Biophysical Accounting of Forests’ Value under Different Management Regimes: Conservation vs. Exploitation

Forest ecosystems are important providers of ecosystem functions and services belonging to four categories: supporting, provisioning, regulating cultural services. management, generally focused on timber production, has consequences the ability system keep providing Silviculture, in fact, may affect ecological structures processes from which arise. In particular, removal biomass causes a radical change stocks flows energy characterizing system. Aiming at assessment differences stored natural capital provision, three differently managed temperate forests common beech (Fagus sylvatica) were considered: (1) forest semi-natural condition, (2) carefully get sustainable way (3) exploited without management. Natural here accounted biophysical terms. Specifically, all resources used up create (stock) maintain production (flow) different components calculated. Both emergy empower decrease with increasing human pressure forest, resulting loss diminished contribute well-being terms provision.