The Bioindicators of Forest Sustainability Project has the goal of developing a forest condition rating system based on physiological approaches to monitor forest health and stress. Using remotely sensed spectral data and ground-based physiological measurements, the Project seeks to classify forest stands on a scale from healthy to stressed, relative to an established benchmark. This report reviews progress in research being conducted for the Project in the following areas: hyperspectral remote sensing; spectral indices and features; ground-based assessments of such parameters as chlorophyll production, carbon isotope ratios, stem electrical resistance, leaf area index, and canopy structure; airborne hyperspectral imagery; and co-operative research and partnerships.

The initiative described in this report was undertaken to fulfil one of the objectives in Forestry Canada's 1990 strategic plan, namely to review and analyze the roles, responsibilities and interrelationships of Canada's forestry research and development agencies, and from that to develop a "national Forestry Science and Technology Agenda for Canada". This report describes the work carried out between 1991 and 1993, and the conclusions reached, with that objective in mind.