ABSTRACT
This chapter describes forest restoration is treated within a wide perspective so that it covers aspects of ecosystem management. The boreal forest covers about 30 per cent of the global forest area and around two-thirds of this is considered managed forest. The southern parts of the boreal zone are most heavily managed and the primeval forests have by and large disappeared. The remaining natural forests are mostly located in the northern and high-altitude low-productivity areas. Only in Canada, Russia and Alaska do some larger intact boreal forests still prevail. The highest level of ambition is perhaps that of maintaining resilient ecosystems that is systems that are able to recover from and adapt to rapidly changing environmental conditions and potentially unprecedented disturbance events. Thus, when setting goals for restoration and ecosystem management the level of ambition needs to be carefully and realistically considered.
