by the NFCs. No clear trend in the development of soil organic carbon over the previous survey was found. The analysis of data on biodiversity concentrated on the consistency and completeness of the parameters reported. Plot characteristics were mapped and species diversity was established based on commonly used indices expressing the richness and distribution of species present on a site. Relationships between forest type and species diversity were explored. Regional differences in identifying and reporting species between sites became evident during the analysis. The evaluation of both modules concluded that the manuals detailing sampling and analysis of the data collected need to be up-dated with a clear and unambiguous description of procedures to follow and inconsistencies removed.JRC.DDG.H.7-Land management and natural hazard

Evaluation of BioSoil Demonstration Project - Soil Data Analysis

The BioSoil demonstration Project was initiated under the Forest Focus-Scheme (Regulation (EC) Nr. 2152/2003) concerning the monitoring of forests and environmental interactions in the Community, and aimed to broaden the scope of previous forest monitoring activities (on atmospheric pollution and forest fires) to the fields of soil characteristics and biodiversity indicators. The evaluation of the project concentrated on analysing a selected number of parameters submitted by NFCs for estimating the distribution and changes in soil organic carbon and the performance of the WRB classification. The spatial consistency of data reported between NFCs was found to vary significantly between sources, such as the presence of an organic layer on the over soil. The temporal stability and changes in variable parameters were assessed using data from the previous soil condition survey on Forest Focus / ICP Forests Level I sites. No clear general trend in the development of soil organic carbon over the previous survey was found, but some local changes. The results provided by the Central Laboratory suggest that some methodological differences in assessing the organic carbon content of the organic layers exist between the FSCC / ICP Forests and the BioSoil survey. Those differences limit the scope of a change analysis. A particular problem in sampling and reporting data was the separation of the organic layer from the soil material, which was approached differently by the NFCs. The evaluation also concluded that the specifications provided in the Manual detailing sampling and analysis of the data collected need to be up-dated with a clear and unambiguous description of procedures to follow and making the reporting on key soil parameters a mandatory task.JRC.DDG.H.7-Land management and natural hazard

The European Fire Database: technical specifications and data submission

The European Fire Database is an important component of the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), the EC focal point of information on forest fires established by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) and the Directorate General for Environment to provide up to date and harmonized information on forest fires in Europe. As of 2014 EFFIS is part of the Forest Information System for Europe (FISE), following the new EU Forest Strategy adopted in 2013. The Fire Database is the largest repository of information on individual fire events in Europe and is the end product of a long collaboration between European countries and the European Commission on forest fires. It contains forest fire information compiled by member countries of the EFFIS network. Fire data provided each year by national authorities are checked, stored and managed by JRC within the fire database. Each country has its own internal rules of reporting on individual fire events which is in most cases done mainly for administrative purposes. To widen the exploitation potential of the national fire data within the European Fire Database and to enhance data harmonization and data quality control, the common data set up has been gradually modified over the years. A common and in depth understanding of latest definitions and data specifications is of paramount importance. This report intends contributing to these efforts illustrating in detail the data stored in the European Fire Database, their definitions, the formats required for country data submission and the process of data validation and storage carried out at JRC.JRC.H.3-Forest Resources and Climat

Urban and Periurban Forest Habitat Suitability: Current Fitness and Future Trends Under Climate Change Scenario

Habitat suitability models have been largely discussed and debated in the last two decades (Austin, 2007). Their application on conservation issues and assessment of climate change impacts on rural landscapes are largely documented in literature. Here we propose to asses the actual and future suitability of European dominant trees and forest types covering urban and periurban forests. Habitat suitability Classification Tree models were computed for the 20 most common European tree species and for Forest types (c.f. forest categories defined according to EEA technical report n9/2006). Models are built at the European extent to integrate the whole species range and estimate correctly each biota¿s ecological niche. Habitat suitability distribution output maps of 1km resolution where plotted in Urban and Periurban Forested areas to asses actual fitness of species to their environment. 10 European capitals including Berlin, Brussels, Helsinki, Ljubljana, London, Madrid, Paris, Prague, Rome and Vienna where taken into account. Finally, IPCC SRES A1B future scenario was applied to the suitability model and we tested trends of vegetation suitability shift for the next century. Results shows how European urban forests are partially unfitted to actual suitability and a general trend of suitability changes in the next century. Those trends could force our urban forest management scheme and practices to adapt to a pressure of landscape changes at local levelJRC.H.7-Land management and natural hazard

