Download or read book Forest Vulnerability to Fire in the Northern Rocky Mountains Under Climate Change written by Sarah Dalla Vicenza and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation in the Northern Rocky Mountains written by Jessica E. Halofsky and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 475 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Climate Change and Rocky Mountain Ecosystems written by Jessica Halofsky and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-07-19 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is the result of a team of approximately 100 scientists and resource managers who worked together for two years to understand the effects of climatic variability and change on water resources, fisheries, forest vegetation, non-forest vegetation, wildlife, recreation, cultural resources and ecosystem services. Adaptation options, both strategic and tactical, were developed for each resource area. This information is now being applied in the northern rocky Mountains to ensure long-term sustainability in resource conditions. The volume chapters provide a technical assessment of the effects of climatic variability and change on natural and cultural resources, based on best available science, including new analyses obtained through modeling and synthesis of existing data. Each chapter also contains a summary of adaptation strategies (general) and tactics (on-the-ground actions) that have been developed by science-management teams.
Download or read book Wildfire and Climate Change in Mixed conifer Ecosystems of the Northern Rockies written by Kerry B. Kemp and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As disturbances continue to become more frequent and extensive with climate change, increasing concern is mounting about the ability of dry-mixed conifer forests to recover after wildfire. This concern stems in part from past management strategies, which have impacted the resilience of these forests. As such, future actions that managers propose to deal with climate change impacts will inevitably affect future resilience of these forests. My dissertation examined how climate, disturbance, and landscape variables influenced tree regeneration in dry mixed-conifer forests of the northern Rocky Mountains, using field data combined with downscaled climate data and satellite-derived burn severity data to characterize post-fire seedling regeneration across environmental gradients. Additionally, I examined how forest managers are thinking about climate change impacts and the adaptation measures they are considering to deal with these changes using a combination of breakout group discussions during workshops, interviews and surveys. Distance to a live seed source was one of the most important variables influencing the potential of post-fire regeneration after recent fires. The heterogeneity of the burned mosaic insures that most (> 80%) of the burned landscape is within a distance to live trees for successful regeneration, suggesting high resilience of these forests to recent fire. As climate continue to warm, however, temperature may outweigh the influence of seed source availability on seedling regeneration and the post-fire environment may no longer be favorable for regeneration in much (80%) of the existing dry mixed-conifer zone. Managers desire local climate change predictions that will help them identify thresholds for species resistance or resilience to propose effective management actions. These types of data will help managers move from using current management strategies to using more novel and appropriate techniques to help forests remain resilient to a variety of uncertain future changes. Understanding the diverse and interacting ecological and social factors that influence the recovery or decline of dry mixed-conifer forests will increasingly improve predictions about the future impacts of disturbance, climate change, and management.
Download or read book Operationalizing Resilience of Social ecological Systems to Changing Climate and Fire in US Northern Rocky Mountain Forests written by Kristin Helen Braziunas and published by . This book was released on 2021 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Current rates of change in climate and disturbance threaten ecosystem resilience, and means of operationalizing resilience in real-world landscapes are urgently needed. My dissertation tackles this knowledge gap by using multiple approaches to measure, anticipate, and manage for resilience in ecological systems (forests) and social-ecological systems [forested wildland urban interface (WUI) landscapes]. I investigated how changes in climate and fire affected conifer-dominated forests in the US Northern Rocky Mountains, asking: (1) how well remotely sensed data mapped forest fuels and how burn severity differed between young and mature forests; (2) how potential interactions between fire return interval and post-fire drought affected forest recovery and fuels in paired short- ( 30 year) and long- ( 125 year) interval fires; (3) how fuels treatment effectiveness varied with amount and configuration of houses and under changing climate using a process-based forest simulation model; and (4) how spatially contrasting fuels treatment strategies affected fire safety and forest ecosystem service supply in WUI landscapes. Lidar-imagery fusion accurately predicted forest fuels, and young subalpine forests burned at similar severity as mature forests. Post-fire tree stem density was nearly 10-fold lower following short- versus long-interval fires in subalpine forests; differences between paired plots increased with warmer-drier climate and were amplified farther from live forest. Declines in live fuels following short-interval fire could limit burn severity and fire intensity under increasing fire frequency. Treating approximately 30% of the WUI every 10 years reduced risk even under substantial climate change, and fire risk was lower in clustered versus dispersed WUI developments. However, climate and fire, rather than fuels treatment, were the dominant drivers of future forest ecosystem service supply, with most indicators declining by more than 80% by 2099. My work suggests multiple drivers will act synergistically to reduce forest resilience but increased reburning is likely to limit future fire behavior. WUI protection can meaningfully reduce fire risk but sustaining forest ecosystem services may be unattainable in fire-prone landscapes. If the current climate change trajectory continues, people will need to adapt to new ecosystems and adjust expectations of the services they can provide.
