Beetles among us: Social and economic impacts of the MPB epidemic [Chapter 6]

Abstract

Healthy forest ecosystems provide many goods and services that are vital to human well-being. When forest ecosystems are impacted by disturbances, such as the widespread mountain pine beetle (MPB) epidemic, the services provided by these ecosystems are also affected. Likewise, management in response to large-scale forest disturbances impacts both the natural and human environment. These management actions are costly in terms of the amount of taxpayer dollars required to carry them out and in terms of their opportunity costs, especially in areas lacking economically-viable uses of beetle-killed timber. In the budget-constrained environment of land management agencies, more money spent dealing with dead and dying trees often means less money spent on services like building trails, improving wildlife habitats, and ecological restoration.

Parent Publication

• Future Forests Webinar Series, Webinar Proceedings and Summary: Ongoing Research and Management Responses to the Mountain Pine Beetle Outbreak

Citation

Gebert, Krista; Jones, Greg; Champ, Patty; Czaja, Mike; Oliver, Chuck; Cruz, Paul E.; Clement, Jessica. 2014. Beetles among us: Social and economic impacts of the MPB epidemic [Chapter 6]. In: Matonis, M.; Hubbard, R.; Gebert, K.; Hahn, B.; Miller, S.; Regan, C. Future Forests Webinar Series, Webinar Proceedings and Summary: Ongoing Research and Management Responses to the Mountain Pine Beetle Outbreak. Proceedings RMRS-P-70. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 49-60.