6. DELIVERABLES AND WORK PLANNING/SCHEDULE

Most elements of the study will be undertaken throughout the three year period. Exceptions are the remote sensing work, the gas exchange, canopy structure analyses and comparative work. The investigation of gas exchanges between the composite experimental sites and the atmosphere (use of the aircraft, the eddy correlation method in forests and the setup of 4 SCIDAR/DOAS combinations surrounding the study sites) will be restricted to some episodic events during July and August of 1996, 1997. The soil descriptive work will begin in 1996 and be completed in 1997. An essential part of the project are the modelling activities which will take place in parallel to the field work. In this way a combination of field measurements and mathematical modelling will ensure an efficient integrated ecosystem research. The interdependence of tasks, as being assembled to work packages, will be as indicated in 3. (Project Methodology). Reporting will occur each year (spring) in the form of formal reports and a workshop for all the ECOMONT contributors. In order to ensure an efficient dissemination and application of the results of ECOMONT transfer- and mobility-programme of the EU will be used.

Specifically, the following results are to be expected from the project:

• detailed descriptions and analyses of changes in vegetation structure, physical and chemical soil properties resulting from land-use changes in the six composite experimental sites (landscapes consisting of up to four ecosystems under different land-use) in the Alps, the Pyrennes and the Scottish Highlands;
• analyses of the influence of land-use changes on soil organic matter status and turnover, on biogeochemical and hydrological processes at the ecosystem level, and of the exchange processes between the ecosystems and the lower layers of the atmosphere;
• analyses of the effects of canopy structure on microclimate, energy budget and gas exchange of the ecosytems and on exchange processes between the ecosystems and the atmosphere;
• analyses of effects of changes in species performance on the dynamics of species composition and canopy structure;
• a GIS containing information on topography, vegetation, soil and potential risks;
• models on a plant organ, canopy and landscape level that interrelate and integrate field investigations and allow for a functionally profound quantification of CO₂ and water fluxes within the mountain ecosystems and landscapes on the one hand and an assessment of potential risks (soil stability) on the other hand;
• a synthetic comparison of the results from the different sites in the Alps, the Pyrenees and the Scottish Highlands;
• a first concept of sustainable development for one of the composite experimental sites.