Ecosystem Management in Forest Landscapes

Ecosystem management in forest landscapes aims to maintain and restore the structure, function and processes of forest ecosystems while accommodating human needs for timber, recreation and other services. It embraces a holistic perspective in which biodiversity conservation, carbon sequestration, water regulation and socio-economic objectives are integrated across spatial and temporal scales. Central to this approach is the recognition of natural disturbance regimes—such as wildfires, windstorms and pest outbreaks—as intrinsic drivers of forest dynamics that generate habitat heterogeneity and adaptive capacity. By aligning silvicultural practices with these processes, managers can harmonise wood production with the maintenance of ecological legacies, such as deadwood, old-growth patches and diverse stand structures. Landscape planning, informed by remote sensing, spatial modelling and participatory governance, supports the design of reserve networks, restoration interventions and sustainable harvesting regimes. This multi-scale framework seeks trade-offs and synergies among competing objectives and emphasises adaptive management to respond to climate change, land-use pressures and evolving policy targets.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated the power of high-resolution spatial analysis in shaping conservation strategies. One investigation utilised machine learning techniques and wall-to-wall landscape data to predict the location of forest stands with high conservation value at a one-hectare scale across a boreal region. This approach validated naturalness gradients from degraded to intact forests and produced fine-scale maps to assess habitat connectivity, inform restoration planning and monitor progress towards conservation targets under intensifying forestry pressure and ambitious biodiversity goals.

Ecosystem Management in Forest Landscapes publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in ecosystem management in forest landscapes across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Ecosystem services: The benefits that humans derive from ecosystem functions, including carbon storage, biodiversity, water regulation and recreation.

Natural disturbance regime: The characteristic patterns and frequencies of events such as fires, storms and pest outbreaks that shape forest structure and dynamics.

High conservation value forest: Stands that retain natural structures and processes critical for biodiversity conservation at landscape scales.

Silviculture: The art and science of controlling forest establishment, composition, growth and quality to meet diverse management objectives.

Adaptive management: An iterative decision-making process that adjusts practices in response to monitoring and changing environmental conditions.

References

1. A generic simulation model for relating forest CO2 intake and CO2 emissions by forest operations – The R-package care4cmodel. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture (2024).
2. The conservation value of forests can be predicted at the scale of 1 hectare. Communications Earth & Environment (2024).
3. Sustainable forest management for carbon, wood and biodiversity must consider natural disturbance regimes. Environmental Research Letters (2025).