Download or read book Climate Change Impacts on Fire Regimes and Key Ecosystem Services in Rocky Mountain Forests written by Monique E. Rocca and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 16 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Forests and woodlands in the central Rocky Mountains span broad gradients in climate, elevation, and other environmental conditions, and therefore encompass a great diversity of species, ecosystem productivities, and fire regimes. The objectives of this review are: (1) to characterize the likely short- and longer-term effects of projected climate changes on fuel dynamics and fire regimes for four generalized forest types in the Rocky Mountain region; (2) to review how these changes are likely to affect carbon sequestration, water resources, air quality, and biodiversity; and (3) to assess the suitability of four different management alternatives to mitigate these effects and maintain forest ecosystem services. Current climate projections indicate that temperatures will increase in every season; forecasts for precipitation are less certain but suggest that the northern part of the region but not the southern part will experience higher annual precipitation. The increase in temperatures will result in a greater proportion of winter precipitation falling as rain, earlier spring snowmelt, and a consequential increase in the length and severity of fire seasons. Fire frequency is likely to increase in the short term in all areas because of the warmer, longer, and drier fire seasons, but this change is likely to lead to a longer-term reduction in vegetation productivity in some of the most moisture-limited forest types, such as piñon-juniper and lower montane. This will decrease fuel accumulation rates and consequently reduce fire risk and result in longer fire return intervals. We consider four main management alternatives: fire suppression, wildfire (no intervention), prescribed fire, and mechanical thinning. The paper summarizes the effects of these treatments on forest ecosystem services, showing that they vary widely by forest type. This broad-scale assessment provides general guidance for forest managers and policy makers, and identifies more specific research needs on how climate-driven changes in fuel production and forest conditions will affect impact the four main forest ecosystems across the central Rocky Mountain region.
Download or read book Impacts of Climate Change on Forests of the Northern Rocky Mountains written by S. W. Running and published by . This book was released on 2008* with total page 4 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discusses how climate change such as rising temperatures, less snow, and earlier spring snow melts will impact the northern Rocky Mountain region. According to this report, these changes will lead to longer summer droughts, increased water stress, greater insect infestations, and more intense wildfires.
Download or read book Trees in Trouble written by Daniel Mathews and published by Catapult. This book was released on 2020-04-07 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A troubling story of the devastating and compounding effects of climate change in the Western and Rocky Mountain states, told through in–depth reportage and conversations with ecologists, professional forest managers, park service scientists, burn boss, activists, and more. Climate change manifests in many ways across North America, but few as dramatic as the attacks on our western pine forests. In Trees in Trouble, Daniel Mathews tells the urgent story of this loss, accompanying burn crews and forest ecologists as they study the myriad risk factors and refine techniques for saving this important, limited resource. Mathews transports the reader from the exquisitely aromatic haze of ponderosa and Jeffrey pine groves to the fantastic gnarls and whorls of five–thousand–year–old bristlecone pines, from genetic test nurseries where white pine seedlings are deliberately infected with their mortal enemy to the hottest megafire sites and neighborhoods leveled by fire tornadoes or ember blizzards. Scrupulously researched, Trees in Trouble not only explores the devastating ripple effects of climate change, but also introduces us to the people devoting their lives to saving our forests. Mathews also offers hope: a new approach to managing western pine forests is underway. Trees in Trouble explores how we might succeed in sustaining our forests through the challenging transition to a new environment.
Download or read book Cascading Effects of Fire Exclusion in Rocky Mountain Ecosystems written by Robert E. Keane and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The health of many Rocky Mountain ecosystems is in decline because of the policy of excluding fire in the management of these ecosystems. Fire exclusion has actually made it more difficult to fight fires, and this poses greater risks to the people who fight fires and for those who live in and around Rocky Mountain forests and rangelands. This paper discusses the extent of fire exclusion in the Rocky Mountains, then details the diverse and cascading effects of suppressing fires in the Rocky Mountain landscape by spatial scale, characteristic, and vegetation type. Also discussed are the varied effects of fire exclusion on some important, keystone ecosystems and human concerns.
Download or read book Warming and Warnings written by Brian Cooke and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 15 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Bridging Natural Resource Communication Boundaries written by Jarod J. Blades and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 538 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These studies contribute to understanding public perceptions and tolerance of smoke from forest fires, and provide a better understanding of how boundary organizations and objects are effective for communicating climate change science. Further, these studies demonstrate how multiple theoretical and methodological frameworks can be used in research to produce actionable outcomes.
