Reflections on the biogeoclimatic approach to ecosystem classification of forested landscape.

Abstract

The biogeoclimatic approach to ecosystem classification is unique in that it defines, albeit arbitrarily, an ecosystem, and draws from several of the European and North American schools of vegetation and environment classifications. Undisputedly, the classification has provided a predictive tool for foresters in British Columbia and has given impetus for developing similar classifications elsewhere. The aim of this classification system is to organize forest ecosystems according to relationships in climate, vegetation, site quality, and time. The system is vegetation driven and features three independent, but connected classifications: zonal, vegetation, and site. Site classification is a primary tool used for identifying quality of forest sites. Furthermore, it provides a framework for accumulated, site-specific knowledge about ecological characteristics of plant species, sites, and ecosystems. As a result, the site classification supports a variety of stand - and forest-level decisions as well as forest productivity research.