For large scale forest and land use studies simple but general models are necessary due to the limited resolution of available data. Based on theory for stand dynamics and competition, models of stand density and thinning effects are developed for scenario simulation and for large scale density mapping.

Some key results :

• A general stand density model for growth and mortality effects of thinning predicts that the optimal thinning intensity is similar among different species
• Stand density can be estimated from productivity and biomass data, e.g. based on large scale inventory and remote sensing data sets.

Publications:

Leduc S, Lundgren J, Franklin O, Dotzauer E. 2010. Location of a biomass based methanol production plant: a dynamic problem in northern Sweden. Applied Energy 87, 68-75

Franklin O, Aoki K, Seidl R. 2009. A generic model of thinning and stand density effects on forest growth, mortality and net increment. Annals of Forest Science 66: 815

Schneider UA, Balkovic J, De Cara S, Franklin O, Fritz S, Havlik P, Huck I, Jantke K, Kallio AMI, Kraxner F, Moiseyev A, Obersteiner M, Ramos CI, Schleupner C, Schmid E, Schwab D, Skalsky R. 2008. The European Forest and Agricultural Sector Optimization Model – EUFASOM. FNU-156, Hamburg University and Centre for Marine and Atmospheric Science, Hamburg. (not peer reviewed).

Franklin, O et al. 2006. Modeling Forest Production and Carbon Storage Potentials in Response to Management in the European Union 2005 – 2050. In INSEA EU FP 6, 2006, Project SSPI-CT-2003/503614 Ed. M. Obersteiner. EU.