Harmonized classification scheme of fire causes in the EU adopted for the European Fire Database of EFFIS

The information on the causes of forest fires is of paramount importance to support the environmental and civil protection policies and design appropriate prevention measure. At the European level a simple common scheme with 4 fire causes classes (deliberate, accident/negligence, natural and unknown) has been used to record information on fire causes since 1992. European countries use national schemes which in most cases are much more detailed than the simple 4 common classes, but they are not harmonized and detailed cross country comparisons are difficult. The need for a new EU scheme, more detailed than the 4 basic categories and harmonized across European countries, to be recorded in the Fire Database of the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), has been identified to improve the information level and the common knowledge on the origin of forest fires in Europe. The new scheme has been conceived to be applicable with limited changes to the previous country settings, preserving as much as possible the historical data series of each country and exploiting at the same time as much as possible the level of detail of the information available. This report provides a detailed description of the new scheme, its main features with precise definition of each cause class and the mapping of the historical national systems to the new harmonized system. The scheme is hierarchical and is made of 29 fire cause classes, 8 groups and 6 categories. The explicit statement on the level of certainty in the attribution of the cause to a fire event has been introduced as a key element in the new scheme. This harmonized fire cause classification scheme is expected to be adopted by the countries participating to the EFFIS network in the coming years, and therefore be recorded in the European Fire Database, with a significant added value for the knowledge about the origin of forest fires in Europe.JRC.H.3-Forest Resources and Climat

Forest Fire Damage in Natura 2000 sites 2000-2012

Forest fires are a threat for the forest and natural areas in Europe. Over 65 000 fires take place every year in the European Union, burning, on average, half a million hectares of the European landscape. Economic losses due to forest fires in the European Union territory are estimated in over 2 billion Euro every year. Areas protected under the Natura 2000 scheme are no exception to the damage caused by forest fires. Every year, approximately 80 000 ha are burned within the Natura 2000 sites. In the study period of this report, between the years 2000 and 2012, 1 044 917 ha of Natura 2000 protected areas were burnt, corresponding to 3.28% of the total Natura 2000 area in the affected countries. The environmental and economic damage of these fires is difficult to estimate, since often fires affect protected and endangered species living in these protected habitats. The current report analyses the impact of forest fires in Natura 2000 sites during the period 2000 to 2012. Special emphasis is put on the analysis of damages caused by large fires in the EU Mediterranean region, where most of these fires occur.JRC.H.3-Forest Resources and Climat

Evaluation of BioSoil Demonstration Project: Forest Biodiversity - Analysis of biodiversity module

The BioSoil demonstration Project was initiated under the Forest Focus-Scheme (Regulation (EC) Nr. 2152/2003) concerning the monitoring of forests and environmental interactions in the Community, and aimed to broaden the scope of previous forest monitoring activities (on atmospheric pollution and forest fires) to the fields of soil characteristics and biodiversity indicators. The results presented here are from the Biodiversity module in which various aspects of forest biodiversity, including species composition, structural elements and deadwood, were assessed over 3379 plots in Europe. As a test of practical indicators of forest biodiversity the project was successful, and the project has produced a common baseline on forest biodiversity information where changes over time and space can be monitored in the future. This is of particular relevance to the EU biodiversity policy and for the assessment of the new 2020 biodiversity goals. A number of recommendations can be made regarding the simplification and streamlining of procedures for future similar surveys.JRC.DDG.H.7-Land management and natural hazard

