Integrated decision support for sustainable forest management in the United States: Fact or fiction?

Decision support systems have played a prominent role in the implementation of forest management since the early 1980s. However, whereas early systems were typically designed to address relatively simple management questions, more modern systems are increasingly being called upon to address the challenges posed by issues surrounding forest ecosystem management, sustainable forest management, and adaptive management. This paper considers some of the key requirements as they apply to forestry in the United States, and reviews recent decision support system designs in the United States, considering the extent to which they are satisfying the requirements, and opportunities for their continued evolution. The three systems discussed, NED, LMS, and EMDS, are typical of recent approaches to system design insofar as each has taken an evolutionary approach to system implementation in order to develop effective, integrated decision support for forest management in this new, complex problem domain. On considering the current state of system development for the three systems, it is concluded that significant progress has, in fact, been made in the last few years in providing support for evaluation and planning, although it is equally true that substantial opportunities remain for continued development to support plan implementation and forest ecosystem monitoring.