GIS are very attractive because they can integrate huge amounts of information about environment and provide powerful tools for analysis of these data. The essence of the system is that dozens and hundreds of map layers, formed up in a certain order, show information about transport network, hydrography, population characteristics, economical activity, political jurisdiction and other characteristics of natural and social environment. The possibility to devide information into layers and their further combination into various information layers is the reason why GIS possess so high potential as the scientific instrument set and means for decision taking in forest branch of industry. At present GIS are widely used in the offices of governments, business and scientific institutions for various applications, including analysis of forest resources. Unfortunately in the Republic of Karelia utilization of GIS technologies in forestry is in the stage of making and they are not widely applied but the work is now being under way thanks to the efforts of the State Forest Committee of the Republic of Karelia, the Petrozavodsk State University and Karelian Research Institute of Forest Industry. Since 1997, GIS have been included into the curricula of the Faculty of Forest Engineering for the most specialities but forest enterprises of the Republic of Karelia experience the necessity of their staff retraining at the present moment. That is why his project should be considered from the educational point of view:
on the one hand, forest information system developed on the model area should provide taking optimal decisions for sustainable forest management taking into account the requirements for environmental preservation;
on the other hand, it should be used to analyse social, demographical and economical situations in Pryazha region adjacent to the model forest;
lastly, as the object to be used for education and retraining of specialists in forestry and forest industry at the Faculty of Forest Engineering of the Petrozavodsk State University and at Petrozavodsk Forest College.
The goal of project
To ensure high efficiency of forestry and to organize sustainable inexhaustible management of forest resources on the model area taking into account the factor of biodiversity with the help of modern GIS-technologies.
The main task of the project is to provide specialists (of experimental forestry, Pryazha forestry, the State Forest Committee of the Republic of Karelia and other institutions) on the basis of GIS- technologies with actualized and reliable information about the state of forest fund of the model forest as a whole and its separate estimated plots as well as to carry out monitoring with the factor of biodiversity taken into consideration.
Methods of realization
The following topical and cartographical bases will be created for the model area in the process of realization of the project:
hydrography and hydrotechnical structures;
road network and structures, means of road network development;
soils;
relief;
forest management;
areas and objects under protection;
reforestation;
care of saplings;
non-wood use;
forest fire protection;
forest reclamation;
ecological;
sanitary and forest pathological.
Cartographical information will be presented as:
plane tables of forest estimation;
plans of planting ;
thematical schemes and maps;
schemes of transport development;
plans of felling;
plans of work.
Information on forest estimation will include:
descriptions of the stands;
quarterly total areas and resources;
forest protection estimate and group estimate;
forest cadastre.
Executors and distribution of duties:
Gerasimov Yu.Yu., Doctor of Science, Professor of the Petrozavodsk State University. General supervision of the section, work coordination among Karelian, Russian and foreign institutions.
Kostyukevitch V.M., Candidate of Science, Associated Professor of the Petrozavodsk State University. Development and support of thematical information on social and economical state of Pryazha region.
Kilpelainen S.A., senior lecturer of the Petrozavodsk State University. Development and support of themalical information on forest resources and management on the area of the model forest.
Davydkov G.A., lecturer of the Petrozavodsk State University. Equipping the State Forest Committee and Pryazha forestry with computer hardware and software and technical support of information ensuring of the project.
