a Forest Model Archive FMA

1
a Forest Model Archive(FMA)

• Professor Keith Rennolls
• University of Greenwich
• Dep. Coordinator IUFRO 4.03.00
• (Informatics, Modelling Statistics)
• k.rennolls_at_gre.ac.uk
• Prepared for FP0603 WP1 the Forest Models of
  Europe

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Archive Database Register?

• Considerable overlap,
• but some major differences.
• Cost FP0603 lists as an aim the setting up of a
  European Forest Models Register.
• Q1. What is meant by this?
• Q2. Is this really what we want?
• Q3. What do we want?
• Suggestion we should focus on uses and users
  in answering Q3.

3
Some recent history

• Around 1997 (and maybe much earlier) the EU
  ratified an initiative to harmonize European
  forest inventory systems (EFICS)
• Aim to make pan-European planning more efficient
  and effective.
• Around 2000 IUFRO announced the Global Forest
  Information System (GFIS) (2000-now)
• Also in about 2000 the European Forest
  Information System (EFIS) was set up, as the
  European Node of GFIS.(2000-2003)
• GFIS was really a notice-board, cataloguing
  global forest information resource objects.
• -very much a librarian view of a FIS.
• EFIS was really a demonstrator of a GIS-based
  inventory linked software package.
• Note EFIS was not consistent as a subsystem of
  GFIS.

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NEFIS

• NEFIS (Network of European Forest Information
  Systems) (2004-2007)
• Son of EFIS
• Aim to extend EFIS to realize the 1997 aims
• Result
• considered the problems, and overcame some
• Suggested some design features
• Main Problems
• Unwillingness to share data on an information
  system
• The incommensurability of many EU forest
  mensurational systems (terms forest volume
  site-index)

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Some NEFIS papers

• Requirements and Design of an Integrated European
  Environmental Information Communication System,
  (IEEICS)http//cms1.gre.ac.uk/research/cassm/NEFI
  S/Papers/RENNOLLS_K_RD1.pdf
• Models and Tools for an Integrated European
  Environmental Management and Decision Support
  System, (IEEMDSS)http//cms1.gre.ac.uk/research/c
  assm/NEFIS/Papers/RENNOLLS_K_MT2.pdf
• A Partial Ontology for Forest Inventory and
  Mensurationhttp//cms1.gre.ac.uk/research/cassm/N
  EFIS/Papers/Rennolls_Ontology.pdf
• An Architectural Design for a Forest Information
  and Communications Portal (FICP)http//cms1.gre.a
  c.uk/research/cassm/NEFIS/Papers/Rennolls_Architec
  ture.pdf

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FIS and Models

• FIS concerned with
• A catalogue (register) of forest information
  sources
• Wide ranging general information and knowledge
  about forests,
• But to a much lesser extent, it seems, with
  forest data
• Sample plot databases
• Forest Inventory data etc..
• RS imagery
• These seem to have their own homes
• What about models?

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Forest Models

• Forest Models are
• mathematical/algorithmic representations
• which describe, summarise, or explain
• the way trees and forests change
• (or, more correctly, the data relating to these)
• See the recently circulated papers

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IUFRO 4.11 Greenwich, 2001 Forest Biometry,
Modelling and Information Science (FBMIS)

• The FBMIS Proceedings
• The First IUFRO 4.11 web-proceedings
• Systems for Forest Information Conservation and
  Sharing
•  
• Risto Paivinen, Tim Richards, Nguyen Thanh Binh,
  Richard Wood , Margherita Sini (Invited
  paper)The IUFRO Global Forest Information
  Service
• Towards a Common Resource.
• Patrick D. Miles. USDA FS, St. Paul. Information
  Systems for the Forest Resource Analyst.
• Nell Baker and Howard Wright. University of
  OxfordThe UK Archive of Tropical Forest
  Inventory
• (ATROFI) conserving the data.  
• Keith Rennolls , Moh Ibrahim and Peter Smith.
  University of Greenwich.A Forest Model Archive?

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The Forest Model Archive (FMA) (www.forestmodelarc
hive.info)

• The Full FMA Standards Specification
• The resources associated with a fully documented
  model in FMA are
• expected to include the following as the adopted
  STANDARD
• A description of the theory of the model
• A listing of the code for the model algorithm
• The fitting criterion used
• The fitting algorithm used
• Test data, with metadata
• The results of fitting the model to the test data
  using the fitting algorithm
• The emphasis is on re-use of forest models
• A new way to publish models

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The FMA Aims

• To Conserve Forest Models
• To Enable easy re-use of Forest Models
• Even for non-experts
• Especially for the Developing World
• A latter-day Stat-forms?
• To Foster new forest model development
• Particularly for Tropical Forests
• For Remote-Sensing based Inventories
• To Allow easy comparison of Models
• On standard datasets
• On new datasets
• To Facilitate the building of new Hybrid models
  from previous models
• To Engender international forest modelling
  collaboration

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FMA Challenges

• Modellers prefer to model rather than re-use
  another modellers model.
• There is no kudos in re-use
• Many of the established BIG Models have their own
  well supported web sites
• FMA building is time-consuming and needs funding
  
• See next slide
• An Archive might possibly be regarded as merely
  a repository of dead models, and not the place
  for new and developing models.
• Something is needed in addition to indicate that
  the FMA is State of the Art (See FBMIS below)

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FMA???

• A proposal for a FMA project was submitted to the
  EU in 2005, (but, not successful)
  http//cms1.gre.ac.uk/research/cassm/NEFIS/Papers/
  PartB-Global-3_SSA_FMA1.pdf

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the other side of the ArchiveFBMIS the
e-journal FBMIS www.fbmis.info

• Parents of FBMIS
• Absence of a Specialized Forest Biometrics and
  Modelling publication outlet
• The FBMIS Conference Proceedings
• All the Black-Hole Proceedings of the past
• The FMA

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Some new and relevant historyCOST
E43(2004-2008)Harmonization of National Forest
Inventories in Europe Techniques for Common
Reporting

• WG1 Harmonised definitions and measuring
  practices.
• WG2 Harmonised estimation procedures for carbon
  pools and carbon pool changes.
• WG3 Harmonised indicators and estimation
  procedures for assessing components of
  biodiversity with NFI data.
• Aims Cooperate Promote active and open
  dialogue
• Assess methods for reporting
• Identify research needs for joint projects
• http//www.metla.fi/eu/cost/e43/

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What do we want to do?What will be the uses of
the product?

• Model Register/Catalogue
• Shares model metadata, and promotes cooperation,
  leading onto
• Database of Models
• Shares detailed models as well as metadata
• Uses? EU integration or harmonization?
• An FMA
• To encourage reuse of model methodology