Forest Focus Monitoring Database System - Technical Report 2005 Level II Data

Forest Focus (Regulation (EC) No 2152/2003) is a Community scheme for harmonized, broad-based, comprehensive and long-term monitoring of European forest ecosystems. Under this scheme the monitoring of air pollution effects on forests is carried out by participating countries on the basis of the systematic network of observation points (Level I) and of the network of observation plots for intensive and continuous monitoring (Level II). According to Article 15(1) of the Forest Focus Regulation Member States shall annually, through the designated authorities and agencies, forward to the Commission geo-referenced data gathered under the scheme, together with a report on them by means of computer telecommunications and/or electronic technology. For managing the data JRC has implemented a Forest Focus Monitoring Database System. This Technical Report presents the results obtained from all processing stages (data reception, validation checks ¿ compliance, conformity, uniformity) for submitted data referring to the monitoring year 2005. This report presents the results at the end of the processing phase after data have been re-submitted in 2007. It presents in addition a brief comment on the data status for each NFC, for the reporting year, with respect to the parameter assessed and including analyses of spatial variability of data and temporal trends of parameters.JRC.DDG.H.7-Land management and natural hazard

Forest Focus Monitoring Database System - Technical Report 2006 Level II Data

Forest Focus (Regulation (EC) No 2152/2003) is a Community scheme for harmonized, broadbased, comprehensive and long-term monitoring of European forest ecosystems. Under this scheme the monitoring of air pollution effects on forests is carried out by participating countries on the basis of the systematic network of observation points (Level I) and of the network of observation plots for intensive and continuous monitoring (Level II). According to Article 15(1) of the Forest Focus Regulation Member States shall annually, through the designated authorities and agencies, forward to the Commission geo-referenced data gathered under the scheme, together with a report on them by means of computer telecommunications and/or electronic technology. For managing the data JRC has implemented a Forest Focus Monitoring Database System. This Technical Report presents the results obtained from all processing stages (data reception, validation checks ¿ compliance, conformity, uniformity) for submitted data referring to the monitoring year 2006. This report presents the results at the end of the processing phase after data have been re-submitted in 2007 and 2008. It presents in addition a brief comment on the data status for each NFC, for the reporting year, with respect to the parameter assessed and including analyses of spatial variability of data and temporal trends of parameters.JRC.H.7-Land management and natural hazard

Forest Focus Monitoring Database System - Technical Report 2001 Level II Data

Forest Focus (Regulation (EC) No 2152/2003 ) is a Community scheme for harmonised, broad-based, comprehensive and long-term monitoring of European forest ecosystems. It concentrates in particular on protecting forests against air pollution and fire. To supplement the monitoring system, Forest Focus stipulates the development of new instruments relating to soil monitoring, carbon sequestration, biodiversity, climate change and protective functions of forests. Under this scheme the monitoring of air pollution effects on forests is carried out by participating countries on the basis of the systematic network of observation points (Level I) and of the network of observation plots for intensive and continuous monitoring (Level II). The monitoring activity continues from the network and plots established and implemented under Council Regulation (EEC) No 3528/86 .and Regulations (EEC) No 1696/87 and (EC) No 1091/94 . The monitoring programme of air pollution effects is linked to International Cooperative Programme on Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Forest (ICP Forests). ICP Forests reports to the working Group on Effects of the Convention of the Long-Range Trans-boundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN-ECE). Forest Focus Article 15(1) stipulates that the Member States shall annually, through the designated authorities and agencies, forward to the Commission geo-referenced data gathered under the scheme, together with a report on them by means of computer telecommunications and/or electronic technology. For managing the data DG JRC has implemented a Forest Focus Monitoring Database System. The system was developed and realized under contract by a Consortium, coordinated by I-MAGE Consult with Nouvelles Solutions Informatiques s.a. (NSI) as consortium partner and the Bundesforschungsanstalt für Forst- und Holzwirtschaft (BFH) as sub-contractor. The designated authorities and agencies submitted annually to DG Joint Research Centre of the European Commission their observations made on the network of observation plots for intensive and continuous monitoring (Level II). Data are submitted via a Web-Module specifically designed for the task as part of the Forest Focus Monitoring Database System.JRC.DDG.H.7-Land management and natural hazard