A country report is elaborated by each country acting as a Party in the intergovernmental COST Action FP0703 ECHOES.
Objectives:
Globally, they constitute a source of facts and ideas.
Structure
It is organized in two levels:
General Outline of Country Reports
I. Impacts [read more]
I.1. Observed impacts [read more]
I.2. Expected impacts [read more]
I.3. Impact monitoring [read more]
I.4. Impact management [read more]
II. Adaptation [read more]
II.1. Vulnerability of forests and forestry [read more]
II.2. General adaptation strategy or policy [read more]
II.3. Forest adaptation measures [read more]
II.4. Research studies on forest adaptation [read more]
III. Mitigation [read more]
III.1. Carbon accounts [read more]
III.2. Forestry as a source of bioenergy [read more]
III.3. Processes, instruments and strategies [read more]
III.4. Research studies on mitigation [read more]
IV. Case studies [read more]
IV.1. Case study 1
IV.2. Case study 2
IV.3. Case-study 3
Nb : Federal countries and confederacies gather information on their different entities at the finest appropriate level at which they are also likely to add, if necessary, a short introduction and synthesis for the country. When several entities must be distinguished in the country, they are referred to as A, B, C…. These headlines may be classified in order of preference:
• after the headlines in Arabic numerals (giving for example II.2.B),
• between the headlines in Roman and Arabic numerals (giving for example II.B.2),
• before the headlines in Roman numerals (giving for example B.II.2).
In introduction, a general view could be given on the history and regional aspects of climate change in the country. The way according to which entities are dealt with is reported here (in particular for federal countries and confederacies).
This part distinguishes observed (past or present) impacts, their possible management and expected (future) impacts on forests as they can be modeled from socio-economic scenarios and from climate and vegetation models.
Due to several possible factors: temperature, precipitation, wind speed, CO2 atmospheric concentration, etc.
Classification:
Impacts on ecosystem dynamics and functioning: phenology of vegetation or animals, length of the growing season, distribution areas of species, natural regeneration, functional biodiversity, invasive species, etc.
Disturbances and extreme events: droughts, floods, storms, insects and pests outbreaks, forest fires, erosion…
If there are analyses aiming at identifying the role of each factor, they will of course be quoted and their results given. They are a first step towards simulations of future impacts. When these impacts are described, transparency is required and data sources should be carefully given and identified as issued from statistics, research or expert knowledge.
Which are the main past and present research studies aiming at simulating future impacts of climate change?
Which are their scopes and key results?
The corresponding simulations will be quoted as regards their assumptions in terms of socio-economic scenarios (IPCC SRES scenarios of families A1, A2, B1 or B2) and climate and vegetation models (that have also to be systematically specified).
The same classification as for observed impacts may be used: ecosystem dynamics and functioning, disturbances and extreme events.
Forest monitoring system have mainly been developed towards better knowledge on forest resources (National forest inventories), on the consequences of air pollution (level 1 and level 2 plots of the European health monitoring networks), and on forest fires.
Today the question is to assess this system as regards climate change and to determine how it should be adapted to this new situation.
In your country, has any additional network or measurement been implemented in order to better monitor climate change?
Is there any process intended to identify new requirements of forest monitoring under climate change and possible solutions?
Which indicators are currently used to give account of consequences of climate in forestry?
Once they happened, sudden impacts (such as those from big storms, large fires, severe droughts, pest outbreaks and strong declines) can be reduced by appropriate management, especially since it was developed in advance in the form of crisis plans.
As such management aims at reducing the vulnerability of forests, it is part of adaptation measures. However, as it is dealing with direct and immediate consequences of first impacts, it is considered here as a part of the Impact Working Group instead of the Adaptation Working Group. It is clear nevertheless that coordination will be necessary between the two Working Groups.
In your country, are there any systems to detect forest disturbances and extreme events (drought, floods, storms, insects and pests outbreaks, forest fires, erosion)? Is any change in these systems due to the new perspective of climate change?
Are there any crisis plans to alleviate the consequences of these extreme events and forest disturbances? Does climate change appear as an additional reason to elaborate missing plans?
Which are the main measures intended to better manage a crisis? Which questions should be answered in order to improve crisis management?
Two different fields of adaptation measures can be distinguished:
Adaptation measures ultimately aim at reducing the vulnerability to climate change. Measures relative to impact management are actions taken as immediate response to sudden impacts (see I.4 impact management).
Beyond immediate response actions to disturbance events (e.g. wind throw) there is the option to adapt current management practices and concepts, notably in order to reduce future impacts on forest stands and trees. Adaptation strategies may be elaborated as a general framework for all sectors at the country level. They may be stated for the forest sector, parts of the country or for specific forest types.
How do you judge the vulnerability of forests, forestry and related value chains in your country?
Please, give your expert opinion on this issue for the following time horizons:
In your country, is there any general adaptation strategy or policy for all sectors? Which are its implications for forestry? Is it a right basis for a forest adaptation strategy? How has a forest adaptation strategy to be interlinked with this general adaptation strategy or policy?
Are there any forest adaptation strategies or measures in your country for the country as a whole or a part of it (e.g., specific forest types or regions)? If there are, what are its main recommendations?
Processes of deriving adaptation strategies/ measures may have been started or even completed for public (state, communal …) forests and for private (financial, industrial, other) owners. Is it the case in your country and which are their main recommendations?
Adaptation measures may include responses to both risks and opportunities created by climate change and they are classified into eight groups covering silviculture and forest resource management at stand level and higher spatial scales:
What have been the major research studies and their results as regards forest adaptation in your country?
Currently, are there ongoing research studies and which are their main objectives?
Until now, mitigation strategy has mainly derived from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its Kyoto Protocol. However, some instruments can be decided in other frameworks and the energy crisis adds new views and opportunities.
Carbon accounts constitute a major instrument to assess the current situation relative to mitigation of greenhouse effect and climate change and to plan future measures. They are officially declared in the frame of UNFCCC and they are just reminded here. They can be downloaded from the Unfccc website http://www.unfccc.int (GHG data, GHD data UNFCCCC, flexible queries) for forests, have they been forests or not in a recent past. A standard table could be proposed here for each country and filled either by the country representative or by Echoes secretariat.
In addition to the climate crisis, the energy crisis creates a new context for forestry and mitigation.
Which changes are introduced and expected in the country in the forest-based sector?
Which is the development of forest bio-energy? How is it expected in the future?
How is this new development compatible with other forest functions?
Which is the situation of the country in the frame of Kyoto Protocol commitments and opportunities, as regards for example forestry, Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and Joint Implementation (JI)?
Is there any other process in the country in link with carbon and forestry?
Is there any other process in the country in link with bio-energy production?
Which are the main recent or ongoing research studies in the field of forest mitigation? Which are their objectives and results? Which are their scopes (forests as carbon sinks, wood based products to lengthen carbon storage and save energy, bio-energy as a substitute of fossil fuels).
In a further step, some case studies may be developed in more details if they are considered as very important for other countries. The proposition of these case studies could be made not by the country members but by participants from other countries.