Effects of using certain tree species in forest regeneration on regional wind damage risks in Finnish boreal forests under different CMIP5 projections

We studied how the use of certain tree species in forest regeneration affected the regional wind damage risks to Finnish boreal forests under the current climate (1981–2010) and recent-generation global climate model (GCM) predictions (i.e., 10 GCMs of CMIP5, with wide variations in temperature and precipitation), using the representative concentration pathways RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 over the period 2010–2099. The study employed forest ecosystem and mechanistic wind damage risk model simulations on upland national forest inventory plots throughout Finland. The amount of wind damage was estimated based on the predicted critical wind speeds for uprooting trees and their probabilities. In a baseline management regime, forest regeneration was performed by planting the same tree species that was dominant before the final cut. In other management regimes, either Scots pine, Norway spruce or silver birch was planted on medium-fertility sites. Other management actions were performed as for a baseline management. The calculated amount of wind damage was greatest in southern and central Finland under CNRM-CM5 RCP8.5, and the smallest under HadGEM2-ES RCP8.5. The most severe climate projections (HadGEM2-ES RCP8.5 and GFDL-CM3 RCP8.5) affected the wind damage risk even more than did the tree species preferences in forest regeneration. The situation was the opposite for the less severe climate projections (e.g., MPI-ESM-MR RCP4.5 and MPI-ESM-MR RCP8.5). The calculated amount of wind damage was clearly greater in the south than in the north, due to differences in forest structure. The volume of growing stock is much higher in the south for the more vulnerable Norway spruce (and birch) than in the north, which is opposite for the less vulnerable Scots pine. The increasing risk of wind damage should be taken into account in forest management because it could amplify, or even cancel out, any expected increases in forest productivity due to climate change.