Fire history of white and Lutz spruce forests on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, over the last two millennia as determined from soil charcoal

Berg, Edward E.; Anderson, R. Scott

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2006.02.042

Cited by 38 publications

(63 citation statements)

References 27 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…2; Berg andAnderson 2006, Sherriff et al 2011). Outbreaks have occurred approximately once every 50 years for at least the last 250 years (Berg andAnderson 2006, Berg et al 2006). A series of warm summers led to a SBB outbreak of unprecedented size in the 1990s (Table 1; ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generalizable principles for ecosystem stewardship-based management of social-ecological systems: lessons learned from Alaska

Hansen¹

2014

E&S

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ABSTRACT. Human pressure could compromise the provision of ecosystem services if we do not implement strategies such as ecosystem stewardship to foster sustainable trajectories. Barriers to managing systems based on ecosystem stewardship principles are pervasive, including institutional constraints and uncertain system dynamics. However, solutions to help managers overcome these barriers are less common. How can we better integrate ecosystem stewardship into natural resource management practices? I draw on examples from the literature and two broadly applicable case studies from Alaska to suggest some generalizable principles that can help managers redirect how people use and view ecosystems. These include (1) accounting for both people and ecosystems in management actions; (2) considering historical and current system dynamics, but managing flexibly for the future; (3) identifying interactions between organizational, temporal, and spatial scales; (4) embracing multiple causes in addition to multiple objectives; and (5) acknowledging that there are no panaceas and that success will be incremental. I also identify next steps to rigorously evaluate the broad utility of these principles and quickly move principles from theory to application. The findings of this study suggest that natural resource managers are poised to overcome the barriers to implementing ecosystem stewardship and to develop innovative adaptations to socialecological problems.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generalizable principles for ecosystem stewardship-based management of social-ecological systems: lessons learned from Alaska

Hansen¹

2014

E&S

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Increases in summer air temperature and late-summer droughts, along with human disturbance, have been linked to the massive spruce bark beetle (Dendroctonus rufipennis) outbreak of the late 1990s Sherriff et al, 2011), which led to subsequent timber salvage (Jones, 2008). Berg and Anderson (2006) caution that overall drier conditions on the western Kenai Peninsula, combined with standing dead spruce stands, may alter the future fire regime of this region. Wetland drying (Klein et al, 2005) and establishment of woody vegetation in wetlands (Berg et al, 2009) may be attributed to warmer air temperatures and decreases in precipitation.…”

Section: Landscape Dynamics and Permafrost Thaw In The Western Kenai mentioning

confidence: 97%

Presence of rapidly degrading permafrost plateaus in south-central Alaska

et al. 2016

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. Permafrost presence is determined by a complex interaction of climatic, topographic, and ecological conditions operating over long time scales. In particular, vegetation and organic layer characteristics may act to protect permafrost in regions with a mean annual air temperature (MAAT) above 0 • C. In this study, we document the presence of residual permafrost plateaus in the western Kenai Peninsula lowlands of south-central Alaska, a region with a MAAT of 1.5 ± 1 • C . Continuous ground temperature measurements between 16 September 2012 and 15 September 2015, using calibrated thermistor strings, documented the presence of warm permafrost (−0.04 to −0.08 • C). Field measurements (probing) on several plateau features during the fall of 2015 showed that the depth to the permafrost table averaged 1.48 m but at some locations was as shallow as 0.53 m. Late winter surveys (augering, coring, and GPR) in 2016 showed that the average seasonally frozen ground thickness was 0.45 m, overlying a talik above the permafrost table. Measured permafrost thickness ranged from 0.33 to > 6.90 m. Manual interpretation of historic aerial photography acquired in 1950 indicates that residual permafrost plateaus covered 920 ha as mapped across portions of four wetland complexes encompassing 4810 ha. However, between 1950 and ca. 2010, permafrost plateau extent decreased by 60.0 %, with lateral feature degradation accounting for 85.0 % of the reduction in area. Permafrost loss on the Kenai Peninsula is likely associated with a warming climate, wildfires that remove the protective forest and organic layer cover, groundwater flow at depth, and lateral heat transfer from wetland surface waters in the summer. Better understanding the resilience and vulnerability of ecosystem-protected permafrost is critical for mapping and predicting future permafrost extent and degradation across all permafrost regions that are currently warming. Further work should focus on reconstructing permafrost history in south-central Alaska as well as additional contemporary observations of these ecosystem-protected permafrost sites south of the regions with relatively stable permafrost.

show abstract

“…Spruce bark beetle infestation in these regions has increased wildfire risk and raised concern about its consequences for recreation and aesthetic values (Ross et al 2001) and associated impacts on humans (Berg and Anderson 2006). Flint (2006) examined community perceptions regarding the spruce beetle impact on selected social, economic, and ecological parameters.…”

Section: Regional Societal Consequencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evidence and implications of recent and projected climate change in Alaska's forest ecosystems

et al. 2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. The structure and function of Alaska's forests have changed significantly in response to a changing climate, including alterations in species composition and climate feedbacks (e.g., carbon, radiation budgets) that have important regional societal consequences and human feedbacks to forest ecosystems. In this paper we present the first comprehensive synthesis of climate-change impacts on all forested ecosystems of Alaska, highlighting changes in the most critical biophysical factors of each region. We developed a conceptual framework describing climate drivers, biophysical factors and types of change to illustrate how the biophysical and social subsystems of Alaskan forests interact and respond directly and indirectly to a changing climate. We then identify the regional and global implications to the climate system and associated socio-economic impacts, as presented in the current literature. Projections of temperature and precipitation suggest wildfire will continue to be the dominant biophysical factor in the Interior-boreal forest, leading to shifts from conifer-to deciduous-dominated forests. Based on existing research, projected increases in temperature in the Southcentral-and Kenai-boreal forests will likely increase the frequency and severity of insect outbreaks and associated wildfires, and increase the probability of establishment by invasive plant species. In the Coastal-temperate forest region snow and ice is regarded as the dominant biophysical factor. With continued warming, hydrologic changes related to more rapidly melting glaciers and rising elevation of the winter snowline will alter discharge in many rivers, which will have important v www.esajournals.org 1 November 2011 v Volume 2(11) v Article 124 consequences for terrestrial and marine ecosystem productivity. These climate-related changes will affect plant species distribution and wildlife habitat, which have regional societal consequences, and trace-gas emissions and radiation budgets, which are globally important. Our conceptual framework facilitates assessment of current and future consequences of a changing climate, emphasizes regional differences in biophysical factors, and points to linkages that may exist but that currently lack supporting research. The framework also serves as a visual tool for resource managers and policy makers to develop regional and global management strategies and to inform policies related to climate mitigation and adaptation.

show abstract

Fire history of white and Lutz spruce forests on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, over the last two millennia as determined from soil charcoal

Cited by 38 publications

References 27 publications

Generalizable principles for ecosystem stewardship-based management of social-ecological systems: lessons learned from Alaska

Generalizable principles for ecosystem stewardship-based management of social-ecological systems: lessons learned from Alaska

Presence of rapidly degrading permafrost plateaus in south-central Alaska

Evidence and implications of recent and projected climate change in Alaska's forest ecosystems

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About