Calibration and application of FOREST-BGC in a Mediterranean area by the use of conventional and remote sensing data

The current work deals with the use in a Mediterranean environment of a simulation model of forest ecosystem processes which was originally created for temperate areas (FOREST-BGC). The model was calibrated and applied on two deciduous forest stands in Tuscany (Central Italy) by using conventional and remote sensing data as inputs. First, information on the two stands needed to initialise the model was derived from different sources, while meteorological data were extrapolated from a nearby station by an existing procedure (MT-Clim). Temporal profiles of leaf area index (LAI) were then derived both from direct ground measurement and from the processing of NOAA-AVHRR NDVI data. The model was calibrated using stand transpiration values obtained for 1997 by a sap flow method. Next, its performances were tested against the same transpiration values measured in 1998. The results obtained indicate that FOREST-BGC is capable of simulating water fluxes of Mediterranean forests when suitable LAI profiles are considered. Moreover, the derivation of these profiles from NDVI data can improve the model performance probably due to an enhanced consideration of the effects of the typical Mediterranean summer water stress. These results support the final objective of the work, which is the development of a procedure capable of integrating conventional and remote sensing data to operationally simulate water and carbon fluxes on a regional scale.