Bulgarian-Romanian Forest Mapping (BRFM)

One of the indicators for a biologically valuable forest is its long-term natural history and dynamics. The forest should also be large enough to maintain long term viability of populations of most naturally occurring species. Such attributes are now very rare in Europe, where most forests have been used by society for hundreds of years and need to be protected and restored. Identifying Biologically Important Forests (BIFs) and visualizing the results on maps are only a preliminary step to better forest conservation and toward ecologically sustainable forest management.

BIFs are a component of a larger ecosystem functioning at the landscape, regional or wider scale and playing crucial role as a biodiversity hotspot or ecological connectors (corridors). They are habitats of rare and threatened species and often threatened forest ecosystems.

Background The BIF mapping was first exercised as the Baltic Forest Mapping (BFM), a joint project of BirdLife Finland, WWF and BirdLife Estionian, Latvian and Lithuanian partners. The module covering three Baltic states was completed in 2003. In 2005 mapping, led by the European Forest Task Force BirdLife (FTF) in co-operation with the BirdLife national partners was extended to Poland and Belarus (BPFM, Polish-Belarussian Forest Mapping).

The project

Project's main goal is to identify and map potentially B io logically Important F orests in Bulgaria and Romania , to review their current protection status and to propose concrete measures for management of the most important and valuable forests. BIFs in Bulgaria and Romania will be selected on the basis of general criteria adapted to local specific conditions.

Timeframe

The project was launched in March 2007 and will last two years.

Funder

The project is funded by the Aage V. Jensen Charity Foundation, Denmark.

Results

The BIF Mapping results in the development of a GIS database achieved in the process of a thorough filtering of available forest databases supplemented by other appropriate data sources, scanning of satellite imagery and field-checking. The database will be organised in three levels (forest stand level, forest division level, generalized level, composed of a 25-ha grid). The BRFM results will be visualised in the user-friendly manner and will serve to the wide public in the interactive maps provided on Internet (see more info on www.birdlife.fi/forestmapping) and in CD-ROM format. Sensitive information such as occurrence of endangered species will not be displayed.

Application of the results

The resulting map with database of BIFs in Bulgaria and Romania will reveal to what extend the national networks of forest protected areas are entire, representative and functional. Mapping is expected to identify gaps in the existing conservation system and to give directions for the necessity of additional protection of certain types of forests as well as for restoration of certain forest habitats. Project results could be applied in forest management planning and could support the process of FSC certification, requiring efficient protection of HCVFs (article 9 of FSC statues). The available on internet map service will be an invaluable tool in sci e ntific researches, tourism development, ecological education and conservation advocacy.

Project Leadership & Coordination
The project will be coordinate d by t he BirdLife's European Forest Task Force.
Project Steering Committee Chairman, Dr. Andrzej Bobiec (atb[dot]ftf[at]gmail[dot]com)
Project Co-ordinator Diyana Kostovska (diyana[dot]kostovska[at]bspb[dot]org)

Project Delivery
The project will be carried out in cooperation with the Romanian Ornithological Society (SOR/ BirdLife Romania ) and the Bulgarian Society for protection of birds (BSPB/BirdLife Bulgaria).
Cristy Domsa (cristi[dot]domsa[at]sor[dot]ro) – National Forest Officer, SOR – Romanian Society for the Protection of Birds
Vanya Ratarova (vanya[dot]ratarova[at]bspb[dot]org) – National forest officer , BSPB - Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds