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Abstracts of Recent Papers on Climate Change and Land Management in the West, Prepared by Louisa Evers, Science Liaison and Climate Change Coordinator, BLM, OR-WA State Office.
Link to webinar recording.
Description: The avifauna within the Sky Islands of southeastern Arizona includes species found nowhere else in the United States, in part due to the availability of diverse habitats created by the mixing of Madrean and Cordilleran ecosystems. Neotropical migratory bird species visit these mountains, as well as many species typical of western North American montane forests. Birdwatchers from across the globe visit the region, providing a vibrant state and local ecotourism industry. Within the last two decades, the Sky Islands have been under increased stress associated with ongoing droughts and wildfires. Nearly every mountain range in the region has been impacted by wildfires. The largest wildfire was the 2011 Horseshoe Two Fire, which burned 90,307 hectares of the Chiricahua Mountains.
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Drawing on recent syntheses of the scientific evidence, this paper examines “myths” commonly used to
oppose climate- and wildfire-adaptation of fire-prone forests. We use an established framework
designed to counter science denial by recognizing the fallacy for each myth. Fallacies are false
arguments; there are several kinds of fallacies, including cherry picking (selecting only a portion of
facts to support a conclusion), false dichotomies or oversimplification (claiming only two possible
outcomes), circular arguments, or straw man (misdirection) arguments. Learning to recognize
logical fallacies and other characteristics of science denial is an essential component of any
assessment of arguments for and against proposed actions
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No combinations of salvage intensity and distribution from among the scenarios we explored were able to fully mitigate the negative effect on the bird community; however, the magnitude of declines in abundance and diversity was smaller than expected, and the majority of the species analyzed had a non-significant response. We recommend targeting salvage activities in the Sierra Nevada to those locations where snags pose a safety issue or where reforestation is most needed to conserve this fire-adapted bird community.
Webinar recording.
Description: A panel of experts will discuss why wildfires are on the rise, the role of climate change, the predicted fate of future forests, and ways that at-risk communities can adapt. Large fires are becoming more frequent and severe across the western US. Since 1984, annual burned forest area has increased by about 1,100%. Lives, property, and livelihoods are routinely threatened and burned landscapes can be left ecologically transformed. What is causing recent trends in fire activity? What will forests of the future look like? How can modeling wildfires and forest response guide adaptation strategies? These are among the questions to be explored. Panelists will also discuss the importance of tailoring fire and forest management to the local context, considering regionally specific factors like forest type, environmental conditions, and the presence of people.
Panelists: Forest ecologist Winslow Hansen (Cary Institute), Fire ecologist Phil Higuera (University of Montana), and Natural resource sociologist Catrin Edgeley (Northern Arizona University).
Visit ANREP 2020 Conference website.
The Association of Natural Resource Extension Professionals (ANREP) conference theme was: Place-Based and Future-Focused: Fulfilling the Land Grant Mission in an Evolving Landscape. It was held virtually May 23-26, 2021.
The conference offers abundant opportunities for professional growth and development. Presentations, field tours, workshops, poster displays and informal networking provide a variety of options for skill building, knowledge sharing, collaboration and idea generation in a welcoming atmosphere.
View videos.
Native Seeds: Supplying Restoration is a nine-part video series that explores the native seed supply chain in the western United States. Filmed over four seasons, this series weaves together footage of seed collectors, farmers, researchers, and land managers working to scale up the supply of native seeds to meet the growing restoration demand. We see the staggering scale of damage to vast landscapes and meet tenacious people who are finding creative, scrappy solutions to restore ecosystems.
Webinar recording.
Topic: Wildfire Smoke and Human Health – The Knowns and the Unknowns
Presenter: Sarah Henderson
How does wildfire smoke affect our health? Learn about what’s in wildfire smoke, the impacts on health, the evidence gaps, and effective health protection strategies. Presented by Dr. Sarah Henderson, Scientific Director of Environmental Health Services at BCCDC and of the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health (NCCEH), and Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia School of Population & Public Health.
Topic: Smoke Forecast Models – Making Informed Decisions
Presenter: Brian Wiens
Explore smoke forecast models with Brian Wiens, to increase your understanding of how they work and discover how to utilize these models to make informed decisions about your health.
Woodland encroachment is a global issue linked to diminished ecosystem services, prompting the need for restoration efforts. However, restoration outcomes can be highly variable, making it difficult to interpret the ecological benefits and risks associated with woodland-reduction treatments within semiarid ecosystems. We addressed this uncertainty by assessing the magnitude and direction of vegetation change over a 15-year period at 129 sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) sites following pinyon (Pinus spp.) and juniper (Juniperus spp.) (P–J) reduction. Pretreatment vegetation indicated strong negative relationships between P–J cover and the abundance of understory plants (i.e., perennial grass and sagebrush cover) in most situations and all three components differed significantly among planned treatment types. Thus, to avoid confounding pretreatment vegetation and treatment type, we quantified overall treatment effects and tested whether distinct response patterns would be present among three dominant plant community types that vary in edaphic properties and occur within distinct temperature/precipitation regimes using meta-analysis (effect size = lnRR = ln[posttreatment cover/pretreatment cover]). We also quantified how restoration seedings contributed to overall changes in key understory vegetation components. Meta-analyses indicated that while P–J reduction caused significant positive overall effects on all shrub and herbaceous components (including invasive cheatgrass [Bromus tectorum] and exotic annual forbs), responses were contingent on treatment- and plant community-type combinations. Restoration seedings also had strong positive effects on understory vegetation by augmenting changes in perennial grass and perennial forb components, which similarly varied by plant community type. Collectively, our results identified specific situations where broad-scale efforts to reverse woodland encroachment substantially met short-term management goals of restoring valuable ecosystem services and where P–J reduction disposed certain plant community types to ecological risks, such as increasing the probability of native species displacement and stimulating an annual grass-fire cycle. Resource managers should carefully weigh these benefits and risks and incorporate additional, appropriate treatments and/or conservation measures for the unique preconditions of a given plant community in order to minimize exotic species responses and/or enhance desirable outcomes.
View synthesis.
This synthesis documents what is known about the history, biology, ecology, and management of western juniper. This synthesis will provide guidance for defining long-term goals, setting management priorities, and developing management plans and strategies related to western juniper. It is separated into six major sections: 1) distribution and history of woodland expansion, 2) life history and biology, 3) ecology; 4) hydrology, 5) restoration and management, and 6) management guidelines.