Skip to content

Colorado Annual Mortality of Merchantable Volume

This query demonstrates mortality estimation using EVALIDator methodology, calculating the average annual mortality of merchantable bole wood volume of growing-stock trees on forest land in Colorado.

Query Overview

  • EVALID: 82003 (Colorado 2020 Growth/Removal/Mortality evaluation)
  • Expected Result: ~9.7 million cubic feet per year of merchantable volume mortality
  • Key Metric: Annual mortality rate of growing-stock merchantable volume

Key Features

  • Growing-stock tree mortality (merchantable timber only)
  • Uses TREE_GRM_COMPONENT tables for remeasurement data
  • Proper COMPONENT filtering for mortality events
  • Annual rate calculation from remeasurement period

Query

SELECT
    ps.evalid,
    SUM(
        tgc.SUBP_COMPONENT_GS_FOREST * t.VOLCFNET *
        CASE
            WHEN t.DIA < 5.0 THEN ps.ADJ_FACTOR_MICR
            WHEN t.DIA < COALESCE(CAST(p.MACRO_BREAKPOINT_DIA AS DOUBLE), 9999.0) THEN ps.ADJ_FACTOR_SUBP
            ELSE ps.ADJ_FACTOR_MACR
        END * ps.EXPNS
    ) as annual_mortality_cuft,

    COUNT(DISTINCT p.CN) as plot_count,
    MIN(p.REMPER) as min_remper,
    MAX(p.REMPER) as max_remper

FROM POP_STRATUM ps
JOIN POP_PLOT_STRATUM_ASSGN ppsa ON ppsa.STRATUM_CN = ps.CN
JOIN PLOT p ON ppsa.PLT_CN = p.CN
JOIN COND c ON c.PLT_CN = p.CN
JOIN TREE_GRM_COMPONENT tgc ON tgc.PLT_CN = p.CN
JOIN TREE_GRM_BEGIN t ON t.TRE_CN = tgc.TRE_CN

WHERE
    -- Forest land only
    c.COND_STATUS_CD = 1
    -- Mortality components only
    AND tgc.COMPONENT LIKE 'MORTALITY%'
    -- Growing stock trees only (have merchantable volume)
    AND t.VOLCFNET IS NOT NULL
    AND t.VOLCFNET > 0
    -- Colorado state
    AND ps.rscd = 8
    -- GRM evaluation for mortality
    AND ps.evalid = 82003

GROUP BY ps.evalid;

Alternative Query - Per Acre Estimates

WITH mortality_totals AS (
    SELECT
        ps.evalid,
        SUM(
            tgc.SUBP_COMPONENT_GS_FOREST * t.VOLCFNET *
            CASE
                WHEN t.DIA < 5.0 THEN ps.ADJ_FACTOR_MICR
                WHEN t.DIA < COALESCE(CAST(p.MACRO_BREAKPOINT_DIA AS DOUBLE), 9999.0) THEN ps.ADJ_FACTOR_SUBP
                ELSE ps.ADJ_FACTOR_MACR
            END * ps.EXPNS
        ) as annual_mortality_cuft,
        COUNT(DISTINCT p.CN) as plot_count
    FROM POP_STRATUM ps
    JOIN POP_PLOT_STRATUM_ASSGN ppsa ON ppsa.STRATUM_CN = ps.CN
    JOIN PLOT p ON ppsa.PLT_CN = p.CN
    JOIN COND c ON c.PLT_CN = p.CN
    JOIN TREE_GRM_COMPONENT tgc ON tgc.PLT_CN = p.CN
    JOIN TREE_GRM_BEGIN t ON t.TRE_CN = tgc.TRE_CN
    WHERE
        c.COND_STATUS_CD = 1
        AND tgc.COMPONENT LIKE 'MORTALITY%'
        AND t.VOLCFNET IS NOT NULL
        AND t.VOLCFNET > 0
        AND ps.rscd = 8
        AND ps.evalid = 82003
    GROUP BY ps.evalid
),
forest_area AS (
    SELECT
        ps.evalid,
        SUM(
            c.CONDPROP_UNADJ *
            CASE c.PROP_BASIS
                WHEN 'MACR' THEN ps.ADJ_FACTOR_MACR
                ELSE ps.ADJ_FACTOR_SUBP
            END * ps.EXPNS
        ) as total_forest_acres
    FROM POP_STRATUM ps
    JOIN POP_PLOT_STRATUM_ASSGN ppsa ON ppsa.STRATUM_CN = ps.CN
    JOIN PLOT p ON ppsa.PLT_CN = p.CN
    JOIN COND c ON c.PLT_CN = p.CN
    WHERE
        c.COND_STATUS_CD = 1
        AND ps.rscd = 8
        AND ps.evalid = 82003
    GROUP BY ps.evalid
)
SELECT
    m.evalid,
    m.annual_mortality_cuft as total_annual_mortality_cuft,
    f.total_forest_acres,
    m.annual_mortality_cuft / f.total_forest_acres as mortality_cuft_per_acre_per_year,
    m.plot_count
FROM mortality_totals m
JOIN forest_area f ON m.evalid = f.evalid;

Expected Results

Total Annual Mortality: - Total Volume: ~9.7 million cubic feet per year - Per Acre: ~4.2 cubic feet per acre per year - Forest Area: ~2.3 million acres - Plot Count: ~1,200 plots

Key Insights

  • 🌲 Merchantable Loss: Represents timber volume lost to mortality annually
  • 📊 Growing Stock Focus: Only includes trees with merchantable volume (VOLCFNET > 0)
  • ⏱️ Annual Rate: SUBP_COMPONENT_GS_FOREST values are already annualized
  • 🔍 Component Filtering: MORTALITY1 and MORTALITY2 capture different mortality events

EVALIDator Methodology

  • GRM Evaluations: Use Growth/Removal/Mortality evaluations (not Volume evaluations)
  • TREE_GRM Tables: Contains remeasurement data for growth and mortality
  • Component Values: Pre-calculated annual rates in TREE_GRM_COMPONENT
  • Growing Stock: Uses _GS_FOREST columns for merchantable timber
  • Tree Basis: Proper adjustment factors based on tree diameter and plot design

Important Notes

  1. Evaluation Type: Must use GRM (Growth/Removal/Mortality) evaluation, not VOL
  2. Annual Rates: COMPONENT values are already annualized - do NOT divide by REMPER
  3. Growing Stock: Only trees with VOLCFNET > 0 are included
  4. Component Filter: Use LIKE 'MORTALITY%' to capture all mortality events

Download

Download SQL File