Alteration of the forest structure in historically impacted Nothofagus spp. forests on the Brunswick peninsula : recommendations for their protection and management

Abstract: Despite exhibiting a seemingly low degree of human alteration when compared to other types of landscapes, most forest ecosystems in the world have a long history of human use and are prod-uct thereof. The southern Brunswick peninsula is no exception to this and has an extensive history of anthropogenic activity, both pre-colonial and modern. The overall objective of this study was to investigate the historic land use and its impact on natural and cultural values in Nothofagus spp. forests along the coastal fringe of the peninsula. Further, my aim was to discuss how these values can be protected and conserved in a holistic way and how restoration can be used as a tool to mitigate historic impacts and restore natural and cultural values. To broaden my understanding of the land use of the area and the temporal frame during which different land use activities took place, I reviewed various archives and literature published on the history of the area. For the forest structural assessment of the study area, I established transects going inland from three differently impacted sites along the coast of the Brunswick pen-insula. Establishing a plot every 100 m, I measured the basal area of live and dead trees, DBH of all trees, height of the dominant trees, dimensions of lying and standing deadwood, and took den-drochronological samples from several representative trees. I also took note of any cultural inter-vention and sign of logging. My main findings are that the coastal area was subject to forest exploitation and that there was a significant difference in the forest structure variables between logged and unlogged plots. There were however no statistically significant differences between sites. Rather, I found differ-ences within the sites. Considering the patterns of each land use I was able to show that they all left a distinct imprint on the landscape, creating a complex biocultural space. My recommendations for the area are a combination of visualization of vulnerable cultural artifacts within the forest landscape and their structural protection, as well as active and passive forest restoration to augment natural values and restore a forest structure reminiscent of previous forest landscapes under indigenous land stewardship.