Managing forestry risk & climate change

Our forests play an important part in providing a sustainable bio-based economy for the future. Scion's role is keeping them healthy and productive.

Protecting our forests from pests and diseases

Planted and natural forests are vulnerable to insect pests, pathogens and invasive weeds. Scion is New Zealand’s leading authority on forest biosecurity.

Preparing for climate change

Understanding and managing the effects of climate change on forest productivity and tree health is vital information to forest growers in New Zealand and worldwide.

Wildfire research

Rural and forest environments are vulnerable to fire. Scion is New Zealand’s only provider of wildfire research and our work has been supporting fire authorities for over a quarter of a century.

Reducing wind damage in forests

Predicting wind damage is a complicated process, but one that could prevent serious financial and wood quality losses for forest growers now and in the future.

Making forestry safer

Improving forest worker safety and performance to benefit both workers and industry is the focus of our human factors scientists. New harvesting systems, robotics and insights into human behaviour all offer potential to reduce the dangers of working in high-risk situations.

Managing wilding conifer re-invasion

Scion’s Vive la résistance research programme builds on more than 20 year of research in wilding conifer ecology and management. This research  supports regional authorities and landowners in their efforts to control wildings.