Colorado Front Range climate change vulnerability assessment for National Forests

Abstract

This climate change vulnerability assessment was conducted in support of land management planning for the Pike-San Isabel (PSI) National Forests and Arapaho- Roosevelt (AR) National Forests in the Front Range region of Colorado, USA. Chapters describe climate and climate change and climate change issues relevant to management of water resources and fisheries, forests, wildlife and birds, community engagement, insects and disease, fire risk, infrastructure and flooding, ecosystem services, and recreation. A concluding chapter explores implications and potential adaptation actions for land managers. Managers face future ecosystems that are likely to depart from past and current conditions, but resource management will retain the core principle of restoring and maintaining ecosystems. This vulnerability assessment is intended to serve as a science-based foundation to inform and be incorporated into upcoming project and programmatic planning.

Titles contained within Colorado Front Range climate change vulnerability assessment for National Forests

• Scope, setting, and purpose of the Colorado Front Range climate change vulnerability assessment for national forests (Chapter 1)
• Summarizing concerns for natural resources due to climate change and interactions with non-climate stressors in the Rocky Mountains (Chapter 2)
• Future climate scenarios for Colorado’s Front Range forests (Chapter 3)
• Water resources of the Front Range national forests (Chapter 4)
• Vulnerability of major Colorado Front Range tree species to climate change (Chapter 5)
• Future-oriented wildlife management in the Pike-San Isabel and Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forests under a warming climate: Anticipating change and facing uncertainties with a focus on avian species (Chapter 6)
• Community involvement to increase monitoring capacity for climate-sensitive resources (Chapter 7)
• Insects and diseases and climate change in Colorado Front Range forests (Chapter 8)
• Fire risk and climate change in the Colorado Front Range (Chapter 9)
• Infrastructure, flood risk, and sustainable operations in Front Range national forests (Chapter 10)
• Vulnerability of ecosystem services along the Colorado Front Range (Chapter 11)
• Effects of climate change on outdoor recreation benefits in the Pike-San Isabel and Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forests (Chapter 12)
• Conclusions (Chapter 13)

Citation

Hanberry, Brice B., ed. 2024. Colorado Front Range climate change vulnerability assessment for National Forests. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-438. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. https://doi.org/10.2737/RMRS-GTR-438