Conservation of Mediterranean conifers’ genetic resources

Jarkko Koskela1 and Bruno Fady2

1 EUFORGEN Coordinator, Bioversity International2 Chair of the EUFORGEN Conifers Network, INRA

FAO Silva Mediterranea and IUFRO WG 20213 Joint Expert Meeting, Arezzo, Italy, 21 June 2007

Mediterranean conifers

• A compilation of isozyme data shows that genetic diversity is higher in Mediterranean conifers than in conifers worldwide

• Refugia of temperate conifers in the Mediterranean region

• Mediterranean conifers and Mediterranean populations of temperate conifers need to be well represented in the gene conservation networks

EUFORGEN

• European Forest Genetic Resources Programme (EUFORGEN)

• Collaborative programme among European countries to promote conservation and sustainable use of forest genetic resources

• Established in October 1994• Implementation mechanism of Pan-

European forest policy process (Ministerial Conferences on the Protection of Forests in Europe, MCPFE)

EUFORGEN

• 1st Ministerial Conference, Strasbourg, France (1990)– Resolution S2: Conservation of forest genetic

resources• 4th Ministerial Conference, Vienna, Austria

(2003)– Resolution V4: Conserving and enhancing

forest biological diversity in Europe– “promote the conservation of forest genetic

resources as an integral part of sustainable forest management and continue the pan-European collaboration in this area”

EUFORGEN

• Fully financed by the member countries (34)

• National Coordinators -> Steering Committee

• Bioversity International is hosting the EUFORGEN Secretariat and coordinating the Programme in technical collaboration with FAO

Member countries

EUFORGEN Objectives

• Promote practical implementation of gene conservation and appropriate use of genetic resources as an integral part of sustainable forest management

• Make available and disseminate reliable information on forest genetic resources in Europe

• Facilitate further development of methods to conserve genetic diversity of European forests

EUFORGEN Networks

• Forest Management Network • Conifers Network• Scattered Broadleaves Network• Stand-forming Broadleaves Network

– Carry out most of the technical work– Scientists, policy-makers and managers (108)

participate in the Network meetings and contribute to various activities between the meetings

– In-kind contributions

Conifers Network

• Established in 2000 to continue the work of the Picea abies Network (1995-1999)

• Survey on priorities for gene conservation of conifers in Europe– Priority species, including many Mediterranean

conifers– Main constraints to conservation and use of

conifer genetic resources– Priorities for future activities of the Conifers

Network

Conifers Network

• Abies cephalonica• Abies nebrodensis• Abies pinsapo• Cedrus brevifolia• Cedrus libani• Cupressus

sempervirens• Juniperus excelsa• Juniperus foetidissima• Juniperus macrocarpa• Juniperus polycarpos

• Pinus brutia• Pinus halepensis• Pinus heldreichii• Pinus nigra• Pinus peuce• Pinus pinaster• Pinus pinea• Tetraclinis articulata

Conifers Network

• Main constraints to conservation and use of conifer genetic resources– Linking gene conservation and silviculture– Lack of awareness on genetic resources

among decision-makers– Risks to the genetic resources due to abiotic

and biotic factors– Use of reproductive material of unknown

sources– Lack of knowledge on species reproductive

biology and genetic variation

FGR conservation and SFM

• EUFORGEN is collecting data on the indicator 4.6 of the pan-European C&I for sustainable forest management– Area managed for conservation and utilisation

of forest tree genetic resources (in situ and ex situ gene conservation)

– Area managed for seed production• Trends in implementation of sustainable

forest management in Europe (1990, 2000 and 2005)

In situ conservation

32,818.0 28,206.013,023.9Total

4,221.0 4,232.03,917.0Pinus pinea

2,905.02,922.02,923.0Pinus pinaster

11,447.99,403.5731.0Pinus nigra

3,160.01,600.03,160.0Pinus heldreichii/leucodermis

2,142.72,182.02,266.0Pinus halepensis

---Pinus canariensis

8,820.67,862.626.0Pinus brutia

---Cedrus libani

---Cedrus atlantica

100.0--Abies pinsapo

20.83.90.9Abies grandis

---Abies cephalonica

200520001990Species

Hectares

Ex situ conservation

163.9 152.5 102.1 Total

9.1 9.19.10Pinus pinea

58.4 58.45.6 Pinus pinaster

41.1 43.440.8 Pinus nigra

---Pinus heldreichii/leucodermis

17.0 17.0 22.6 Pinus halepensis

---Pinus canariensis

20.0 10.1 10.1 Pinus brutia

3.3 3.3 3.3 Cedrus libani

4.5 4.5 4.5 Cedrus atlantica

---Abies pinsapo

10.0 6.2 5.6 Abies grandis

0.5 0.5 0.5 Abies cephalonica

200520001990

Hectares

Species

Seed production area

Hectares

69,881.4 51,248.8 22,580.7 Total

5,841.5 3,955.5 1,402.4Pinus pinea

7,198.3 3,392.1 243.4 Pinus pinaster

35,707.2 27,947.0 9,826.3 Pinus nigra

245.6 --Pinus heldreichii/leucodermis

2,176.7 208.0 208.4 Pinus halepensis

108.8 --Pinus canariensis

12,714.1 12,091.7 8,038.6 Pinus brutia

3,592.0 3,643.4 2,861.3 Cedrus libani

712.6 2.7 0.04 Cedrus atlantica

--0.03 Abies pinsapo

15.9 6.3 0.3 Abies grandis

200520001990Species

Technical Guidelines

• Abies alba• Picea abies• Pinus cembra• Pinus halepensis/P.

