Two Day Excursions

Description:

Influence of ancient land-use on present-day forests: the Romans in the Haye – Stop 1

Most of large state forests in France have been considered, until now, as immemorial forests, ie forests which were never deforested for agriculture in the past.

But, recently, thanks to combined field and aerial observations, we discovered several large ancient crop field areas, which were dated by archaeologists from the Roman period, and abandoned to the forest 1700 years ago. We will visit such a site, looking for stack of stones, ancient walls and Roman tiles, assisted by LIDAR images.

We have studied the long term impacts of this ancient agriculture on soil chemical properties, soil microbiology, nitrogen cycling, tree nutrition, plant and insect communities. For all of these targets, an impact of previous agriculture is still clearly visible, even after nearly two millennia. Man has irreversible impacts on natural ecosystems!

Forest developed in waste land and on a technosoil – Pompey site – Stop 2

The iron and steel industry of Pompey-Frouard-Custines (Lorraine, France), located along the Moselle river, existed from 1872 to 1986 and produced special steels. In Pompey, dams were gradually built with slag or other materials around ponds during the filling by successive sludge supplies, thereby generating stratified deposits. The site was restored after the industry closed for further economic development. However, the former settling pond remained unchanged and the contaminated Technosol was colonized by vegetation, leading to a forested ecosystem.

Study of biogeochemical cycles and their interactions – Montiers site – Stop 3

To lead a sustainable management of the forest, it is essential to understand the functioning of forest ecosystems by analyzing the biogeochemical cycles at the stand scale and by characterizing the different components and processes.

The experimental site of Montiers in the beech forest comprises three biogeochemical stations and a flux tower. The three stations were built on three different soils (deep and acidic to superficial and calcic) with the same stand characteristics (species, age, management). The main objectives of the Montiers site are to determine: (i) the effect of soil types and climate on the biogeochemical and biological functioning of forest ecosystems, (ii) the interactions between cycles (ie water, C, N, major and trace elements) (iii) the biological and geochemical mechanisms as well as factors which control these fluxes, the tree growth and the soil microorganism diversity  (iv) the observation of processes on the long-term.

Description: Visit of the Verdun battlefield and of the forest that was planted after the war. We will see the traces of the battle, and how the forest was able to recolonize the battle field. Visit of Douaumont, of several hot spots of the battle, of the “Centre Mondial de la Paix” (World Peace Center). Exchanges with the team managing the forest on the battle field.

Description: The transformation of energy systems in Germany is a major issue. Discussions began in the 1990s, and following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster (2011) as well as the results of the Paris climate conference (2015), the movement gained new momentum. But the strategy to convert energy production systems to renewable resources is having severe impact on landscape, forestry and agriculture and affecting rural structures. The excursion shows practical examples of how the strategy is applied in reality, how the single projects were initiated, discussed and implemented. We will adress the questions: “How have they performed so far?” and “What do the involved parties (stakeholders) think about them in retrospect?”.

During this 2-day excursion we will visit

• a wind-power park in a forest
• a monastery with its own forest and wood-chip heating system
• a company that is building wooden houses with lowest energy input and
• a community showing that the use of regional wood is more than a contribution to climate change mitigation.

These sites are located in Bavaria and in Baden-Württemberg.

Description:

• Destination(s): Forests on the Swiss Plateau and in the Swiss Pre-Alps, in particular the natural forest reserves of Weidwald and Bödmeren, the special forest reserve of Amden, and the Dauerwald (continuous cover forest) Basadingen (to be confirmed).
• Brief description: We will visit and demonstrate four examples of forest biodiversity management that differ in their conservation goals. The sites cover the range from the lowlands up to the montane zone of Switzerland and are representative for deciduous and coniferous forests of Central Europe. Depending on the conservation goal, integrative and/or segregative approaches guide the habitat management of the forests.
• Key theme(s): Forest biodiversity management from single trees to entire landscapes, in particular: natural forest reserve, special forest reserve, species conservation (i.e. capercaillie, lichens, mosses), old-growth attributes, micro-habitats, habitat trees, dead wood, long-term monitoring of forests succession.
• Support program (cultural): Accommodation in a traditional Swiss guesthouse in a beautiful mountain-forest landscape. Traditional Swiss dinner and folk music. We will visit and demonstrate four examples of forest biodiversity management that differ in their conservation goals. The sites cover the range from the lowlands up to the montane zone of Switzerland and are representative for deciduous and coniferous forests of Central Europe. Depending on the conservation goal, integrative and/or segregative approaches guide the habitat management of the forests.

Description: Visit Swiss alpine protection forests against natural hazards such as rockfall or snow avalanches and learn about related topics such as silvicultural management in the light of climatic change, timber yarding in steep terrain, monitoring using remote sensing data and field survey.

The excursion starts on Friday 22nd of September in the afternoon after the conference with a travel from Freiburg to a hotel in Zizers. The route will take us along the beautiful Lake Zurich and Walensee.

On Saturday 23rd in the morning we will visit the “Protchopf” forest near Pfäfers, a “role model” for timber yarding in steep terrain. You will also learn about special aspects of Swiss wood markets and projects on the use of remote sensing data for protection forest monitoring or the optimization of management interventions in mountain forests.

On Saturday afternoon, we will visit a forest near Savognin and address the topic of mountain forest silviculture in the light of climatic change. The day will end in the Benedictine monastery in Disentis, were we will have dinner, a guided tour and also accomodation for the night. On our way from Savognin to Disentis, we will drive along the scenic Rheinschlucht (large prehistoric rockslide).

On Sunday 24th in the morning we will drive to Andermatt and visit the Schafberg protection forest. You will learn about the spatial simulation of natural hazards and the economic value of the forest protective function.

In the afternoon, we will go on a boat trip on the scenic Lake Lucerne and visit the Victorinox visitor centre in Brunnen (see additional program elements). The excursion will end at app. 18:30 in Freiburg im Breisgau.

Description: Invasive and emerging pests and pathogens are recognized to be among the most severe threats to forest ecosystems. Three main factors have been identified as the causes of these increasing biotic disturbances: introductions of exotic species in the first place, the effects of climate change, and, lastly, changes in land management. Effective detection, surveillance and control methods are needed to preserve the vitality of forests and the long-term delivery of forest ecosystem services.

We will illustrate these issues with four striking examples of ongoing or emerging health problems in the coniferous and deciduous managed forests of Germany and France: the outbreaks of the spruce bark beetles that are increasing as a result of anthropogenic-induced climate change, the recent outbreaks of the forest cockchafer which jeopardize the natural regeneration of deciduous forests, the oak processionary moth which cause heavy defoliations and severe human health problems, and the ash dieback which causes extensive mortality.

In addition the excursion will provide the opportunity to cross green and hilly landscapes, visit historic medieval villages and taste renowned white wines.