Project Title: Increasing the Resilience of Oak Forests to Climate Change and the Biodiversity Crisis through Nature-Based Forest Management Based on Experimental Research. (OakAdapt)
Funding source: Interreg Maďarsko-Slovensko
Involved institutions:
Coordination: Technical University in Zvolen
Partners: National Forest Centre, City Forests Krupina ltd., Real Forest ltd., Centre for Ecological Research (Ökológiai Kutatóközpont, Hungary), Forests of the Pilis Park (Pilisi Parkerdő Zrt., Hungary)
Duration period: 10/2024 – 04/2027
Budget: amount of the contribution from the EU 60,480 EUR,
total for all partners: 1,603,285.60 EUR
Responsible person: Ing. et Ing. Jerguš Rybár, PhD.
Annotation:
Trees have great potential in mitigating climate change. In addition to their benefits for human society, they provide habitat for many organisms, thereby protecting biodiversity. However, ongoing environmental changes are degrading the ecosystem services of forests and threatening their sustainability. Forest management plays a key role in resilience to climate change, as the vast majority of forests in Europe are utilized. This is particularly true for oak forests, which have been used for centuries and currently show a significant decline in biodiversity associated with global environmental changes.
The development of suitable management approaches that increase forest resilience and support biodiversity is a central focus of current applied ecological research. Scientists from the Technical University in Zvolen and the Centre for Ecological Research are experimentally investigating the effects of various forestry interventions on forest microclimate, biodiversity, tree growth, and regeneration. As part of the project, they will continue experiments and transfer the results, together with Real Forest s.r.o., into forestry practice in the forests of the Krupina and the Budakeszi Nature Park. More specifically, new approaches and techniques will be developed and applied that utilize the advantages and principles of nature-based forest management. In addition to practical interventions, new programs and models for ecologically sustainable management will be prepared in collaboration with experts from the National Forestry Centre and Real Forest. Real Forest ltd., as part of its project activities, is responsible for creating innovative methodologies for monitoring forest conditions and damage caused by wildlife, as well as specialized management guidelines aimed at improving the vitality of oak forests. The results of the project will be widely disseminated among stakeholders, including education, nature conservation, and the forestry sector, and will provide an important example and reference for future climate-smart forestry.
