Method for forest growth dynamics’ assessment using time series of remote sensing data

Information about the state of forest resources in Russia is collected in the process of national forest inventory and forest management inventory. Intensification of forest management on the leased areas requires provision of updated information about the state of forest resources. The need for the up-to-date and high quality information on forest regions of Russia is large and constantly increasing. The aim of the study was to develop a method instrumental in identification of changes in the productivity of forests located in the north-west of Russia by using a combination of remote sensing and dendrochronological analysis. Significant correlation coefficients between the ring width in the Komi Republic and integrated NDVI values from June to August showed that the integrated NDVI values could be used as proxy data to assess trends in forest growth on a scale of the whole region. Analysis of the data from Northern Europe showed statistically significant correlation between the time series of conifers’ ring width and time series of normalized vegetation index. This allows the use of NDVI as a source of proxy data to assess changes in forest productivity.