ALIEN

In the Alps, Ailanthus is an invasive species from China. In an international project led by the BFH-HAFL, ailanthus invaded forests are being investigated in Ticino and in China to quantify their protective effect against rockfall.

Factsheet

Schools involved School of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences
Institute(s) Multifunctional Forest Management
Research unit(s) Mountain Forests and Natural Hazards
Funding organisation SNSF
Duration 01.01.2015 - 31.12.2018
Head of project Prof. Dr. Luuk Dorren
Project staff Dr. Daniel Trappmann
Marco Conedera
Bjoern Reineking
Markus Stoffel
Dr. Christine Moos
Prof. Harald Bugmann
Prof. Dr. Luuk Dorren
Dr. Jan Wunder
Franck Bourrier
Partner Irstea
Eidgenössische Forschungsanstalt WSL
Institut für Geologie, Uni Bern
Keywords invasive species, protection forest, rockfall, dendrogeomorphology

Situation

The main goal is to assess the development of forest stands that are invaded by ailanthus altissima trees and to develop methods that allow to quantify the protective effect of such forests against rockfalls over time.

Course of action

Collect forest ecological data on Ailanthus altissima; develop a mechanical model of Ailanthus altissima subjected to rock impacts; Identify determinants of invasion success of Ailanthus altissima and develop scenarios of the development of Ailanthus invaded protection forests; Development of tools for quantifying the protective function of Ailanthus invaded protection forests; Validation of results; disseminate project outcomes.