Table 1 Key characteristics of the eight NFIs in China
From: The national forest inventory in China: history - results - international context
NFIs | Period | Key characteristics |
|---|---|---|
NFI1 | 1973–1976 | Based on county-level inventory, in most regions the inventory was not unified for the whole country |
NFI2 | 1977–1981 | The continuous forest inventory (CFI) method was applied, establishing an effective foundation for national monitoring |
NFI3 | 1984–1988 | The 1st re-inventory based on the CFI system, providing the changes on both quantity and quality of forest resources |
NFI4 | 1989–1993 | 4 national forest monitoring centers were set up, which were responsible for quality check, statistical compilation, and output reporting for different regions |
NFI5 | 1994–1998 | The UNDP CPR 91/151 project was executed, and new technologies such as “3S” (RS-remote sensing, GPS-global positioning system, GIS-geographic information system) were started |
NFI6 | 1999–2003 | Remote sensing was widely applied, and full-coverage inventory for the mainland of China was achieved |
NFI7 | 2004–2008 | Several ecological variables were added, and forest ecological services in the whole country were evaluated |
NFI8 | 2009–2013 | Modeling of tree biomass equations for main tree species in China has been actively pursued |