Forest ecosystem management concept and application: A case study in Artvin planning unit

Forest Ecosystem Management Concept and Application: A Case Study in Artvin Planning Unit Legal and practical bases of forestry are affected by international processes of sustainable forest management initiatives. Turkish forestry, is underway in a re-structuring process within the framework of international development. This thesis focuses on the development of conceptual framework of forest ecosystem management (FEM) as applied to forestry in Turkey. Biodiversity, principle of FEM, is integrated in the concept and applied in a case study. This study was carried out in Artvin Planning Unit. Spatial forest database was built with GIS. Forest Ecosystem inventory was conducted and different thematic maps were generated. Forest management objectives and conservation targets along with six silvicultural units and appropriate prescriptions were determined for the planning unit. Two different forest management planning models were developed regarding classical (KLAS) and FEM approaches using linear programming and solved with commercial LDMDOT programme. Based on even flow harvest constraints, soil erosion, timber and water production thresholds and objectivegoals functions; 14 forest management strategies (9 FEM and 5 KLAS) were developed. The achievement of planning strategies was presented with a number of such as the amount of outputs considering timber, water and oxygen production, soil erosion and carbon storage and Net Present Value (NPV), over 10-year period 100 year planning horizon. Comparing 14 planning strategies with each other, maximum water production with NPV strategy provided superier results of NPV to the other strategies. In conclusion; conceptual framework ecosystem based forest multiple use management under international processes and forestry of Turkey was developed and implemented in a research area Advantages of developed concept to classical planning approaches are; obtaining biodiversity data with forest ecosystem inventory, establishing spatial database, detennining new management objectives and conservation targets, preparing different silvicultural units and prescriptions, developing yield and economic growth&yield projections developing alternative management strategies. Necessary measurements must be undertaken to incorparate the to concept developed it this thesis to achieve technical problems or pitfalls.Keywords: Ecosystem Management, Forest Management, Biodiversity, Linear Programming, Geographic Information Systems, Net Present Value