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INTRODUCTION
Forest disturbance, both due to natural processes and harvesting, affects carbon flux, climate and biodiversity (Dixon et al. 1994; Ishii et al. 2004; Echeverria et al. 2006). Forest disturbance rates vary greatly depending on forest type, institutional differences and local conditions. For example, average annual deforestation in Russia, which harbours a large portion of the world's forests (Hansen et al. 2013), is about 0.56%, and forest disturbance rates vary greatly among Russian regions (Potapov et al. 2011). Within protected areas, disturbance rates are generally lower than outside, but even forests within protected areas are sometimes disturbed by logging (Sieber et al. 2013; Bragina et al. 2015), depending on factors such as the level of protection and regional governance (Wendland et al. 2015). Given the importance of protected areas to safeguarding forest ecosystems, it is important to monitor forest disturbance within protected areas carefully.
Protected areas are essential conservation tools for safeguarding forests, ecosystems and wildlife habitats. However, protected status does not necessarily provide efficient protection (Sieber et al. 2013; Bragina et al. 2015), for reasons such as legal loopholes and weak enforcement (Kuemmerle et al. 2009). For example, within Russian wildlife sanctuaries (International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) category IV), clearcuts are generally prohibited; however, sanitary clearcuts (i.e. removing trees or stands affected by insects or diseases) and various types of selective logging are allowed (e.g. Forest Management Plan of Altai Krai 2008; Regulations of Beisky Forest Division 2011). The regulations governing wildlife sanctuaries do not define the terms and conditions under which timber is to be harvested, but rather refer to guidelines that are part of the general forest legislation (e.g. Forest Management Regulations 2007). This lack of clear guidance about the conditions under which harvests can occur and the lack of clear harvest limits raises the concern that logging may cause the degradation of wildlife habitats and ecosystems (Fredericksen 1998; Matricardi et al. 2013), especially when the extent of selective logging is unknown. It is important to map forest disturbance both within and outside of protected areas in order to evaluate how well protected areas perform their role of protecting habitats for biodiversity.
Landsat satellite imagery is a powerful data source for detecting forest disturbances (e.g. Healey et al....