• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2012.05a
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• pp.18-18
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• 2012

In Japan, about 67% of the land is covered by forests and about 41% of them consist of plantations. About 35% of the plantations consist of old-aged plantations of older than 50 yearsand the percentage is projected to 67% in ten years' time. Although the trees of these plantations are supposed to be cut for timber production, most of them remain unmanaged and thus overcrowded mainly due to declining domestic forest industry. Since the forests are mostly located in headwater watershed, there are growing concerns about the degradation of water resources by these unmanaged plantations. To understand the ecohydrological processes in these plantations and examine the effect of intensive 50-60 % thinning to increase infiltration rate and reduce overland flow and soil erosion by recovering understory vegetation, the JST-CREST project "Development of Innovative Technologies for Increasing in Watershed Runoff and Improving River Environment by the Management Practice of Devastated Forest Plantation (Representative: Yuichi Onda)" has been launched since 2009. The ultimate objective of this project is to provide potential scenario to enhance low flow discharge in drought period and reduce turbid material in high flow period. We have been conductingintensive field observation campaign in five research sites across Japan. In Fukuoka site, integrated ecohydrological observations have been conductedin two contrastive watersheds since 2010. Intensive 50% thinning was conducted from January to April 2012 and comparative studies of ecohydrological processes before and after thinning have been started. The interim results from all the sites of this project will be presented in the 3rd International Congress for Forest and Water in a Changing Environment held in Fukuoka during 18-20 September, 2012 (http://www.forest.kyushu-u.ac.jp/~ecohydrol/3ForestWater/index.html).

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.108 no.1
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• pp.127-132
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• 2019

This study aimed to investigate the differences in habitat environment and characteristics of small rodent populations with time elapse after thinning in Japanese larch (Larix kaempferi) plantations, Mt. Janggun, Gyeongbuk Province, South Korea. We found that there were significant differences in habitat environment, number of tree, shrub stems, coverage of overstory, midstory, rock and number of coarse woody debris (CWD) between thinned and unthinned forest stands. We captured four small rodent species. Total number of captured small rodent were higher in thinned stands. Male-to-female ratio of Apodemus agrarius, and A. peninsulae were both the highest in forest stand 3 year after thinning. The differences in number of captured and sex ratio of small rodents might be related to habitat environment between thinned and unthinned stands. Thus, thinning can provide good habitat for small rodents by developing understory vegetation and increasing CWD in Japanese larch plantations. These results suggest that forest management through maintenance of CWD and induction of midstory and understory vegetation after thinning is necessary to maintain small rodents diversity.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.172-186
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• 2017

The effects of application of fuel-reduction treatment in wildfire management has not been tested in dry forests of Ghana. Therefore, the short-term ecological effects of prescribed burning and hand thinning treatments followed by experimental wildfire were investigated in degraded forests and Tectona grandis forest plantations in two forest reserves of different levels of dryness in Ghana. The results showed that more trees were killed in prescribed burning (average of 41% in degraded forest and 18% in plantations) than hand thinning (7.2% in degraded forests and 8% in plantation). More tree seedlings were also killed in prescribed burning (72%) than hand thinning (47%). The mortality of trees and seedlings were greater in Worobong South forest, a less dry forest reserve than the Afram Headwaters forest, a drier forest reserve. Fuel treatment especially prescribed burning compared to the control reduced wildfire effects on forest canopy particularly in the less dry forest and tree mortality especially in the drier forest. Prescribed burning temporarily increased pH, exchangeable potassium (52%) and available phosphorus (82%) in the surface soils of the entire plots. The two fuel treatment methods did not have much influence on basal area, organic matter and total nitrogen. Nevertheless, they were able to reduce the adverse wildfire effects on soil pH, exchangeable potassium, available phosphorus, organic matter and total nitrogen concentrations. Fuel treatments therefore have potential application in dry forest management in Ghana due to their ability to retain important forest ecological traits after a wildfire incidence.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.113 no.1
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• pp.131-142
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• 2024

The purpose of this study was to estimate the optimal stand density criteria for each growth stage of Chamaecyparis obtusa (Siebold & Zucc.) Endl. to achieve the timber production goal for cypress forests and develop an optimal silvicultural system for forest thinning. A relative yield index (Ry) value of 0.75, presented as a stand density management criterion index, was estimated by analyzing the relationship characteristics between the composition ratio and stand density of slender trees from 216 sample plots of the recruited cypress forests. The analysis of the feasibility of achieving each production target in the existing silvicultural system for C. obtusa revealed that the growth rate according to the parameters of forest land productivity, such as site index and thinning intensity according to the increase in age, was not properly reflected. In the thinning system for each timber production target analyzed in this study, 353 high-quality large hardwoods from 498.1 m³/ha, 703 high-quality medium hardwoods from 376.2 m³/ha, and 1,758 small-diameter hardwoods from 249.5 m³/ha could be harvested. Although the silvicultural system prepared on the basis of the results of this study cannot be uniformly applied according to various management goals, this study is meaningful in that it presents empirical reference standards based on the stand density management diagram that reflects the growth characteristics of cypress forests in South Korea.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.33-43
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• 1993

About 67% of all forest area in Korea belong to young age stands under II age class, including III age class which can be thinned under DBH 16cm, it comes up more than 90%. Therefore, thinking of the pressing necessity of thinning in our country this study describes the actual conditions analysis of the production of thinned small logs, points at issue and improvement measures of thinned timber production.

