A rapid site assessment (RSA) determines the existing potential for natural forest regeneration and identifies limiting factors that preventing natural forest regeneration. It is a vital step in restoration planning. It helps with deciding on an overall restoration strategy and, if tree planting is needed, it can be used to calculate the number of trees and species to plant.
Rapid site assessment
Recognizing which of the five stages of degradation has been reached at a site will determine which broad restoration strategy will be most suitable. A more detailed site assessment is then needed to determine the existing potential for natural forest regeneration and to identify factors that could be limiting it. These parameters will define which activities should be undertaken and the intensity of the effort necessary at each site (and hence the labor requirements and costs). The project plan can then begin to take shape.
How to do?
To carry out a rapid site assessment (RSA), you will need: a compass, a topographic map, a global positioning system (GPS) (or app on your phone), a camera, plastic bags, 2-m metal poles, a piece of string with a mark exactly 5 m from the end and datasheets on a clip-board with a pencil.
Invite all stakeholders (particularly local people) to participate in the site survey and begin by marking the boundaries of the site on a map and recording the GPS coordinates. Next, survey natural regeneration along a transect across the site at its widest point. Select the starting point and decide on a compass bearing to follow for the line. Establish sample circles 5-m radius along the transect at regular intervals.
What kind of data should be recorded?
Using the data sheet below, record the following in each circular sample plot:
- The number and species of natural regenerants (tree sapling >50 cm tall, adult trees and live tree stumps (coppicing).
- The density of ground cover/weeds/herbaceous plant
- The evidence of forest fire or castle
After the RSA
Initial restoration activities should aim to:
- counteract the factors recorded that impede forest regeneration (e.g. fire, cattle, hunting of seed dispersers etc.);
- maintain or increase the number of natural regenerants to 3,100/ha (if density is already >3100, plant few or no tree, only to increase tree species richness);
- increase tree-species richness to about 10% of that of the target climax forest.
Select the broad restoration strategy to match the recorded conditions and start to plan management tasks, including protective measures (e.g. livestock exclusion and/or fire prevention), the balance between tree planting and nurturing natural regeneration, the types of tree species to plant, the need for soil improvement and so on.
Full instructions on how to perform an RSA are in Chapter 3 of “Restoring Tropical Forest: a practical guide”.
1: Selecting suitable tree species for direct seeding to restore forest ecosystems in northern Thailand
ABSTRACT: To upscale restoration of tropical forest ecosystems, direct seeding—sowing seeds directly into the ground—is potentially more cost-effective than tree planting. However, its success is...
2: Developing Techniques for Direct-seeding for Forest Restoration in Northern Thailand
ABSTRACT: Forest restoration by direct seeding is potentially more cost-effective than tree-planting, especially for upscaling restoration of tropical forest ecosystems. Unfortunately, its success...
3: ทฤษฎีเบื้องหลังการฟื้นฟู
หนังสือเล่มนี้ได้รวบรวมเนื้อหาครอบคลุมถึงการรบกวนที่ส่งผลต่อกระบวนการฟื้นตัวของธรรมชาติ ทำให้มวลชีวภาพลดลงและสภาพดินเปลี่ยนแปลงไป...
4: Differential seed removal, germination and seedling growth as determinants of species suitability for forest restoration by direct seeding – A case study from northern Thailand
ABSTRACT: Direct seeding is potentially a more cost-effective alternative to conventional tree planting for restoring tropical forest ecosystems. However, seed loss, due to removal and damage by...
5: Tree islands enhance biodiversity and functioning in oil palm landscapes
ABSTRACT: In the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, large knowledge gaps persist on how to increase biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in cash crop-dominated tropical landscapes....
6: Use of drone RGB imagery to quantify indicator variables of tropical-forest-ecosystem degradation and restoration
ABSTRACT: Recognizing initial degradation levels is essential to planning effective measures to restore tropical forest ecosystems. However, measuring indicators of forest degradation is...
7: Understanding forest landscape restoration: reinforcing scientific foundations for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration
Under the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, 2021-2030, there has been no more critical or opportune time to restore forests, which are critical for the world’s species, people and...
8: The framework species method—harnessing natural regeneration to restore tropical forest ecosystems
Abstract: The framework species method (FSM) restores forest ecosystems by densely planting open sites, close to natural forest, with a group of woody species, characteristic of the reference...
9: Use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Imagery to Monitor Progress of Early Forest Ecosystem Restoration in an Opencast Mine
ABSTRACT: Monitoring forest restoration is essential for improving and advancing restoration techniques, but human-based monitoring is costly as it requires intensive labour in the field. Although...
10: UAV-derived forest degradation assessments for planning and monitoring forest ecosystem restoration: towards a forest degradation index
ABSTRACT: Global initiatives such as the Bonn Challenge and the New York Declaration on Forests have prompted large-scale forest restoration projects to combat land degradation, preserve...