What is forest health and why is it important?
Forest health is the condition of a forest ecosystem (planted and natural) that sustains its ecological state while providing ecosystem services for human needs.
Healthy forests are vital for all aspects of a healthy planet. However, forests face many threats, leading to tree mortality and reduced ability to provide a full range of goods and services.
These threats include biotic and abiotic disturbances, which have far-reaching social, economic, and environmental effects.
Abiotic and biotic disturbances are complex, making it a challenge to assess their interrelationship and subsequently their impact on forest health. While there are indicators, such as defoliation in boreal and temperate regions, or the dieback of trees in tropical areas, measuring forest health depends on the specific goals of the forest (e.g. production, conservation, multipurpose, etc.).
These indicators provide us with insights to assess the health and functionality of the forest.Forest disturbances
Forest disturbances are caused by both biotic and abiotic agents.
Biotic disturbances are caused by agents such as insect pests and disease-causing pathogens, including bacteria, fungi, phytoplasma or viruses. Biotic disturbances also include invasive plants and those caused by wildlife browsing or grazing.
To find out more about biotic disturbances, you can visit IUCN’s Global Invasive Species Database
Abiotic disturbances are caused by non-living factors such as snow, storms, drought, floods or fire. These are considered natural components of ecosystems. However, when these factors exceed their normal range of variation, they can severely impact forests, leading to widespread tree mortality and the destruction of undergrowth and soils.
Global climate change exacerbates abiotic and biotic disturbances by altering the frequency and intensity of events such as droughts, cyclones and landslides, insect and disease outbreaks, and the risk of large-scale fires. These disturbances have varying impacts on forests, depending on their health and vitality.
To learn more, check our publication on “Abiotic disturbances and their influence on forest health”
