Forest management simulations across Europe under climate change scenarios using the 3D-CMCC-FEM v5.7
Authors/Creators
-
1.
Institute for Agricultural and Forest Systems in the Mediterranean
-
2.
University of Florence
Description
This dataset was produced within the Horizon Europe project OptFor-EU – OPTimising FORest management decisions for a low-carbon, climate-resilient future in Europe (2023–2027). It contains outputs from forest ecosystem simulations performed with the 3D-CMCC-FEM model, aimed at assessing the impacts of alternative forest management practices (FMP) under present and future climate scenarios across Europe.
Model description
All simulations in this dataset were conducted using 3D-CMCC-FEM, a process-based forest ecosystem model that simulates eco-physiological and biogeochemical processes at daily resolution and hectare scale. The model explicitly represents species composition, age structure, stand density, and tree dimensions. It can simulates carbon and water cycles under different climate and forest management scenarios. 3D-CMCC-FEM has been widely applied across European forest ecosystems and constitutes a core modelling component of OptFor-EU (Collalti et al., 2014, 2018, 2024; Dalmonech et al., 2022).
Simulations description
Simulations were conducted across Case Study Areas (CSA), combining European Forest Types (EFT), 20-year age classes (AC), and multiple forest management practices (FMP). For each CSA, up to 14 EFT, 8 AC, and 9 FMP were implemented, depending on regional applicability.
From the EURO-CORDEX generation CMIP5 downscaling experiments, high-resolution climate input data is available from the regional climate models (RCM) HIRHAM5-HADGEM2ES and RACMO22E-HADGEM2ES, for the Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) 2.6, 4.5 and 8.5 (Jacob et al., 2020).
Further details on the simulation protocol are documented in OptFor-EU Deliverable D2.2.
Case Study Areas (CSA)
Table 1: Case Study Areas within the Optfor-EU progect: each representing distinct European regions and biogeographical conditions.
|
Code |
Nation |
Region |
|
CSA1 |
Norway |
Vestfold and Telemark region |
|
CSA2 |
Lithuania |
Čepkeliai – Dzūkija National Park |
|
CSA3 |
United Kingdom |
Wytham Woods |
|
CSA4 |
Germany |
Lower Saxony |
|
CSA5 |
Austria |
Biosphere Reserve “Wiener Wald” |
|
CSA6 |
Romania |
Arges Vedea Watershed |
|
CSA7 |
Spain |
Extremadura Pine Forest |
|
CSA8 |
Italy |
Florentine Mountians |
European Forest Types (EFT)
Table 2: Up to 14 EFT are considered per CSA, following OptFor-EU Deliverable D1.1.
|
CODE |
Description |
|
EFT1 |
Boreal forests |
|
EFT2 |
Hemiboreal and nemoral coniferous and mixed forests |
|
EFT3 |
Alpine forests |
|
EFT4 |
Acidophilous oak and oak–birch forests |
|
EFT5 |
Mesophytic deciduous forests |
|
EFT6 |
Beech forests |
|
EFT7 |
Mountainous beech forests |
|
EFT8 |
Thermophilous deciduous forests |
|
EFT9 |
Broadleaved evergreen forests |
|
EFT10 |
Mediterranean coniferous forests |
|
EFT11 |
Mire and swamp forests |
|
EFT12 |
Floodplain forests |
|
EFT13 |
Non-riverine alder, birch or aspen forest |
|
EFT14 |
Introduced tree species forest |
*Notes: EFT67 represents combined EFT6 and EFT7; EFT2a denotes a variant of EFT2.
Age classes (AC)
Table 3: Forest age is represented using 20-year age classes.
|
Age Class |
Min-max year per AC |
|
1 |
0-20 |
|
2 |
21-40 |
|
3 |
41-60 |
|
4 |
61-80 |
|
5 |
81-100 |
|
6 |
101-120 |
|
7 |
121-140 |
|
8 |
>140 |
*Notes: Initial stand conditions were derived from local forest inventory data to ensure realistic representation of forest structure and species composition.
Forest management practices (FMP)
Table 4: Rules of FMP for CSA across Europe.
|
CODE |
Description |
|
FM0 |
No management, NOM |
|
FM1 |
Business-as-usual, BAU – Clearcut |
|
FM2 |
Business-as-usual, BAU – Shelterwood |
|
FM3 |
Business-as-usual, BAU – Continuous Forest cover using single tree harvesting |
|
FM4 |
Continuous harvesting at low intensity, limited by increment |
|
FM5 |
Increasing thinning intensity of FM1 (BAU - Clearcut) by plus 20%, to emulate higher demand for forest products with larger dimensions |
|
FM6 |
Decreasing thinning intensity of FM1 (BAU - Clearcut) by minus 20%, to represent less intensive management leading to denser forests with higher carbon stocks |
|
FM7 |
Increasing thinning intensity of FM2 (BAU - Shelterwood) by plus 20%, to emulate higher demand for forest products with larger dimensions |
|
FM8 |
Decreasing thinning intensity of FM2 (BAU - Shelterwood) by minus 20%, to represent less intensive management leading to denser forests with higher carbon stocks |
|
FM9 |
Business-as-usual, BAU - Coppice management |
Simulation outpus
Simulation outputs are provided as CSV files, with all relevant meta-information (CSA, EFT, age class, climate scenario, and forest management practice) encoded in the file names. Each file contains selected Essential Forest Mitigation Indicators (EFMI) as defined in OptFor-EU Deliverable D1.2, including indicators related to biomass, carbon stocks, management-related carbon fluxes, and water content.
