¶ POPSIM
| Company | Skogforsk (Forestry Research Institiute of Sweden) |
| Country | Sweden |
| Website | https://www.skogforsk.se/english/products-and-events/software/popsim/ |
| Category | Nursery & Establishment › Remote sensing & mapping |
Software to simulate breeding management decisions
¶ Overview
POPSIM is a forest population simulation model developed to support research and management planning in plantation and natural forest systems. The software uses individual-tree or stand-level growth and yield algorithms to project the development of a forest population over time under different silvicultural and environmental scenarios. POPSIM-type models are particularly useful for exploring the long-term consequences of management decisions such as thinning regimes, rotation lengths, species selection, and planting densities, and for assessing how these decisions interact with variables like site quality, climate, and disturbance regimes. In forestry research, population simulation tools occupy an important niche between simple empirical growth-and-yield tables and complex process-based physiological models: they are computationally efficient enough to run many scenarios rapidly while incorporating sufficient biological detail to produce ecologically meaningful projections. In the Australian context, simulation modelling has been integral to plantation estate planning for species including radiata pine (Pinus radiata) and blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus), where management decisions carry long time horizons of 10 to 30 years or more. Simulation outputs from models such as POPSIM can be used to estimate timber volumes, forecast carbon sequestration, assess biodiversity outcomes, and support economic analysis of different management strategies. The model can also be integrated with spatial data — including LiDAR-derived stand metrics and remote sensing products — to parameterise simulations at the stand or landscape level. As climate change alters growth conditions and increases disturbance risk in Australian forests, population-level simulation tools are becoming increasingly important for adaptive management planning and long-term estate optimisation.
¶ Details
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Company | Skogforsk (Forestry Research Institiute of Sweden) |
| Country | Sweden |
| Type | Company |
| Available in AU? | yes, freely online for research and non-commercial use |
| FWPA RD&E | 9.0 |