| dc.description.abstract | An investigation was made into the applicability of a model used to assist in
planning the allocation of pre-commercial thinning to juvenile jack pine stands. The
hypothesis of this study was that planning pre-commercial thinning of juvenile jack pine
to focus on areas within a stand {e.g. high density areas with the largest potential for
response) is cheaper and more efficient than allocating a "blanket" pre-commercial
thinning over entire jack pine stands. The model incorporates machine costing models,
pre-commercial thinning productivity estimates, stand density maps, and road networks
to investigate the potential cost savings of detailed planning of pre-commercial thinning.
Integration of a GIS database, remote sensing, and network analysis provided an
experimental decision support system (DSS) for planning the allocation of precommercial
thinning. The DSS was applied to two study areas in northwestern Ontario
containing juvenile jack pine stands. Based on the case study results, there appears to
be potential for a total cost savings of 12 to 25 percent by planning and focusing precommercial
thinning treatments to key areas of a stand. Estimated cost savings were
reduced as the stem density spatial pattern became more uniform and the average stand
density approached the eligible density for thinning. Cost estimates were also found to
be sensitive to the pre-commercial thinning productivity estimates. The planning model
could be applied to other problems involving spatial components such as skidder trail
planning in harvest blocks. Use of this DSS could assist in investigating the interactions
between stand density patterns, pre-commercial thinning productivity, pre-commercial
thinning equipment operational costs and allocations pre-commercial thinning treatments
within a forest stand. | |