• Journal of People, Plants, and Environment
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.481-488
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to suggest how to manage healing forests. Field investigation and surveys were conducted to produce results and 313 questionnaires collected from workers in the forestry sector and ordinary people were analyzed. The results were as follows: it is required to preserve flowering plants, scenic trees, and ecological trees in the understory vegetation, and to remove trees that block the forest landscape, leaving about 50 to 60 percent of the understory vegetation. The preferred density order of broadleaf trees was analyzed as follows: Betula platyphylla > Liriodendron tulipifera > Quercus acutissima. The preferred density order of coniferous trees was analyzed as follows: Abies holophylla > Cryptomerias japonica and Chameacyparis obtusa > Larix kaempferi > Pinus densiflora > Pinus koraiensis. The preferred density in healing forests was 81-89% compared to the number of residual trees for quantitative thinning. Specifically, the preferred density were 87% for P. koraiensis, 86% for L. kaempferi, 81% for P. densiflora, 83% for C. japonica, 84% for C. obtusa and 89% for Q. acutissima. In the case of healing forests, it is recommended to periodically conduct a small-scale thinning with different densities according to the species and diameter of trees based on the results of this study.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.20-27
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• 2008

This study was conducted to investigate the influence of thinning and pruning on characteristics of forest stand, mesopore ratio and soil water content at the Pinus koraiensis stands in Gwangneung, Gyeonggido. The Pinus koraiensis had been planted in 1976 and thinning and pruning were carried out in 1996. A sample area survey was conducted at experimental plots (thinned and unthinned) in 1998 and 2005, and mesopore ratio and soil water content have been monitored from 2000 to present. Average tree height of the thinned plot increased from 10.9m to 13.2m and from 10.3m to 12.8m for the unthinned plot. Average D.B.H of the thinned plot increased from 15.9cm to 21.1cm and from 14.5cm to 16.7cm for the unthinned plot during the period 1998-2005. Crown density at the thinned plot increased from 81.5% to 95.0% and from 89.5% to 95.0% for the unthinned plot during the period 1998-2005. Mesopore ratio (pF2.7) of A layer soil at the thinned plot was 40.1% while that of the unthinned plot was 37.3%. Changes of mesopore ratio at unthinned plot were not associated with stand age, but those at thinned plot had increased and then decreased, showing declining of the practice effect. Average soil water content at the thinned plot were 23.7% and 22.4% for the unthinned plot. Soil watercontents at both plots have been increased with increase in stand age. But the difference of soil watercontent at each plot has been decreased, especially at the depth of 10cm.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.104 no.4
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• pp.649-656
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• 2015

The objective of this study was to analyze the optimal thinning regimes for timber or carbon managements in Cryptomeria japonica stands of Hannam Experimental Forest, Korea Forest Research Institute. In solving the problem, PATH algorithm, developed by Paderes and Brodie, was used as the decision-making tool and the individual-tree/distance-free stand growth simulator for the species, developed by Kwon et al., was used to predict the stand growth associated with density control by thinning regimes and mortality. The results of this study indicate that the timber management for maximum net present value (NPV) needs less number of but higher intensity thinnings than the carbon management for maximum carbon absorption does. In case of carbon management, the amount of carbon absorption is bigger than that of timber management by about 6% but NPV is reduced by about 3.2%. On the other hand, intensive forest managements with thinning regimes promotes net income and carbon absorption by about 60% compared with those of the do-nothing option.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.27 no.6 s.122
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• pp.363-367
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• 2004

Photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) beneath the forest canopy, understory species richness and diversity, and biomass were measured in a Larix leptolepis plantation seven years after thinning in Yangpyeong. Four different thinning intensities (control, $10\%,\;20\%\;and\;40\%$ stocking reduction) were applied in 1997. The current PAR values were lower than those measured four years after thinning, and PAR at the heavy thinning plots was significantly higher than that of other thinning intensities. A total of 23 species including 9 tall-trees and 14 shrubs were found for the high layer while a total of 82 species including 10 tall-trees, 29 shrubs, and 43 herbs for the low layer. Species richness and diversity generally increased with thinning intensities, and the trends were more evident for the low layer. Aboveground biomass significantly differed among thinning intensities for both shrubs and herbs. Also there was a negative correlation between biomass and the current number of stems per hectare. The current study suggested that the effects of thinning on light conditions at the forest floor, species richness and diversity and production of understory vegetation continued seven years after the treatment.

• Journal of Korea Technical Association of The Pulp and Paper Industry
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.25-32
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• 2009

Forest biomass can be used as various types of raw materials such as pulp, wood pellets, solid charcoals and so on. This paper estimates the nation wide amount of forest biomass based on the projection of forest areas for its effective and economic use. Several trend equations are used in projecting the forest areas. In 2009, the forest biomass arising from thinning is estimated be 6,591,575 $m^3$. The estimates of forest biomass in 2015 and 2018 are 6,375,627 $m^3$ and 6,284,779 $m^3$, respectively. Since the forest areas are projected to be declining, the biomass generated by thinning will decrease. This implies that the new alternatives for supplying raw materials for biofuels must be prepared before then.