Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

Urban forests are important for people to get at break and be able to relax in a stressful world. Several studies show that we feel better through being out in the forest and historically this was the normal environment for us. As a result of population growth and urbanization we tend to spend less time in nature nowadays than before. Due to this development urban forests have become a central role in our society as a place where people can fulfill their needs and interests. The management of the urban forest is therefore important, especially for municipalities that own forest which is supposed to be of benefit to local residents.
Falköpings municipality owns approximately 260 hectares of forest in the popular and most visited recreational area along Mösseberg’s southern slope. It has been a desire to develop a recreation plan for this area and this is the cause for this master thesis. The thesis is a collaboration between the Municipality of Falköping and Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Alnarp. The work is divided into a result part and an application part. The result part includes a literature review, a recreation value analysis and a smaller survey of interests groups operating in the recreational area of Mösseberg. The result section is the basis for the management proposals and guidelines presented in the application part, which are specific to the urban forest on Mösseberg.
The analysis of recreation versus timber production values was performed by using two recreational studies, one in Västerbotten county and one in Skåne and Blekinge counties. The result indicates that the recreational value is much higher than the timber production value in the area on Mösseberg. This result should however be interpreted with caution because the study is based on a very small extent of reports.
The survey was targeted at the organizations operating in the recreational area on Mösseberg. Results show that many of the organizations are generally satisfied with the way the management is conducted today. The response rate was relatively low and only 8 of 23 organizations sent back the survey with answers. Suggestions on what could be done better were information signs and restoration of benches along the trails.
The thesis did also result in an objective strategy for Falköpings municipality urban forests and a zone classification with special forest management proposals for the area on Mösseberg. An objective strategy with sub‐objectives eases the planning and the chances of achieving the overall goals. The use of zone classification within urban forestry planning is an increasingly used method and has several advantages. Larger areas could be included in a single zone, which is based on user values instead of tree species and growth. This means that management measures will be easier to both plan and execute. The zone classification performed on the area of Mösseberg was developed by local knowledge and new insights gained from the result section in this thesis.