The objective of this study was to develop integrated systems for measurement and modelling of site quality, timber yields and carbon sequestration of Pinus pinaster established on farms in south-west Australia. Established farm plantings were identified for the necessary sampling and measurements but, as broadscale P.pinaster planting on farms is a relatively new venture, those available for study were mostly small-scale and not managed for current timber production objectives. Therefore new methods for sampling, data analysis and modelling were developed or adapted to indicate the growth and carbon sequestration that will be achieved in the new plantations. The system developed for site quality assessment is a two-stage process. Firstly, survival rate is predicted from annual pan evaporation and soil salinity. Then, site index (SI) is predicted from annual rainfall and six soil variables: soil salinity, depth to bedrock, depth to gravel layer, depth of pale soil, presence of high watertable, and soil colour at 5 cm soil depth. A difference equation form of the Chapman-Richards growth model is applied to predict future stemwood volume yield from measurement of current or past stemwood volume. Alternatively, in the case where P.pinaster has not been grown at a site, or no growth measurements are available, yield is predicted from SI. In both cases the yield prediction models were developed for fully-stocked block plantings, wider-spaced block plantings and belt plantings. A thinning model simulates the response of stemwood volume to thinning operations in block plantings. (For complete abstract open document)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/245740 |
| Creators | Ritson, Peter |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
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