The “Forêt d’Exception®” of Verdun in the face of a major crisis: a life-size laboratory for innovating adjustments

摘要

© AgroParisTech, 2023.The public forest of Verdun covers around 10,000 hectares of the First World War battlefield, planted with Austrian black pine (Pinus nigra ssp austriaca Arn) and spruce (Picea abies L.). From 2018 to 2020, a massive invasion of bark beetles caused the death of almost all spruce trees on 1,700 hectares and their harvest by clear-cutting. This context, along with climate pre-dictions, arouses important issues for the adjustment of forest planning. Species mixtures, the use of the natural dynamic, species diversification and renewal itineraries, and prioritisation of investments are all objectives that have led to the setting-up of a decision grid and a related standardised itinerary grid. These technical recommendations were included in global forest planning so as to allow managers to adapt to the plot context while keeping a medium-term view at the forest scale.