Adapting Mediterranean forests to the effects of climate change by modifying management

Abstract

It is forecast that climate change will affect Mediterranean forests and woodlands in many ways. Consequently, the managers of these areas are faced with the need to take decisions aimed at enhancing the areas’ capacity to adapt to such changes. This is the context which gave rise to the For Climadapt project (within the European MED programme). This article presents as examples two trials in the Lower Pyrenees of Catalonia with the double aim of reducing the vulnerability of forest stands to massive wildfire and enhancing the adaptability and resilience of forests by establishing an ensemble of enrichment stands within sub-Mediterranean single-species pine forests to improve their characteristics