Introduction: Forest cover in Hungary has increased from 1.1 to 2.0 million hectares during the last century. The EU (European Union) promotes further afforestation; thus, 15,000-18,000 ha are being forested each year, mainly in the Hungarian Great Plain. In terms of species used for afforestation, poplar plantations are preferred over native oak woodlands. The groundwater uptake of trees can be a significant water balance element of forested areas in shallow groundwater environments within the Hungarian Great Plain. Forests can cause water table depressions and subsurface salt accumulation in areas with negative water balance. This study examined the hydrological impact of forest cover in the Hungarian Great Plain. Within the framework of this research, climatic water balance, water table depth and salinity, subsoil layering, tree species and stand age were analysed as influencing factors. This paper compares the effect which an oak forest, a poplar plantation and a pasture have on groundwater uptake and salt accumulation.

- To implement the analysis of soil erosion with the USLE in a GIS environment, a new workflow has been developed with the ArcGIS Model Builder. The aim of this four-part framework is to accelerate data processing and to ensure comparability of soil erosion risk maps. The first submodel generates the stream network with connected catchments, computes slope conditions and the LS factor in USLE based on the DEM. The second submodel integrates stream lines, roads, catchment boundaries, land cover, land use, and soil maps. This combined dataset is the basis for the preparation of other USLE-factors. The third submodel estimates soil loss, and creates zonal statistics of soil erosion. The fourth submodel classifies soil loss into categories enabling the comparison of modelled and observed soil erosion. The framework was applied in a small forested catchment in Hungary. Although there is significant deviation between the erosion of different land covers, the predicted specific soil loss does not increase above the tolerance limit in any area unit. The predicted surface soil erosion in forest subcompartments mostly depends on the slope conditions.

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-Models that describe hydrological processes in forests may help to estimate the consequences of forestry interventions or of climate change. The authors employed a hydrologic model for estimation of forest litter interception of a middle-aged sessile oak (Quercus petraea) stand. Antecedent water content and the storage capacity of the forest litter were the main parameters of the model. The antecedent water content of the litter was estimated by the daily precipitation and temperature data, collected in Hidegvíz Valley research catchment in a three year measurement period (2006)(2007)(2008). The measurements were done by an instrument we developed ourselves, where the undisturbed forest litter samples were enclosed in frames and measured in daily time steps.interception model / forest litter / forest hydrology Kivonat -Avarintercepció modellezése egy kocsánytalan tölgyesben. Az erdőben lezajló hidrológiai folyamatokat leíró modellek segítenek megbecsülni az erdészeti beavatkozások, és a klímaváltozás következményeit. Jelen munka egy hidrológiai modellel foglalkozik, ami egy középkorú kocsánytalan tölgy (Quercus petraea) állomány avarintercepcióját becsüli. Az avar megelőző víztartalma és tározási kapacitása a modell fő paraméterei. Az avar megelőző víztartalmát a napi csapadék és hőmérséklet adatokból becsültük, melyek a Hidegvíz-völgyi kísérleti vízgyűjtőből származnak a három éves mérési periódus időtartamára (2006)(2007)(2008). Az adatgyűjtést saját fejlesztésű eszközzel végeztük úgy, hogy a bolygatatlan avarminták tömegét zárt keretekben napi gyakorisággal mértük.intercepciós modell / avar / erdészeti hidrológia