Pere Casals Tortras

Head of group

PROGRAM / Multifunctional forest management

PhD in Biology from the University of Barcelona, with a postgraduate degree in Soil Classification, Mapping, and Evaluation from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia.

Specialized in soil–plant interactions, he initially worked on environmental impact assessments and soil and vegetation restoration projects in public works. His doctoral research (1995–2002) focused on short-term nitrogen fluxes in soil and vegetation following prescribed burns. Later, through a Juan de la Cierva contract at CEAM and a Ramon y Cajal contract at the CTFC, he deepened his study of the effects of climate change and land abandonment on vegetation dynamics, as well as on soil carbon and nutrient cycles. He employed stable isotopes (¹³C, ¹⁵N) and radioactive tracers (¹⁴C) to investigate key processes in the soil–plant system, including nitrogen fixation, litter and root decomposition, and CO₂ fluxes. Over the course of his career, he has coordinated numerous field and laboratory studies and actively contributed to both international and national research and knowledge-transfer projects. To date, he has co-authored 65 indexed articles—primarily in Q1 journals in Soil Science, Agriculture, and Environmental Sciences—along with 9 book chapters and several dissemination and transfer documents.