Browsing by Author "Rodrigues, Ana Raquel"
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- Addressing Carbon Storage in Forested Landscape Management Planning—An Optimization Approach and Application in Northwest PortugalPublication . Marques, Susete; Rodrigues, Ana Raquel; Paulo, Joana Amaral; Botequim, Brigite; Borges, Jose G.Climate change is driving worldwide efforts to mitigate and reverse the increasing anthro- pogenic emissions of greenhouse gases. Forests can uptake considerable amounts of carbon from the atmosphere, but management decisions and resultant silvicultural practices can largely influence these ecosystems’ carbon balance. This research presents an approach to help land managers cope with the need to ensure the provision of forest products and services while contributing to mitigating climate change via carbon sequestration. The emphasis is on combining a landscape-level resource capability model with a mathematical programming (LP) optimization method to model and solve a land management problem involving timber production, carbon sequestration, and resistance to wildfire targets. The results of an application on a forested landscape in Northwest Portugal showed that this approach may contribute to analyzing and discussing synergies and trade-offs between these targets. They revealed important trade-offs between carbon sequestration and both timber production and fire resistance
- Combining tree species composition and understory coverage indicators with optimization techniques to address concerns with landscape-level biodiversityPublication . Botequim, Brigite; Bugalho, Miguel N.; Rodrigues, Ana Raquel; Marques, Susete; Marto, Marco; Borges, Jose G.Sustainable forest management needs to address biodiversity conservation concerns. For that purpose, forest managers need models and indicators that may help evaluate the impact of management options on biodiversity under the uncertainty of climate change scenarios. In this research we explore the potential for designing mosaics of stand-level forest management models to address biodiversity conservation objectives on a broader landscape-level. Our approach integrates (i) an effective stand-level biodiversity indicator that reflect tree species composition, stand age, and understory coverage under divergent climate conditions; and (ii) linear programming optimization techniques to guide forest actors in seeing optimal forest practices to safeguard future biodiversity. Emphasis is on the efficiency and effectiveness of an approach to help assess the impact of forest management planning on biodiversity under scenarios of climate change. Results from a resource capability model are discussed for an application to a large-scale problem encompassing 14,765 ha, extending over a 90-years planning horizon and considering two local-climate scenarios. They highlight the potential of the approach to help assess the impact of both stand and landscape-level forest management models on biodiversity conservation goals. They demonstrate further that the approach provides insights about how climate change, timber demand and wildfire resistance may impact plans that target the optimization of biodiversity values. The set of optimized long-term solutions emphasizes a multifunctional forest that guarantees a desirable local level of biodiversity and resilience to wildfires, while providing a balanced production of wood over time at the landscape scale
- Do improved pastures affect enzymatic activity and C and N dynamics in soils of the montado system ?Publication . Rodrigues, Ana Raquel; Silva, Emanuelle; Santos, Gustavo; Coutinho, João; Madeira, ManuelVast montado areas are threatened by degradation, as the result of a long history of land use changes. Since improved pastures have been installed aiming soil quality improvement and system sustainability, it is crucial to evaluate the effects of these management changes on soil organic matter status and soil biological activity, as soil quality indicators. Therefore, a 35-yr old improved pasture and a natural pasture were studied, considering areas beneath tree canopy and in the open. Total organic C, total N, hot water soluble (HWS) and particulate (POM) C, microbial biomass C (MBC) and N (MBN), C mineralization rate (CMR) and net N mineralization rate (NMR) were determined. In addition, for a 1-yr period, soil β-glucosidase, urease, proteases and acid phosphomonoesterase were periodically determined. Improved pasture promoted the increase of soil C and N through POM-C increment, particularly beneath the trees canopies. The two study pastures did not show differences regarding soil microbial biomass, but variations in CMR, HWS-C and N availability (proteases and urease activities) suggest divergent soil microbial communities. Tree regulator role on C, N and P transformation processes in soil was confirmed
- Os sistemas de gestão do montado e a qualidade do soloPublication . Madeira, Manuel; Rodrigues, Ana Raquel