Mobility for Excellence in Research, Innovation and Technology

About the project

Fig. 1. Reference framework for forest maturity. Ranging from low (RFM, rotation forest management), intermediate (CCF, continuous cover forestry) and high (OGF, old-growth) degrees of maturity.

While conventional forest inventories are costly and time-consuming, using remote sensing technologies like terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and satellite data (e.g. aerospace radar technology, Fig. 2) can can greatly expand the scale and frequency of monitoring. To achieve this, I will need to develop models to map key forest indicators such as deadwood, large trees, and structural complexity.

This work will enable more efficient, large-scale monitoring and supports decision-making for conservation and forest management. This is where my research comes in, focused on improving methods for monitoring forest maturity, specifically in Norway spruce forests in the Czech Republic.

Fig. 2. The NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission is a joint project between NASA and ISRO to co-develop and launch a dual-frequency syntheric aperture radar on an Earth observation satellite in 2025.

Forests play a critical role in biodiversity and climate regulation. My research focuses on the "forest maturity gradient", which measures the naturalness of forests, ranging from intensively managed systems to untouched old-growth forests (Fig. 1). Understanding this gradient is crucial for implementing sustainable forest management practices and preserving biodiversity, particularly as outlined in the EU Forest Strategy for 2030.

Dissemination activities

Molina-Valero, J. A. (2024). Establishment of maximum biomass stock capacity of Pinus sylvestris forests at the level of global ecological zones [Invited talk]. OLD-GROWTH FORESTS: POLICY AND PRACTICE, Šķēde, Latvia.

Conferences
Science communication articles

Innovative Forest Monitoring: Meet Juan Alberto Molina Valero

Communication activities

Soft Skills Training

Whorkshops

Molina-Valero, J. A. (2025). Estimation of understory (regeneration) using ground-based LiDAR technology. 3DForEcoTech Final Meeting, Warsaw, Poland.

How Ground-Based LiDAR Is Transforming Forest Inventories

Publications

Molina-Valero, J. A., Martins-Neto, R. P., Martínez-Calvo, A., Rodríguez-Ruiz, J., Surový, P., Seppelt, A., & Pérez-Cruzado, C. (2025). Use of close-range LiDAR devices and statistical inference approaches in operational stand-level forest inventories. Remote Sensing of Environment, 325, 114773. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2025.114773

Juan Alberto Molina-Valero, Juan Gabriel Álvarez-González, César Pérez-Cruzado et al. Modelling the potential carbon storage capacity of forests dominated by Pinus sylvestris across European ecological zones, 08 July 2026, PREPRINT (Version 1) available at Research Square [https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-10090179/v1]

Iterviews

Molina-Valero, J. A., Mohammadi Asiyabi, R., Ryan, C., Moudrý, V., Hancock, S. (2026). Forest structure as a source of bias in remote sensing-based biomass estimates: insights from the validation of ESA’s CCI and NASA’s GEDI models. ForestSAT 2026. Gainesville, FL, USA.

Juan Alberto Molina: Our research will help increase the resilience of European forests and their capacity to sequester carbon

The European Union wants to significantly strengthen the protection and restoration of forests, especially native and old-growth forests, by 2030. The introduction of integrated monitoring plays a crucial role, which will allow for precise monitoring of the state of European forests. Researcher Juan Alberto Molina from the Czech University of Life Sciences is also contributing to improving the collection and processing of data on the maturity and health of forests as part of the MERIT program of the Central Bohemian Innovation Center.

Co-funded by the European Union (MERIT - Grant Agreement No. 101081195)

Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the Central Bohemian Region. Neither the European Union nor the Central Bohemian Region can be held responsible for them.

MERIT is a postdoctoral fellowship programme for incoming mobility for researchers from all over the world. It is supported by the HORIZON EUROPE programme, co-funded by the MSCA-COFUND grant, the Regional Government and the Hosting organizations budgets.