Laboratory of Ecological Physiology of Forest Trees
Institute of Landscape Ecology Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic
within
EC Fifth Framework Programme – Human Potential Research Improving – Transnational Access to Research Infrastructure, contract HPRI-CT-2002-00197
offer 30 three weeks long accesses (15 in the year 2003 and 15 in 2004) to users from EU Member States or from Associated States. This accesses will be provided free of all charge (journey, accommodation, boarding) from EU means. The experimental site including all infrastructures, logistical, technical and scientific support is at user’s disposal during the access. Also qualified staff (researchers and technicians) is at disposal. Because of the character of the research – field research – and the climatic conditions at the experimental site the period suitable for the accesses is restricted to the period from May till September.
MERCI - SITE DESCRIPTION
It is located at the experimental research site Bílý Kříž in the Beskydy Mts., i.e. NE part of the Czech Republic, close to the Czech-Slovakia and Czech-Poland borders. The geographic coordinates of this site are determined as 49o 33’ N, 18o 32’ E. The site elevation is 908 m a.s.l.. The locality Bílý Kříž is located in the woody country site. The forest composed of Norway spruce, Common fir, beech and rowan forms the dominant part of the countryside. Besides forest the mountain meadows complement the shape of this country. MERCI has been established in 1997 to provide a methodological basis for large-scale collaborative research projects especially focused on the impact of Global Climatic Change (GCC) on forest trees.
MERCI - FACILITY
MERCI is constructed as a cluster of individual special tools used for the long-term ecophysiological research on the level of a forest stand. The basic philosophy of this infrastructure is devoted to the problem of GCC impacts manifested mainly by the elevated CO2 concentration. In principle, MERCI can be regarded as a field research site operating in different regimes (open-stand, experimental chambers) and with different techniques (long-term monitoring, special measurements, impact studies).
MERCI IS COMPOSED OF:
- the field laboratory,
- climatological observatory,
- air pollution monitoring station,
- gasometric and chlorophyll fluorescence (modulated and imaging) systems,
- automatic systems for soil, woody respiration
- sap flow systems
- two CO2 fumigation tools operating at the stand level, i.e. Adjustable Lamella Glass Domes,
- special tool for an estimation of fluxes between “stand canopy” and atmosphere,
- systems for estimation of vertical gradients of basic microclimatological parameters within the stand canopy,
- experimental research plots located in a natural forest stand and mountain meadow
- Climatological and monitoring station for air pollution – 4 accesses
- Adjustable-lamella-domes (facility for a simulation of the elevated CO2 impact on forest stand scale) – 6 accesses
- Eddy correlation – Fluxes measurement system – 6 accesses
- Gradients technique for estimation of solar radiation, air temperature/humidity and wind speed profiles in the stand – 6 accesses
- Open-air experimental forest stands – 8 accesses
- originality and scientific significance of the project
- methodological capacity benefit specifically usable at MERCI
COORDINATOR:
Prof. Michal V. Marek
Laboratory of Ecological Physiology of Forest Trees
Institute of Landscape Ecology
Poříčí 3b
603 00 Brno
Czech Republic
Phone/Fax: +420 543 211 560
e-mail: emarek@brno.cas.cz
