Air pollution and climate change have an effect on the forest. We examine these effects as part of the Long-Term Forest Ecosystem Research (LWF) programme.
We need reliable information in order to record the condition of the forest on an ongoing basis and to understand precisely what happens in the forest when the environment changes. An important source of data here is the Long-Term Forest Ecosystem Research (LWF) programme. It consists of 19 permanent monitoring sites on which we have regularly carried out numerous measurements since 1994. We have also been recording the health of trees on the monitoring sites of the Sanasilva Inventory, which is part of the LWF programme (see Sites), since 1985. LWF is also a partner with several of its sites in TreeNet, the biological drought and growth indicator network.
We disclose the gathered data, as well as the scientific interpretation of this data, to national and international decision-makers.
With the legally enshrined functions of the LWF programme, Switzerland participates in international research programmes such as the "International Co-operative Programme on Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Forests" ICP Forests and the LTER-Europe Network (Long-Term Ecosystem Research in Europe).
The Long-term Forest Ecosystem Research (LWF) programme is run and financed by the WSL.
Objectives of the programme
- Early detection and a representative assessment of changes in forest condition
- Determination of external influences, both from anthropogenic and natural sources and their effect on the forest ecosystem (element inputs, climate)
- Determination of changes in important components within the forest ecosystem
- Development of indicators to assess the condition of the forest
- Integrated risk assessment based on different stress scenarios
- Extended platform for internal and external research projects
Terms of Use ¶
The Terms of Use (ToU) regulate the access to and use of the Long-term Forest Ecosystem Research (LWF) Program infrastructure, which comprises the plots, installations, instruments, hardware and sensors belonging to the Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL. These ToU apply to all field activities on LWF plots. The goals of these ToU are to:
- foster collaboration among WSL internal and external researchers;
- safeguard the integrity of the LWF Infrastructure and the forest ecosystems under investigation;
- enable an appropriate measurement design;
- ensure high scientific quality and prevent measurement conflicts.
The Terms of Use consist of the following documents:
- the Terms of Use (ToU);
- the "Safety Concept for LWF Infrastructure" (Annex I);
- the mandatory "Template for Project Application on LWF Plots” (Annex II);
The use of collected datasets is regulated in the separate "Agreement on Use of LWF Data»