Inventory Study 2008

The forest management in Germany is credited, in the context of the obligation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, under Article 3.4 of the Kyoto Protocol. At the beginning of the commitment period in 2008, it was necessary to determine the carbon stocks of the German forests. At the end of the commitment period, 2012, the Third National Forest Inventory (BWI3) will be conducted to determine the carbon stock change in the forests of Germany. To guarantee data comparability, and for reasons of efficiency, the inventory design of the IS 08 was similar to the BWI.

The data collection for the 2008 inventory study was carried out in a grid network with a grid of 8 x 8 km based on the basic network (4 x 4 km) of the BWI. The samples (wings) are located at the intersections of the nationwide grid. Each wing consists of a square with a side length of 150 m. If at least one wing of the corners is located in a forest, the tract is classified as a forest tract. On the corners located in forests the following data is taken.

• Angle-count sampling (Basal area factor 4) measurement of the sample trees and measuring the diameter at breast height, measure the top diameter and tree height of individual trees
• Estimation of rejuvenation by size in sample circles with 1.0 m and 1.75 m radius
• Estimation of dead wood in a sample with 5 m radius circle, from a detection limit of 10 cm at the thicker end, the length and diameter at both ends and in the middle of a dead wood piece are measured.