Download or read book Predicting Behavior and Size of Crown Fires in the Northern Rocky Mountains written by Richard C. Rothermel and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Ecological Foundations for Fire Management in North American Forest and Shrubland Ecosystems written by and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 102 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This synthesis provides an ecological foundation for management of the diverse ecosystems and fire regimes of North America, based on scientific principles of fire interactions with vegetation, fuels, and biophysical processes. Although a large amount of scientific data on fire exists, most of those data have been collected at small spatial and temporal scales. Thus, it is challenging to develop consistent science-based plans for large spatial and temporal scales where most fire management and planning occur. Understanding the regional geographic context of fire regimes is critical for developing appropriate and sustainable management strategies and policy. The degree to which human intervention has modified fire frequency, intensity, and severity varies greatly among different ecosystems, and must be considered when planning to alter fuel loads or implement restorative treatments. Detailed discussion of six ecosystems--ponderosa pine forest (western North America), chaparral (California), boreal forest (Alaska and Canada), Great Basin sagebrush (intermountain West), pine and pine-hardwood forests (Southern Appalachian Mountains), and longleaf pine (Southeastern United States)-- illustrates the complexity of fire regimes and that fire management requires a clear regional focus that recognizes where conflicts might exist between fire hazard reduction and resource needs. In some systems, such as ponderosa pine, treatments are usually compatible with both fuel reduction and resource needs, whereas in others, such as chaparral, the potential exists for conflicts that need to be closely evaluated. Managing fire regimes in a changing climate and social environment requires a strong scientific basis for developing fire management and policy.
Download or read book Forest Fires in the Northern Rocky Mountains written by J. S. Barrows and published by . This book was released on 1951 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Getting to Know Wildland Fire written by Ellen Petrick-Underwood and published by . This book was released on 1990 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Climate change vulnerability assessment of forests and forest dependent people written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2019-11-29 with total page 101 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Negative impacts of climate change on forests threaten the delivery of crucial wood and non-wood goods and environmental services on which an estimated 1.6 billion people fully or partly depend. Assessment of the vulnerability of forests and forest-dependent people to climate change is a necessary first step for identifying the risks and the most vulnerable areas and people, and for developing measures for adaptation and targeting them for specific contexts. This publication provides practical technical guidance for forest vulnerability assessment in the context of climate change. It describes the elements that should be considered for different time horizons and outlines a structured approach for conducting these assessments. The framework will guide practitioners in conducting a step-by-step analysis and will facilitate the choice and use of appropriate tools and methods. Background information is provided separately in text boxes, to assist readers with differing amounts of experience in forestry, climate change and assessment practices. The publication will provide useful support to any vulnerability assessment with a forest- and tree-related component.
Download or read book Causes and Consequences of Spatial Patterns of Fire Severity in Northern Rocky Mountain Forests written by and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bark beetle outbreaks have affected fire-prone forests across North America in recent decades, raising concern about whether outbreaks increase fire severity and/or reduce postfire tree regeneration. Wildfire activity has also increased over this period, but little is known about whether spatial patterns of fire severity are changing, and/or how spatial patterns of fire and warming climate affect postfire tree establishment. In this dissertation, I investigated relationships between beetle outbreaks, wildfire, climate, and postfire tree regeneration in the US Northern Rocky Mountains. I tested whether prefire beetle outbreaks affected fire severity and/or postfire tree regeneration, using field plots distributed region-wide. I field-validated satellite maps of fire severity, and tested whether spatial patterns of fire severity changed over the period 1984-2010. I also used extensive field surveys to test the effect of postfire drought severity and distance to seed source on tree establishment following stand-replacing fires. Effects of beetle outbreak severity on fire severity were minimal, regardless of the interval between outbreaks and fires. Fire severity was instead largely driven by topography and extreme weather conditions. Effects of beetle outbreaks on postfire tree regeneration depended on regeneration mechanisms of dominant host trees. For tree species that retain a persistent seedbank in serotinous cones on live and dead trees, postfire tree regeneration was not affected by prefire beetle outbreak severity. However, for tree species that lack a persistent seedbank, postfire tree regeneration decreased with greater prefire beetle outbreak severity. Most metrics of spatial heterogeneity of fire severity were affected by fire size and the proportion of fires burning as stand replacing, but few metrics changed over time from 1984 to 2010. The proportion of fires burning as stand replacing increased from 0.22 to 0.27 over this time period, and further increases may cause rapid shifts in the configuration of burn severity. Postfire tree regeneration for tree species that currently dominate subalpine forests was substantially reduced toward the interior of stand-replacing patches (i.e., far from seed sources) and in fires that were followed by severe drought. Overall, this research provides insight into disturbance dynamics in fire-prone forests and informs forest management and policy concerns.
