Many studies have shown that net primary production in old-growth Douglas-fir/western hemlock forests is lower than in younger forests in similar sites, although the cause is still not clear. One possibility is that overall carbon assimilation, or GPP, is lower in older forests. However, it is difficult to measure GPP...
This study aims to compare different methods of obtaining maximum growing season leaf area index (LAI) maps using remote sensing data, LAI and tree cover field data in a boreal forest near Thompson, Manitoba, Canada. The comparison includes aspatial methods such as traditional regression, inverse regression and reduced major axis,...
Quantifying and modeling processes involved in the global carbon cycle is important to evaluate the temporal and spatial variability of these processes and understand the effect of this variability on future response to changing climate and land use patterns. Biomass accumulation and Net Primary Productivity (NPP) are large components of...
Disaggregative and individual-tree/distance-independent modeling methods are
compared and contrasted. Differences between the two are related to differences in functional
and apparent resolution and may be illustrated using aggregation theory. When considering
models of different levels of resolution describing a given phenomenon, invariance with respect
to the aggregation implied (symmetry) may...
The problem of determining an optimal sequence of decisions in
even-aged stand management is analyzed and solved with an alternative to
the traditional dynamic programming network. The new method is derived
independently from two different approaches to the problem: Network
optimization and generalized LaGrange multipliers. Both derivations are
presented. It...
A complex and sometimes serious problem facing modern day forest
managers is that of estimating and analyzing potential on-site impacts
which result from forest activities. A major type of adverse impact
is man-Initiated forest erosion. This consequence can be substantially
magnified when forest harvest and road activities are implemented in...
Accurate measurement of forest productivity is fundamental to understand the carbon balance of forested ecosystems. Recent changes in climate highlight the importance of developing methods to measure forest productivity so that sound economic and environmental decision can be made. Efforts to measure forest productivity across the landscape using remote sensing...
There is considerable uncertainty associated with stand
establishment in coastal Oregon. Several species can gain
control of the site depending on stand conditions as well as
management practices. In this study, three cover type
transition models were developed using data from the Siuslaw
National Forest to predict stand establishment patterns...
This thesis is a collection of four submitted manuscripts that present
methods to assist forest ecosystem service managers wanting to develop
operational sampling, monitoring, and production plans for a set of
specific quantifiable ecosystem services, which are formulated as a
series of general multi-objective optimization problems. The problems
are solved...