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Scientific Service NFI

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Head: Dr. Christoph Fischer

The National Forest Inventory (NFI) is a sample survey of the Swiss Forest. It provides valuable information of long duration about Swiss Forests that is up to date and relevant to society. It creates products that are of high value to the research community, politics and forest practice. The Scientific Service NFI conceives, implements and coordinates the corresponding activities and the field survey.

Our tasks are

Preparing analyses of demands for content and products covered by the NFI
Developing the data catalog, survey methods and field manual
Evaluating equipment and carrying out pilot inventories
Organizing, conducting and quality control of the field survey
Defining and deriving indicators for a sustainable forest development
Developing the web-interface for data analysis
Conceiving and implementing NFI products
Creating national and international forest reports
Developing and maintaining www.lfi.ch
Analyzing and providing NFI data to third parties
Advising and supporting partners regarding large scale inventories
Collaborating with partners on impact analyses concerning the NFI

FURTHER INFORMATION

Projects

TradeES

To better inform forest practitioners, the TradeES project examines trade-offs among drought impact on forest growth, ecological functions and ecosystem services in thinned and unthinned Norway spruce-dominated stands in Switzerland.

MountEx

The MountEx project, part of the WSL research program Extremes, aims to develop guidance and tools for managing spruce-dominated mountain forests under the influence of previously unthinkable, extreme disturbances.

ProtoAIM - Enhanced Plot Design for Advanced Inventorying and Monitoring

We will enhance the design of the Swiss NFI plots to accomodate an augmented series of measurements, sampling and analysis needed to respond to pressing research question on status and change of the Swiss forest.

New basics for the forest management planning of staged forests

Based on forest roads, forest structures and ecosystem services to be provided, this project will develop new basics for the separation of management and operation units as a planning basis for mountain and permanent forests.

Waldwahrnehmung mit allen Sinnen

Attraktivität von Wäldern wird meistens anhand von visuellen Merkmalen bestimmt. Waldwahrnehmung basiert aber nicht nur auf visuellen Eindrücken - alle Sinne spielen eine Rolle. In diesem Projekt wird die Waldwahrnehmung von Waldbesuchenden mit allen Sinnen, insbesondere des Gehörsinns, erfasst.

Climate-smart forestry directions based on national Forest Inventory data

In this project we use the data of the Swiss national forest inventory to develop an assessment system that accounts for the three aspects of climate-smart forestry: mitigation, adaptation and the sustainable provision of forest ecosystem services.

Swiss Biomass

The aim of the project is to determine the biomass of individual trees more precisely using non-destructive measurement methods. Such estimates are central for the greenhouse gas inventory, Kyoto reporting and for the estimation of wood resources and bioenergy potentials.

Waldlabor Zürich

Das Waldlabor Zürich ist ein erlebnisorientierter Bildungs- und Forschungsort, es ist das erste Waldlabor der Schweiz. Im Zentrum steht der vom Menschen beeinflusste Wald, der "Kulturwald" mit verschiedenen Formen der Waldpflege und -bewirtschaftung, der Leistungen der Waldeigentümer und der Bedeutu

Ungulate browsing on tree regeneration in Swiss forests

The temporal development of the influence of wild ungulate species on tree regeneration in Swiss forests is estimated using data from the Swiss National Forest Inventory and density estimates of roe deer, chamois and red deer.

EnviDat: the Environmental Data Portal

EnviDat is the WSL data portal providing unified and managed access to environmental monitoring and research data. Through the sharing of unique and high-value data sets worldwide, EnviDat fosters research and contributes to advancing environmental science.

Change inventory Uholka

A partial repetition of the sample plot inventory of 2010, where 314 plots were measured, will allow representative conclusions about the temporal change of the forest structure, the regeneration, the tree composition and the deadwood in the primeval beech forest of Uholka-Shyrokyi Luh.

Indikatoren zur Prognose der Ökosystemleistungen des Schweizer Waldes mit LFI-Daten

Mit diesem Projekt werden Methoden entwickelt um Ökosystemleistungen des schweizer Waldes auf regionaler und nationaler Ebene abzuschätzen. Dazu berechnen wir eine Reihe von bekannten Indikatoren zur Waldnutzung, Biodiversität, Schutzleistung und CO2-Speicherung aufgrund von im schweizerischen Lande

Herb layer biomass in Swiss forests

The Swiss national forest inventory (NFI) provides comprehensive information on the state of forests in Switzerland. The purpose of this project was to develop a model to estimate herb layer biomass and carbon stock based on the categorical cover estimate on each NFI sample plot.

Countrywide Tree Type Mapping from Remote Sensing Surveys

Regularly updated information on the state, change and distribution of tree types (broadleaved and coniferous tree) is essential for forest related studies. The first data set consists of ADS80 aerial imagery. The follow-up product is currently being optimized using Sentinel satellite data.

Assessing tree stem structures using terrestrial LiDAR

The objective of this project is to develop an approach for assessing the ecological value of a tree stem using terrestrial laser scanning (TLS).

Economic valuation of growing stock

The aim of the project is the economic valutation of the current growing stock and its changes.

Integrating Species Mixtures in Tree Growth Functions for Forest Development Models in Switzerland

The project advances the understanding of the effects of species mixtures on tree growth under a broad range of environmental conditions in Switzerland, and it prepares this knowledge for further development of forest scenario models.

Beurteilung von Schutzwäldern mittels Fernerkundung

Ziel dieses LFI-Projektes ist es, Methoden der Fernerkundung zur Beurteilung der aktuellen Schutzwirkung und Verjüngung von Schutzwäldern zu entwickeln. Im Fokus stehen die Möglichkeiten von terrestrischem (TLS) und flugzeuggestütztem Lasesscanning (ALS).

Species Mixture Effects on Tree Growth

Urban forests

Urban forests fulfil important ecosystem services and are greatly appreciated by the public for their social and cultural services. The aim of the project is to get insights into people's expectations and assessments of these services. Furthermore, the project aims to link the population's perceptions and expectations with on-site forest characteristics.

Staff