Execution can be combined with Pilot Study 2. Ten sample plots should be selected in areas that burned about 20 years ago. Lawrence Region and 5 in boreal jack pine and black spruce and that the plots cover a range of forest health conditions. Once this test is complete, the sample units will be maintained as a permanent part of the project's sampling design to be used to measure changes in forest health resulting from, or leading to, insect outbreaks or any other cause. The rationale is similar to Pilot Studies 2 and 3.
Insect outbreaks are a natural, major, recurring disturbance in the northern forest.
They affect forest health, and the speed and degree of recovery is a measure of ecosystem health. Recent damage should range from low or none to severe. Analyze data from remote sensing archives and other data banks to see how effective the proposed models and procedures would have been in predicting such damage. If available, historical data of past insect outbreaks should be obtained as input variables. To avoid bias, none of the data from the test areas should be used to develop the models that will be tested.