brutia• Pinus nigra• Pinus pinaster• Pinus pinea• Pinus sylvestris• Pinus heldreichii (prep)• Pinus peuce (prep)

Distribution maps

Pinus pinea Pinus nigra

www.euforgen.org

Conifers Network

• 4th Network meeting, Pitlochry, UK, 18-20 Oct 2003– Exotic conifers

• 5th Network meeting, Larnaca, Cyprus, 7-9 April 2005– Mediterranean conifers

• 6th Network meeting, Reykjavik, Iceland, 7-9 Sep 2006– Climate change

Common action plans

• Strategies to strengthen dynamic gene conservation at pan-European level– Species distribution maps– Geo-referenced data on the

existing gene conservation units– Integrated maps (distribution range, the units,

climate, distribution of genetic diversity, etc)– Gaps in gene conservation efforts– Promote practical gene conservation at national

level

Common action plans

• What is a dynamic gene conservation unit?– Minimum size and number of units– Management of the units– Monitoring of genetic diversity– Links to protected areas– Climate change

• EUFORGEN Networks have developed minimum requirements for gene conservation units of forest trees and networks of the units at pan-European level

Common action plans

• How the minimum requirements for conifers address climate change– Creation of artificial gene conservation units

further north than the current natural range to accelerate adaptation processes

– Relocation of southernmost and/or marginal populations demonstrating recent adaptation problems

– Creation of artificial gene conservation units at the southern margins to allow species hybridization to generate new adaptive combinations

Common action plans

• Working groups of the Conifers Network– Stand-forming/widespread species (Picea

abies, Pinus halepensis/brutia,)– Scattered/widespread (Taxus baccata)– Rare/threatened (P. nigra ecotypes,

Mediterranean Abies spp.)– Exotic conifers (Picea sitchensis, Pseudotsuga

menziesii)

Information management

• Establishment of a European Information System on Forest Genetic Resources (EUFGIS)

• One of the actions funded through the Council Regulation on genetic resources in agriculture (EC 870/2004)

• Project period– 1 April 2007-30 Sep 2010 (42 months)

EUFGIS

• Project partners– Bioversity International, Italy– Federal Research and Training Centre for

Forests, Natural Hazards and Landscape (BFW), Austria

– State Forest Tree Improvement Station (SNS), Denmark

– Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), France

– National Forest Centre (NLC), Slovakia– Slovenian Forestry Institute (SFI), Slovenia– Forest Research, United Kingdom

EUFGIS objectives

1. To create a Web-based, permanent information system

2. To establish a network of FGR inventories 3. To develop minimum requirements for the

dynamic gene conservation units and common information standards

4. To make available harmonized data on the dynamic gene conservation units of 20 tree species

5. To provide training on FGR documentation

EUFGIS infrastructure

National InventoryNational Inventory

EUFGIS EUFGIS central databasecentral database

Classic file uploadClassic file upload

Distributed access Distributed access through Web servicesthrough Web services

Intranet

GIS

Search

Download

Web site

Other databasesOther databases

European search catalogue on crops

http://eurisco.ecpgr.org/

Climate change and FGR

• Workshop on ‘Climate change and forest genetic diversity: Implications for sustainable forest management in Europe’, Paris, France, 15-16 March 2006 (organized by Bioversity and IUFRO)

• Part of the MCPFE Work Programme to implement Vienna Resolution 5 (Climate change and sustainable forest management in Europe)

• 78 participants from 25 countries

Climate change and FGR

• 8 invited presentations– Adaptation of forest trees to climate change– How to adapt forest management?– Field trials and the future use of forest

reproductive material– Economic considerations and FGR– National adaptation strategies to climate

change– Conservation of forest genetic resources under

climate change

Climate change and FGR

• 3 working groups– Silvicultural practices and forest genetic

diversity: what is needed to ensure adaptability of forests?

– Forest reproductive materials: how to use them under changing environmental conditions?

– Regional and national strategies: how international collaboration on forest genetic resources can facilitate their development and implementation?

Climate change and FGR

• General conclusions– Climate change will bring along both

opportunities and threats to forests– Genetic diversity maintains resilience of forest

ecosystems– Use of genetic diversity provides flexibility for

forest management and is a recommendable risk-reducing strategy for forest owners

– Strategies and guidelines are needed to promote appropriate use of forest reproductive material -> acceleration of adaptation process

Climate change and FGR

• Workshop recommendations 1. Policy makers in Europe should recognize the

importance of forest genetic diversity in mitigating the impacts of climate change on the forest sector by expressing a commitment at pan-European level to incorporate the management of this diversity into national forest programmes and other relevant policies, programmes and strategies.

Climate change and FGR

• Workshop recommendations 2. Policy makers in Europe should promote

forest management practices that maintain evolutionary processes of forest trees and support natural regeneration of forests, especially in areas where long-term natural regeneration is self-sustainable despite climate change.

Climate change and FGR

• Workshop recommendations 3. Policy makers in Europe should take into

account the potential for accelerating adaptation of forest trees to climate change through tree breeding and transfer of potentially suitable forest reproductive material by endorsing the development of pan-European guidelines for the transfer of forest reproductive material in Europe on the basis of scientific knowledge.

Climate change and FGR

• Workshop recommendations 4. European forest research community should

carry out more interdisciplinary studies (e.g. tree physiology, forest genetics, pests and diseases, forest management and economics, and modelling) on the impacts of climate change on forests with the support of the policy makers.