Ms Jie-Lian
Beh
PhD student
Topic: classification of forest
soils by remote sensing
Australian National University
Email: jie-lian.beh@anu.edu.au
Forest soils information is critical to forest
management, to maximise individual site productivity and to
minimise the impact of forest operations.
Forest soil surveys conducted in Australia
employ techniques that were originally developed for agricultural
lands. When applied to forest soils, the use of such surveys is
variable as forest sites are generally difficult to access and have
high spatial variability, which has implications for obtaining
representative data. As a consequence, there is currently little
detailed soils information available for the effective management
of the mixed forest estate and there is a clear need to develop
methods for predicting forest soil properties over a range of
scales.
The aim of my research project is to develop
soil models that will predict variation in the key soil properties
that influence plantation forest management, including soil depth,
texture, water holding capacity, soil trafficability, erodibility
and fertility. This will improve the ability of forest managers to
minimise environmental damage, and improve prediction and
forecasting for strategic and operational planning.
The proposed study sites for this project are
three distinct geomorphic forest landscapes in the southern Hume
region of New South Wales: Carabost, Buccleuch, and Bago State
Forests.
I completed my Honours with the Centre for Green
Chemistry at Monash University, after which I moved to Canberra to
begin my PhD at the Australian National University. The
interdisciplinary nature of this project will develop my skills in
soil chemistry and in the application of remote sensing and
computer modelling to aid sustainable forest management. My
supervisors are Dr Cris Brack
(Australian National University), Dr Richard
Greene (Australian National University), John Gallant
(CSIRO
Land and Water) and Jody Bruce (Ensis).
My research is funded by an
Australian Postgraduate Award and the CRC for Forestry.
My PhD studies contribute to the Monitoring and
Measuring Project (1.1) of the CRC for Forestry.
To browse other PhD projects available with the
Managing and Monitoring for Growth and Health Research
Programme, click here
Would you like to know more? Please email me.
