Details
EUROPARC WEBINAR – Balancing safety and ecology: The management of dead and dying trees in Periurban Parks
- 02.07.2024
- 10:00 – 11:15 CEST
- Registration is free, but required here.
About the webinar
In recent years, there has been a greater understanding of the vital function dead trees serve in supporting biodiversity and regenerating the forest. In turn, this has resulted in a growing movement to preserve dead wood.
Standing and fallen dead trees are an important element of well-functioning ecosystems. They provide essential nesting locations for birds and bats, attract insects and are vital for fungi. Moreover, dead trees play a crucial role in the global carbon cycle and contribute to climate change mitigation.
However, dying trees — especially those that are standing or partially standing, can present a hazard if they fall unexpectedly, particularly when they are located close to trails, recreational areas, or other infrastructural elements. This is especially true for Periurban Parks, as they are located on the border of urban areas and are highly frequented.
In these situations, managers are confronted with the decision of leaving dying or dead trees as they are for the ecological benefits they bring, or cutting them down to prevent potentially dangerous situations. The latter option, however, is often negatively perceived by the public, and can result in backlash.
During this webinar, we will hear from two periurban forest managers, both dealing with the issue of dying and dead trees management, and discuss the accompanying challenges with them.
This webinar is organised by the EUROPARC Periurban Commission.
Programme:
The webinar will be facilitated by Teresa Pastor, project and policy manager at the EUROPARC Federation.
On talking terms with dead and dying trees
By Andrej Verlič, senior nature conservation councillor at the Landscape park Tivoli, Rožnik and Šiška hill in Ljubljana, Slovenia
Management of dead and dying trees in a Mediterranean periurban Natural Park. Tendencies, consequences and challenges.
By Pablo Navascués Ramos, forest manager in Collserola natural park, Barcelona.
There will be space for participants to ask questions.
Get to know the speakers
Andrej Verlič
Andrej works as a senior nature conservation councillor at the Landscape park Tivoli, Rožnik and Šiška hill in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Prior to this, he worked as a research assistant at the Slovenian Forestry Institute, and mostly focused on topics related to urban forestry and recreation in forests in and around urban areas. He holds a PhD in environment protection and is a member of the European Forum on Urban Forestry and an associated external member of the EUROPARC Periurban Commission.
Pablo Navascués Ramos
Pablo is a forest engineer and graduated in Forest Sciences at the University of Freiburg, Germany. He has over 25 years of experience in forest management in Protected Areas, restoration and renaturalization plans, forest fire prevention, planification and silviculture, support and promotion of associative management of both private and public forested lands, as well as management of wildland–urban interface areas.