Study supported by the Forest Development Fund (agreement No. 25-00-S0MF11-000001)
The aim of the Study is to improve data updating for the time period beginning on historical forest cover, forest stand structure and economic activity by collecting data in a regular grid network.
The research developed an approach that allows integrating the contradictory views of 'ancient forest' and 'old-growth' into a single system. These findings were tested in the Zemgale plain arriving to practical indicators including the minimum area to be mapped. Following the theoretical and methodological issues, we turned to practical mapping, which included material preprocessing and practical vectorization, obtaining both direct and indirect results. The obtained forest contours were applied to a 1 × 1 km grid, calculating the parameters characterizing the historical landscape – forest fragmentation, average massif size and edge lengths.
Tasks of the study
Continue to assess the historical distribution of Latvian forest territories from a spatial perspective, including:
- Digitization of the area of historical forest territories and other parameters characterizing the forest landscape in a 1 × 1 km grid in four historical periods:
a) 1790s–1830s;
b) 1880s–1910s;
c) 1920s–1945s;
d) 1960s–1989s; - Assessment of the parameters characterizing the historical forest landscape, including changes in forest fragmentation, average massif edge length and other parameters in the previously defined four historical periods;
- Complete the development of the concept of ancient forests, which was started in 2024, and focuses on the distribution and diversity aspects of ancient forests characteristic of Latvia, including management practices and regionalization principles. Prepare detailed descriptions of ancient forests and provide proposals for their sustainable management.