J. For. Sci., 2004, 50(11):526-532 | DOI: 10.17221/4651-JFS

Sustainable management of mountain forests in the Czech Republic

S. Vacek, V. Balcar
Forestry and Game Management Research Institute, Jíloviště-Strnady, Opočno Research Station, Czech Republic

Forest management in the Czech Republic (CR) was not shaped in the environment of natural forests but in the territory that was influenced by unregulated felling and animal grazing for a long time. Hence the fear for sustainable and balanced benefits from forests endangered by long-term uncontrolled exploitation was legitimate. Almost after three centuries of application of the sustainability principle, forests are considered not only as a source of renewable wood raw material but also as a tool of the environment formation. Mountain forests are an important landscape component of this country. They are an object of specific importance from the aspect of natural environment conservation, stabilization of natural processes and general landscape homeostasis. In addition, they fulfil a number of production and non-production functions. Cardinal elements of sustainable forest management in the CR conditions are as follows: management of the forest as an ecosystem, i.e. transition from exclusive care of forest tree species and their stands to care of the whole forest ecosystems; restructuring (conversion, reconstruction) of damaged and declining forests; optimum (species, genetic, spatial, age) structure of forest ecosystems differentiated according to site conditions and management targets; differentiated transition from general management to group or individual methods; utilization and support of spontaneous processes such as natural regeneration, competition and other principles of self-regulation. The above cardinal elements of sustainable forest management are applicable to forests of the CR in general, but their importance considerably increases in mountain forests where many species survive on the margin of subsistence. Moreover, mountain forests of CR have been heavily destroyed by anthropogenic factors, especially air-pollution ecological stresses, during the last three or four decades.

Keywords: Czech Republic; mountain forest; sustainable management

Published: November 30, 2004  Show citation

ACS AIP APA ASA Harvard Chicago Chicago Notes IEEE ISO690 MLA NLM Turabian Vancouver
Vacek S, Balcar V. Sustainable management of mountain forests in the Czech Republic. J. For. Sci. 2004;50(11):526-532. doi: 10.17221/4651-JFS.
Share...
Download citation
  • BibTeX (.bib)
  • Bookends (.ris)
  • EasyBib (.ris)
  • EndNote (.enw)
  • EndNote 8 (.xml)
  • ISI WoS (.isi)
  • Medlars (.medlars)
  • Mendeley (.ris)
  • MODS (.xml)
  • Papers (.ris)
  • RefWorks (.txt)
  • RefManager (.ris)
  • RIS (.ris)
  • MS Word (.xml)
  • Zotero (.ris)
    • Open full article

    References

    1. POLENO Z., 1996. Sustainable Management of Forests in the Czech Republic. Praha, MZe ČR: 61.
    2. TESAŘ V., 1993. Obhospodařování horského lesa Českého masívu v současných ekologických poměrech. In: HLADÍK M. (ed.), Hospodárenie v lesoch horských oblastí. Písek, Matice lesnická: 11-31.
    3. VACEK S. (ed.), 1996. Monitoring, výzkum a management ekosystémů na území Krkonošského národního parku. Sbor. z mezinár. konf., Opočno, 15-17. 4. 1996. VÚLHM, VS Opočno: 350.
    4. VACEK S., BALCAR V., 2000. Sudeten Mountains in the Czech Republic - growing conditions, regeneration and stabilization of mountain forests. In: Multipurpose management of mountain forests: concepts, methods, techniques. Symposium International Communications. Pralognan-la-Vanoise, France, 25-30 June 2000. EOMF, IUFRO: 168-177.
    5. VACEK S., BALCAR V., 2002a. Strategy of Forest Restoration in the Czech Part of the "Black Triangle". In: Documenting Forest Restoration Knowledge and Practices in Boreal and Temperate Ecosystems. Vejle, Denmark, 28. 4.-3. 5. 2002, IUFRO: 147-148.
    6. VACEK S., BALCAR V., 2002b. An approach for conciliating public expectations and biological capaties. In: The formulation of integrated management plans (IMPs) for mountain forests. 30. 6.-5. 7. 2002, Bardonecchia, Italy, EOMF, Universita di Torino: 59-66.
    7. VACEK S., LOKVENC T., BALCAR V., HENŽLÍK V., 1997. Obnova a stabilizace lesa v horských oblastech Sudet (Forest regeneration and stabilization in the Sudeten mountain regions). In: PASCHALIS P., ZAJACZKOWSKI S. (eds.), Protection of forest ecosystems, selected problems of forestry in Sudety Mts. Wyd. 2., niezm., Warszawa: 93-119.

    This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY NC 4.0), which permits non-comercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original publication is properly cited. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.


    Return to the content