Table 5: List of EFMI variables included in dataset with relative unit and description.
|
Column name |
unit |
Description |
|
Year |
unitless |
Current year |
|
Growing_stock_m3_ha |
m3/ha |
Growing stock is the total volume of living trees in a one-hectare forest. |
|
Wood_removals_m3_ha |
m3/ha |
The annual volume of harvested woody products removed refers to the amount of wood extracted from forests each year for various uses, such as timber, fuelwood, and other wood-based materials. |
|
Living_carbon_stored_in_forests_tC_ha |
tC/ha |
Living carbon stored in forests refers to the amount of carbon contained in the living biomass of trees and plants within a forest. This includes the carbon stored in all parts of living trees, such as the trunk, branches, leaves, and roots. |
|
Dead_carbon_stored_in_forests_tC_ha |
tC/ha |
Dead carbon stored in forests refers to the carbon that is held in the form of dead organic matter, such as decaying trees, plants, and plant material (like leaves, branches, and roots). |
|
Soil_carbon_stored_in_forests_tC_ha |
tC/ha |
Soil carbon refers to the carbon stored within the soil in various forms. |
|
Total_carbon_stored_in_forests_tC_ha |
tC/ha |
Living, dead and soil carbon strored in forest. |
|
Carbon_stock_in_harvested_wood_products |
tC/ha |
Carbon stock in harvested wood products refers to the carbon that is stored in wood products after trees are harvested. |
|
LAI_m2_m2 |
m2/m2 |
LAI (Leaf Area Index) is a dimensionless ratio that represents the total leaf area of plants in a given area, relative to the ground area they cover. |
|
Forest_layers |
unitless |
These layers describe the vertical stratification of a forest and the different environmental niches that trees and other plants occupy. |
|
Standing_deadwood_m3_ha |
m3/ha |
Standing deadwood refers to trees that have died but remain standing upright in the forest. These trees may be partially decomposed or completely dry and dead. |
|
Lying_deadwood_tC_ha |
tC/ha |
Lying deadwood consists of logs and branches that have fallen to the forest floor. |
|
Stand_age |
years |
Current age of dominant trees. |
|
Stand_density_trees_ha |
ha-1 |
Current number of trees per hectare. |
|
Tree_species_diversity_ShannonIndex |
unitless |
The Shannon Index (also known as the Shannon-Wiener Index) is a measure of species diversity in a community. It takes into account both species richness (the number of different species) and species evenness (the relative abundance of each species) |
|
Relative_Shannon_orEvenness |
unitless |
The Shannon evenness index (SEI) measures how evenly species are distributed within a community, and it's calculated using the Shannon diversity index. |
|
Tree_species_diversity_Gini |
unitless |
The Gini coefficient is a statistical measurement that can be used to describe the size hierarchy of trees in a community, or the inequality of their distribution. |
|
Tree_species_diversity_Spec_count |
unitless |
Number of tree species being present. |
|
AnnualGrowth_m3_ha |
m3/ha |
Current annual increment is the increase in the volume of a forest volume over the course of a year. |
|
Management_intensity |
m3/ha |
Forest management intensity is a measure of how much a forest has been managed, which can affect biodiversity and ecosystem services. |
|
Evapotranspiration_mm |
mm |
Annual evapotranspiration is the total amount of water transferred from land to the atmosphere through evaporation (from soil, canopy, and water surfaces) and transpiration (from plant leaves). |
|
Soil_evaporation_mm |
mm |
Annual soil evaporation is the total amount of water that evaporates directly from the soil surface into the atmosphere |
|
Available_soil_water_mm |
mm/volume |
Annual average available soil water refers to the mean amount of water in the soil that is available for plant uptake throughout the year. |
|
Runoff_mm_m2 |
mm/m2 |
Current amount of water outflow (runoff) |
Files
OptFor-EU_3D-CMCC-FEM_v1.zip
Files
(19.5 MB)
| Name | Size | Download all |
|---|---|---|
|
md5:87c2a9b2754dc63385e89b40f90597b0
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19.5 MB | Preview Download |
Additional details
Funding
Dates
- Available
-
2006-01-01/2099-12-31
Software
- Repository URL
- https://github.com/Forest-Modelling-Lab/3D-CMCC-FEM
References
- Collalti, A., et al. "Monitoring and predicting forest growth and dynamics." CNR Edizioni, Roma (2024).