Forest neighbourhoods for timber harvest scheduling

• Published in: Forestry chronicle Vol. 70; no. 6; pp. 768 - 772
• Main Authors: Wightman, R.A, Baskent, E.Z
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.12.1994
• Subjects: algorithms; forest inventory; forests; geographic information systems; gisforman; harvest neighborhoods; logging; logging schedule; management units; neighborhood forming algorithm; planning; similarity index; simulation models; spatial distribution; stand characteristics
• ISSN: 0015-7546; 1499-9315
• DOI: 10.5558/tfc70768-6

Forest management involves exploring through time the scheduling opportunities for timber and non-timber values within a forest. The ability to identify and form neighbourhoods--areas of suitable stand conditions and locations--is critical to this endeavour. This paper presents a GIS-based algorithm for identifying and forming forest neighbourhoods suitable for timber harvest scheduling. The resulting neighbourhoods are contiguous and overlapping, composed of stands sharing similar attributes. Similarity is based on a definable similarity list where stand conditions closest to one another in the list are most similar to one another. The algorithm is demonstrated with a single stand example and then a small forest example. Control of neighbourhood size is limited using a vector data model, except in forests composed of small stands. The examples illustrate that neighbourhood inclusion is dependent on both a forest stand's condition and relative position in the forest. The paper concludes with suggestions for further development of the algorithm.