Treesearch

Land managers need to include climate change in their decisionmaking, but the climate models that project future climates operate at spatial scales that are too coarse to be of direct use. To create a dataset more useful to managers, soil and historical climate were assembled for the United States and Canada at a 5-arcminute grid resolution. Nine CMIP3 future climate projections were downscaled to this grid and the MC1 dynamic global vegetation model was run over the historical and future climates. Climate variables included monthly mean temperature, precipitation, minimum temperature,...

Douglas-fir is an iconic tree in the Pacific Northwest. Although individual trees may appear to be identical, genetic differences within each tree have resulted from adaptation to the local environment. These genetic differences over time have resulted in differences among populations that are important to the species' survival and growth in changing climates. Current climate models project that over the next 50 years, the Pacific Northwest will experience an increase in summer temperatures. Combined with less winter snowpack, warmer summer temperatures will likely lead to more frequent...

Since the Northwest Forest Plan implemented riparian buffers along non-fish bearing streams in 1994, there have been questions about how wide those buffers need to be to protect aquatic and riparian resources from upland forest management activities. The Density Management and Riparian Buffer Study of western Oregon, also initiated in 1994, examines the effects of thinning and different buffer widths on aquatic and riparian vertebrates and habitats, tree growth, and vegetation along headwater streams. Dede Olson, a research ecologist with the Pacific Northwest Research Station, leads the...

This report traces the flow of California's 2012 timber harvest through the primary wood products industry and provides a description of the structure, condition, and economic impacts of California's forest products sector. Historical forest products industry changes are discussed, as well as trends in harvest, production, mill residue, and sales. Also examined are employment and worker earnings in the state's primary and secondary forest products industry.

A severe climate, high transportation costs, and limited infrastructure have led to high energy costs in many places in Alaska, particularly in remote villages. Some communities are seeking opportunities to convert oil and electrical heat to a renewable energy source such as woody biomass. There are different types of wood energy appliances and fuel sources, and finding the right fit requires assessing local needs and tailoring the technology to the community. There are still serious barriers to adopting new energy technologies in Alaska. However, some projects have been successful and can...

If you’re a local businessperson, an entrepreneur, a tribal partner, a community organizer; a decision-maker for a school district, college, or hospital; a government leader; a project developer; an industry leader; or an equipment manufacturer, the Alaska Community Handbook will be helpful to you. This handbook is the first stop for individuals, businesses, and communities considering biomass heating in Alaska. It can help you ask the right questions to quickly narrow your range of options and take unrealistic ones off the table. The Alaska Biomass Handbook was developed as part of two...

Dissolved organic C (DOC) transfer from the landscape to coastal margins is a key component of regional C cycles. Hydropedology provides a conceptual and observational framework for linking soil hydrologic function to landscape C cycling. We used hydropedology to quantify the export of DOC from the terrestrial landscape and understand how soil temperature and water table fluctuations regulate DOC losses in the C-rich, perhumid coastal temperate rainforest (PCTR) of Alaska. Land cover in the region is dominated by three major hydropedologic units: poor fen, forested wetland, and upland. We...

We observed habitat occupancy by juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tschawytscha) and steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) at in-stream habitat restoration structures constructed in the Entiat River, Washington, USA. In 2009–2013, fish abundance measurements during rearing (July–October) showed high temporal variability in pools with restoration structures. Both species were more abundant at restored pools than at natural pools in early summer (July), but this difference was typically absent by September. Fish response to restoration structures also varied across years. When looking...

Accurate biomass measurements and analyses are critical components in quantifying carbon stocks and sequestration rates, assessing potential impacts due to climate change, locating bio-energy processing plants, and mapping and planning fuel treatments. To this end, biomass equations will remain a key component of future carbon measurements and estimation. As researchers in biomass and carbon estimation, we review the present scenario of aboveground biomass estimation, focusing particularly on estimation using tree-level models and identify some cautionary points that we believe will...

The physical and chemical environment of the Earth has changed rapidly over the last 100 years and is predicted to continue to change into the foreseeable future. One of the main concerns with potential alterations in climate is the propensity for increases in the magnitude and frequency of extremes to occur. Even though precipitation is predicted to increase in some locations, in others precipitation is expected to decrease and evapotranspiration increase with air temperature, resulting in exacerbated drought in the future. Chemical [ozone (O3) and other air contaminants] and subsequent...