When the question is asked who will survive climate change and how-the answer will always begin with water. Water is Life. These 4 news items come from Central Asia, Ethiopia, and North America (Turtle Island).
ASW
Author: postMigrator
Climate Stability, Forest Ecology, and U.S. Public Lands Management
IT’S ABOUT TIME SOMEBODY IN AN “OFFICIAL” CAPACITY CALLED ATTENTION TO
THIS!! NOW LET’S SHUT ‘EM THE F*CK DOWN!!
REALITY: IT’S NOT JUST FOR RADIKALS ANYMORE…
ASW
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Subject: Cut US national forests, dump CO2 to the skies
From: “Lance Olsen” <lance@wildrockies.org>
Date: Fri, June 13, 2008 10:00 am
To: “cmcr-outreach” <cmcr-outreach@vortex.wildrockies.org>
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This one’s of some interest for giving a glimpse into the climate
consequences of the 1980s trio of booms (in logging, lending and
construction) that led up to the notorious S&Ls scandals and its
threats to the U.S. financial system. As always, forests are a
leading economic indicator, but not always in the way its boosters
claim.
Lance
Forest Ecology and Management 255 (2008) 1122-1134
Public land, timber harvests, and climate mitigation: Quantifying
carbon sequestration potential on U.S. public timberlands
Brooks M. Depro , Brian C. Murray, Ralph J. Alig, Alyssa Shanks
New Insights on Climate-Driven Extinction of Trees, Forests
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” … the paper points out that trees appear to be more suited to surviving
a cooling climate rather than a warming one. Widespread extinction is
certainly possible, as the paper points out 89 tree genera became extinct
in Europe just before the beginning of the Quaternary.”
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New discoveries about past forest changes may
help predict future ones in a changing climate
<http://news.mongabay.com/2008/0612-hance_forest_history.html>
Jeremy Hance, mongabay.com
June 12, 2008
There is no better method to understand the
future than to look to the past. Several new
studies of the earth’s glacial history are
transforming the way scientists look at tree
behavior during extreme changes in climate.
Scientists Remj Petit, Feng Sheng Hu, and
Christopher Dick described such changes in
relation to current global warming in the new
issue of the journal Science. They report that
already ” in some parts of the world, tree
species have started to shift their distributions
in response to anthropogenic climatic warming”,
thus raising the stakes for understanding how
tree species will adapt to coming changes.
Abstract: Restoring Forests and Ecosystem Services on Degraded Lands
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” Plantations and restored forests can improve ecosystem services and
enhance biodiversity conservation, but will not match the composition and structure of the
original forest cover. ”
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Science 13 June 2008:
Vol. 320. no. 5882, pp. 1458 – 1460
Beyond Deforestation: Restoring Forests and
Ecosystem Services on Degraded Lands
Robin L. Chazdon
Abstract of article :
Despite continued forest conversion and degradation, forest cover is
increasing in countries across the globe. New forests are
regenerating on former agricultural land, and forest plantations are
being established for commercial and restoration purposes.
Plantations and restored forests can improve ecosystem services and
enhance biodiversity conservation, but will not match the composition
and structure of the original forest cover. Approaches to restoring
forest ecosystems depend strongly on levels of forest and soil
degradation, residual vegetation, and desired restoration outcomes.
Opportunities abound to combine ambitious forest restoration and
regeneration goals with sustainable rural livelihoods and community
participation. New forests will require adaptive management as
dynamic, resilient systems that can withstand stresses of climate
change, habitat fragmentation, and other anthropogenic effects.
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of
Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-3043, USA. E-mail: chazdon@uconn.edu
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