Background and Objective

In the 1980s, an increasing deterioration of forest condition in European forests was observed. The suspected link with the then very high levels of air pollution (especially of sulfur dioxide) led in 1985 to the adoption of the International Co-operative Programme on Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Forests (ICP Forests) under the UNECE Air Convention, which currently includes 42 member countries.

The annual survey of crown condition on over 5500 plots across Europe is supplemented approximately every 10-15 years by surveys of forest soils and the tree nutrient status (Level I).

In order to understand cause-effect relationships, intensive Level II monitoring is carried out on another more than 600 plots throughout Europe since 1995. On these plots, data on air quality, deposition, soil solution, meteorology, ground vegetation, tree growth, phenology, litterfall and visible ozone damage are recorded in order to assess the condition of the forest ecosystems and its changes throughout Europe.

The lead country of ICP Forests is Germany. The ICP Forests Programme Co-ordinating Centre (PCC) at the Thünen Institute of Forest Ecosystems in Eberswalde is responsible for the programme administration and organization, and the data management. The PCC also edits the extensive ICP Forests Manual and publishes scientific papers and brochures for policy consultancy and the general public.

Approach

Within the Level I monitoring, crown condition is assessed annually by the ICP Forests member states on a 16 by 16 km grid (in total around 6,000 plots). The same grid is used for assessments of the soil and foliar condition, which are conducted every 10 to 15 years. The Level II monitoring sites (in total around 600 plots) can be regarded as case studies.

In order to achieve maximal comparability, all data collections follow the internationally adopted ICP Forests Manual. After several quality checks, the data are fed into the ICP Forests database which is managed by the PCC. These data can then be disseminated to external and internal data applicants according to the ICP Forests data policy, which has been adopted by all 42 ICP Forests member states. Standard evaluations are also performed by the PCC along with participations in more advanced studies undertaken by different scientists from partner organizations across Europe.

Links and Downloads

http://icp-forests.net