Schutzwaldmanagement in den Alpen – eine Übersicht | Management of protection forests in the Alps – an overview Open Access

Many mountain forests in the Alps protect residential areas and infrastructures from natural hazards. They are described as protection forests and their management aims to permanently provide a high protective effect. The maintenance and management of these forests are continuously improved and have reached a high standard. There is now a better understanding of the protective effects of the forest against natural hazards. In the Alps, there are currently several projects being conducted which aim to harmonize the assessment of natural hazards, damage potential and a resulting classification of protection forests. It is the objective to apply funding where needed in order to prevent damage from natural hazards. Currently, there is a need for improvement in the area of monitoring with advanced technology, such as Laser-Scanning (LIDAR), in linking inventory data from different sources, in simulation modeling to better estimate the long-term benefit of measures in the protection forest, and in transboundary collaboration.