AFFOREST-sDSS

General System description

System name: AFFOREST spatial Decision Support System

Acronym: AFFOREST-sDSS

Brief overview

AFFOREST-sDSS deals with environmental performance of afforestation on agricultural land in northwestern Europe. This environmental performance is measured according to three parameters: carbon sequestration, groundwater recharge, and nitrate leaching.

Scope of the system

This DSS arise from the EU-project AFFOREST^[1]. This is not an any nation project, but a supranational project, developed in partnership by researchers from Flanders (Belgium), the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden.

AFFOREST-sDSS attends to evaluating the environmental impact of the afforestation process by comparing the environmental performance (EP) of the initial system, i.e. the agricultural land, with the EP of the same land after afforestation. There are considered 36 possible afforestation management practices; combinations of tree species choice (pine, spruce, oak and beech are allowed), site preparation and thinning regime.

The environmental impact categories (EICs) under study are highly dependent on spatially variable site conditions, so this DSS was developed as a spatial DSS.

System origin

• Universities and research centres belonging to the EU-project AFFOREST
• At the start of the AFFOREST project, potential users (spatial planners active in national and regional administrations, afforestation policy planners and managers of afforestation projects) from the participant lands (Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and Flanders) were consulted. This showed as their principal requirements support to select sites and choose among alternative options for afforestation management and afforestation duration with a view to optimise the impacts or performance of afforestation.
• It is free downloadable at the AFFOREST webpage
• does it have real-life application cases

Support for specific issues

Afforestation environmental impact through comparison of three measurements: carbon sequestration, groundwater recharge, and nitrate leaching.

Support for specific thematic areas of a problem type

• Silvicultural
• Certification
• Conservation
• Restoration
• Development choices / land use zoning
• Policy/intervention alternatives
• Sustainability impact assessment (SIA)

Capability to support decision making phases

• Intelligence:

  the system was developed taking into account the foreseen users opinion.

• Design:

  users preferences are asked in order to answer their concerns.

• Choice:

  results enables the comparison between the possible future scenarios resulting from current afforestation decisions, then making easier the decision-making process.

• Monitor:

  not implemented

Data and data models

Typical spatial extent of application

Depending on the AFFOREST-sDSS users needs (administration afforestation policy planners or local managers) there are two possible spatial scales for the application:

• a spatial resolution of 1 ha for a more detailed project planning level, and
• a spatial resolution of 1 km2 for policy planning at the regional scale.

However, if the input data are available or can be estimated with sufficient accuracy and precision, the integrated model can be operated at the first field scale.

Forest data input

Once the study area is defined, it is represented by an ArcView grid. Here, the AFFOREST geographical database provides the basic information, each pixel class of this grid is used as input. This input parameters are derived from soil and land use maps, and geo-referenced sets of data on precipitation, temperature and atmospheric nitrogen deposition.

Type of information input from user (via GUI)

User can specify one of the fourteen type questions. These questions are the fourteen one-, two- or three-parameters combinations of four management specifications: where? (initial system characteristics), how much? (evolution of these characteristics after afforestation), how? (afforestation management), and how long? (time horizon). For each of these combinations asked, the remaining management specifications are required as input. Furthermore, the number of solutions depend on the size of the combination question, e.g. if only one parameter is asked, the three remaining are specified as input, and there would be only a possible solution for this sole parameter.

However, questions can be easily transformed to simple queries to the spatial database if only one of the EICs is of interest or if EICs are addressed as constraints or boundaries. If not, question leads to a complex query which needs the use of mathematical algorithms. In this case, goal programming with interval techniques are used.

Models

Forest models

AFFOREST-sDSS uses the metamodel METAFORE to compute the environmental performance for each initial system in the study area with the data provided by the AFFOREST spatial database.

Decision Support

Definition of management interventions

Decisions supported by AFFOREST sDSS are the selection of sites and the specification of afforestation practices and management, with a view to optimize one or more of the three studied environmental impact categories: carbon sequestration in the ecosystem including biomass and soil, groundwater recharge, and nitrate leaching to deeper soil layers and groundwater bodies.

Typical temporal scale of application

METAFORE model allows the performance of a yearly time step up to 100 years after afforestation.

Types of decisions supported

• Management level
  • strategic decisions
  • administrative decisions
  • operating control decisions
• planning decisions
  • organizing decisions
  • control decisions
  • coordination decisions
• decision making situation
  • unilateral
  • collegial
  • Bargaining / participative decision making

Decision-making processes and models

Simple SQL queries and goal programming (GP) with intervals for more complex queries.

Output

Types of outputs

According to the type of question asked by the user the result can either be maps, tables or both.

Spatial analysis capabilities

Data input of graphically selected sites is queried to the AFFOREST spatial database. Non GUI input data apart from managements strategies and simulation goals are required.

Also, AFFOREST-sDSS GIS capabilities are performed when showing results in map forms.

Abilities to address interdisciplinary, multi-scaled, and political issues

AFFOREST-sDSS not only considers afforestation as a mean to yield timber and provide economic benefits, but also account for environmental parameters with increasing social significance.

System

System requirements

• Operating Systems: Microsoft® Windows® 98/ME, Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows XP-Home Edition and Professional.
• Other software needed: ArcView™ 3.2
• Development status: finished

Architecture and major DSS components

The AFFOREST sDSS is implemented in the Spatial Analyst extension of ArcView® GIS 3.2. The standard version of ArcView® GIS 3.2 is adapted by means of its programming language Avenue.

The system consists of three different modules (a metamodel, a spatial database and a decision module) and the graphical user interface (GUI).

Usage

The envisaged users of AFFOREST sDSS are afforestation policy planners in national and regional administrations and local managers of afforestation projects.

Computational limitations

AFFOREST-sDSS software and help downloadable package requires some free hard-drive space, taking more than 1 Gb when decompressed.

User interface

The GUI is a set of newly developed dialog windows that guide end users through the system and helps them to structure their afforestation question into one of the fourteen type questions the system can handle.

Documentation and support

A tutorial and more information can be found in the AFFOREST web-page.

Installation

• Cost: free of charge, non-cost downloadable in the AFFOREST web-page.

References

Cited references

1. ↑ AFFOREST project (EU 5th framework program for Research & Technological Development)

External resources

• GILLIAMS, S., J. VAN ORSHOVEN, B. MUYS, H. KROS, G.W. HEIL et W. VAN DEURSEN (2005): AFFOREST sDSS: a metamodel based spatial decision support system for afforestation of agricultural land. New Forests, 30: 33–53.
• GILLIAMS, S., J. VAN ORSHOVEN, K. HANSEN, H. SKOV-PETERSEN et B. MUYS (2004): The AFFOREST-sDSS tutorial. K.U.Leuven, Laboratory for Forest, Nature and Landscape Research, Belgium and Forest & Landscape, Denmark.
• VAN ORSHOVEN J., S. GILLIAMS, B. MUYS, J. STENDAHL, H. SKOV-PETERSEN et W. VAN DEURSEN (2007): Support of Decisions on Afforestation in North-Western Europe with the AFFOREST-sDSS. Book chapter in HEIL, G.W., B. MUYS, et K. HANSEN (Eds.): Environmental Effects of Afforestation in North-Western Europe. Springer Netherlands.