We are back from our first trip
23. 8. 2022 -
The summer 2022 STREAM trip provided the first information about the forests in the project sites. Scientific and inventory activities were supplemented with lectures and preparation of fencerows for autumn planting.
Experts from the Czech Republic teach their Mongolian counterparts how to take care of the forest. Forestry is at a low level in Mongolia. There is a lack of knowledge and experience in the field and the situation with the decline and degradation of forest stands is critical. Czech experts, who lead the international consortium in the STREAM project, have already established several teaching areas in Mongolia. For example, they have built model fences to protect young trees from the enormous grazing pressure from livestock. The experts have now returned from Mongolia and will go there again in the autumn.
The aim of the first expedition was to implement demonstrations of sustainable forestry practices to help protect local forests in practice. The activities also included research and education. "Forest grazing is one of the biggest threats to the future of the island's woodlands. There is no successful natural regeneration in the marginal zones of the stands, as all the young trees are repeatedly chewed down," said Jan Šebesta from the Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology at MENDELU, adding that artificial forest regeneration is almost non-existent in Mongolia, and as old trees die or are cut down, the forest area is therefore gradually shrinking or being lost altogether.
"Forest users lack the motivation and means to protect the forest. Increasingly, however, they are not the only ones to realise the consequences, which are also manifested in a decline in the fertility of pastures. This is becoming a society-wide issue. However, it is not possible to rely solely on dialogue with pastoralists as a means of protecting the forest. For this reason, we are also trying to show the possibilities of continuous education of stands and sustainable management of them, which will not only contribute to obtaining funds or materials for forest protection, but also increase its resistance to fire, overall stability or help natural regeneration," says Václav Pecina from the Faculty of Agronomy at MENDELU.
Scientists in Mongolia are also monitoring natural conditions. They monitor soil temperature and moisture, air temperature and rainfall. According to the data, they then adjust management in the selected area, while also obtaining important information about the dynamics of the environment and the functioning of forests in unique forest areas.
"We have also conceived the fieldwork in an educational way. In addition to presenting our activities to local forest users, pastoralists and policy makers, we wanted to add another dimension to our work. This is to educate university students of environmental studies directly in the field," added Šebesta. In addition to working directly in the forest, the students were able to experience forest inventory or tree planting and also attended lectures and exercises on pedology, botany, etc. During these, they could also get directly involved in research.